In the words of Stefan from SNL….it’s been a weird few years. Since my last post (which was still one of the most intense experiences of my life) I have:

-had a son!!!!! (he’s life changing. I love him so much it scares me.)
-continued to survive in a pandemic that has changed the world as we know it (and you have to!)
-healed completely from jaw surgery and got my braces off (I never thought this day would arrive)
-completed my PhD (Dr. Mize makes me swoon)
-completed a second master’s degree (I’m a masochist)
-nearly lost my mom 5 weeks after my son was born and supported her through a major surgery, a month in the ICU, three months of rehab in a nursing home, and months of chemotherapy and radiation (and she’s doing well now!)
-celebrated our son’s first birthday (I have no concept of how time works anymore)
-started a job (first job out of 6 years of graduate school)
-made the difficult decision to leave that job and leap into the unknown (???)
-co-wrote a book on suicide prevention for the church (more on this later!)

I have wrestled with many things and walked away sore, but stronger. I’m excited to get back into the blog for 3 reasons:

1. I made a bet with a friend to either a) blog every week or b) write 500 words of something every week until Easter. If I don’t get the words down by the following Monday of the week, I owe him a beer. Taylor, you’re on.
   
2. I’ve had an intense few months that ultimately led me to leave a job sooner than I had planned. I’ve been spending a lot of time thinking about how I want to spend my 4,000 weeks and in the fear and excitement of leaping into faith (I can’t not think of The Good Place when I say it that way), I’ve felt a spark I want to nurture in my writing.
   
3. I’d love to foster community here – learn from other bloggers, dig a little deeper in to the wonderings of others. Something about blogging feels better than screaming into the void on Twitter. And since we probably won’t be doing that for much longer – I’d like to do a better job of calling this website home. And I’d love for you to join me.

Peace,

Mary Chase