A New Approach

I feel like I haven't been using this blog to the fullest extent of its potential. I was going to use it to share my writings but it seems to me that that may not be the best use for it. Sure, I'll share poems and lyrics and such, but as far as stories go, I'll share those in other ways. I've also been using this blog to share how God has been working in my life, but I want to expand and use it to express the daily goings-on, as well. So, here goes.

This month marks the 10th month that I have spent living on my own in a rented basement apartment. I have loved the freedom and independence that comes with living on my own and am glad for the experience it has given me as I prepare for the next step in life. I've learned a lot during these past few months, including calculating how much food costs and how long it will last me, paying bills on time, not buying things I can't afford and how to handle household problems. Although I had my fair share of issues while living with my parents (and I learned a lot from them, as well), there's nothing quite as unnerving as being temporarily displaced while you're on your own. Thankfully, God provided places for me to sleep while I helped my landlords get their basement (and my apartment) back to normal. The week of July 4th, one of their pipes leaked while they were away on vacation and the water got in under the carpet, which consequently had to be ripped out and replaced. It took several days to dry out the basement and I was in charge of doing so until they returned. At the same time, I was in charge of house-sitting and house-cleaning for my employer, who was also out of town that same week. Needless to say, that was the most stressful week for me so far this year. Having to be in two places at once was something I hadn't really ever had to do. As I juggled my responsibilities between the two places, I realized that I was getting my first real taste of adulthood. I began to view it as God's way of preparing me for the future. After all, if I couldn't handle this now with His help, I was doomed. (Okay, maybe not doomed, but you get the idea.) Thankfully, things were put back in order as quickly as possible and I have come away with some important information and experience (in case I ever need to know what to do at a later point in time).

30 hours of my time during the week is spent at work.  The rest is spent with my boy and friends, at church, at care group, at the Writer's Guild and around the house.  However, I want to devote more time to writing my stories, which have been suffering from neglect due to my busy schedule.  While I admit there have been times when I have been tempted to just quit and throw it all away, I haven't.  The characters and story that I first developed in high school have come a long way.  The story itself has gone through many edits, revisions, even entire scrappings and rewritings.  The characters, likewise, have taken their time in disclosing themselves to me and I feel that with all the progress I have managed to muster up in the past few months it would be unfair to do such a horrid thing to them as they have become so much a part of me.  I want them to be known, for their story to be told.  So many of them are based on real people.  So, you will know their story.  It's decided.