Life.

Mostly, everyone I know is carrying some sort of burden.
Maybe it's a mistake they made, or a concern they have over a friend who's hurting.
Or maybe, this weight they carry - like so many rocks in a bag,
is connected to a tragedy...
something unforseen that they had nothing, or everything, to do with
and now they just can't unload the guilt or the shame that has attached itself to them. 
Burdens for sure and yet...even with the weighty-est (is that a word?) of concerns, there is still hope.

Always Hope.

This week has felt monstrous for many in our corner of the world.
Lots of questions, concerns, & curiosity about the future.
And then the grief that is specific to having to say good-bye to someone, sometimes way too early, who is deeply loved.
Our friends are carrying burdens and sometimes it's hard to know
how to love them well in the midst of it.
But I've learned, because I've stumbled down this path before,
that hope is the best gift I can hold out to  my friends who are hurting. 
And only because hope has been passed along to me -- do I have anything to offer anyone else.

Robin, Becky & I meeting John Perkins

One of my new heros is a man named John Perkins. 
He's one of the most inspiring people I've ever encountered and at 80 years old, has lived thru and seen it all.
The child of a sharecropper who received a beating that almost took his life -- because of narrow thinking about a person's value being connected to the color of his skin.
Recently, I heard JP (as we like to call him) challenge thousands of people to live lives aware of the burdens, but not held back or down by them.
He said that if we've been given LIFE, like your feet on the floor this morning and that breath you just drew into your lungs, then our "job" is to pass that life along, as long as we're allowed to.  I think this sounds like Hope!

And here's the crazy thing about life -- while others have struggled - I've had a really great 4 days.
Isn't that how it often goes, with both things being true -- suffering and joy co-existing?
I continue to be so grateful for the ongoing support of so many who are praying for my day to day "stuff" (getting back to work, being present for my family, regaining strength).  These prayers have gotten me thru.  These prayers have given me life!

Life, passing on life. 
Hope becoming the burden-lifter!
This I think I can do.
This I want to do!

Gateful,
Suze