Silver Linings!!

Here's another mushy blog. Not about love per se, but about life. So maybe not mushy, just reflective.

Yesterday as we sat on the mountaintop waiting for the sun to set. I was looking at the sky and was in awe at how beautiful it was. There was nothing but blue with a few white wispy clouds. We were laughing, talking, listening to music and watching Sam dance. LOL. A couple of minutes later, I looked up and saw huge, dark clouds moving over the sun, bringing shade and darkness where there had just been bright light. I thought for sure, we would pack up and leave right then without getting to experience what I had been told was going to be an exquisite sunset. But I was assured that it would all pass over quickly and that we would indeed see what we had been waiting for. A couple more minutes went by and I was growing more concerned that rain would come and catch us. The others didn't seem to care and just carried on as usual. I figured there was nothing I could do, being with them, so I put it out of my head and went back to talking and laughing as well.

Several minutes later, I looked up to see the brighest light coming from behind a really big cloud. It was a beautiful sight. The whole top of the cloud looked as though it was lit up in silver. I smiled and thought, "there's my silver lining". I knew then that the storm was going to pass without interrupting our plans. I put away my worry and watched as the sun made it's way from BEHIND the cloud to in FRONT of the cloud. I watched as the cloud disappeared and allowed the sun to do his job, shine. And we got to enjoy the sunset that we went for.

I said that to say this.

There have so many times in my life (as well as yours) where we were going about our day living life as we normally do. We work, we take care of our families, we go from day to day doing what it is we all do. Then from out of nowhere we look up to see dark clouds in our lives, that seem to threaten the plans we had. We turn to worry, we turn to fear, we fret and wring our hands. And sometimes when we go to friends with our concerns, they tell us what I was told. It will pass, you'll be okay. But in that moment, it doesn't feel like you'll be okay. It feels like your life is being turned around and not for the good.

An example of a time like this in my life was when I had just escaped domestic violence. Don't get me wrong, it was a blessing to get out of that situation, but I went right into homelessness. I lived in my car for three weeks before I got help from anyone. I slept in Walmart parking lot, I slept in a church parking lot, I went through some terrible times that I'd rather not discuss beyond this point. At the time I was basically making my home in that SUV. So every day I would say this out loud, several times a day. "It won't always be this way".

When I first started saying it, I kind of believed it. I wanted to believe it, but it seemed like I couldn't see past the end of my nose. But I still said it. I couldn't see tomorrow, much less the life I have now, but I still said it many times a day.

After those three weeks in my car, I managed, with help, to get into a safe house during the trial and then got a job, got on my feet and got my own home. That saying was my silver lining. It was the thing that moved the dark cloud away from the sun. The brightness came back, light shone in my life again, and things turned around. Did it happen as quickly as yesterday. LOL. I wish. No, it didn't. It's taken hard work, belief that it would turn around, dedication to my goals and dreams and a lot of talking to myself when things looked bad. My life isn't perfect, there are still times when I go through things that threaten my sun, but I try to remember where I used to be and look at where I am and then I can see my silver lining and the sun peeking out.

Whatever you face today, no matter what it is. Trust me, it's only temporary. It WILL pass. Life is always changing. It will move away and you will see the silver lining that will eventually allow the sun to shine again. I promise. I am living proof. I know that a lot of you have heard my testimony, but some haven't and I wanted to share a very small portion of it with you this morning. You WILL see the sun shine again. Just believe it. If any of you need an encouraging word today or any day and you can't find it in yourself or in a friend, message me please and I will be happy to speak with you and lift you up. I've been in the darkest places in life but have lived to talk about it. So I'm here for any one of you who need me. Just reach out and I'll be there, I promise. I love you all.

Remember to work hard and Dream Big!!

Much love,

Christy