It's raining today

This week marks the one year anniversary of the end of "normal life" for all of us. But with this new round of spring showers comes a feeling that the world is on the verge of change, a refreshing sense of renewal after a year of hardship. There is a hope more tangible than there has been in a long while.

So this is something I wrote FOR US. For me & for my friends & for my family & for you. We've been through a lot. 

Many of us experienced a loss this year : a person, a job, a home, an opportunity. And many of us feel lost, ravaged by grief, by anxiety from being alone & now anxiety from being around people again. There's been confusion, hardship, frustration. We all have a story of what we've lost. But more importantly, we each have a story of how we've grown, how we're growing. The small steps we take every day to move forward, or just to stay sane. Wherever you find yourself on these spectrums of emotion and experience - it's ok to be there. But keep looking ahead & putting one foot in front of the other. Keep going. Learn to hope. Keep hoping. Remember all the good around you - the trees, the flowers, a bite of ice cream, the stars that shine every night, your best friend, that sentimental sweatshirt you love, a text from someone who cares... cling to the good. 

Don't give up on people. Pour into those around you. Tell them you care, tell them you love them, tell them they matter & that you're thankful for them. 

Don't give up on God. He is sustenance & hope & courage & strength in times when we wonder why we have to go through this & what good it could possibly do for us. He lovingly guides us through the darkest times. & He promises a day of complete renewal. It's a promise we can cling to, because He is faithful and His mercies are new every morning.

it's raining today like it was a year ago
when we packed up and all went home
said our goodbyes
not knowing what was to come
and closed our doors
haunted by the unknown

the rain that poured,
it matched our tears
and maybe it was a doleful indicative
of what approached in the following year

now, the clouds open again
this time, a baptism
the world on the cusp of an end
we emerge, carrying the sorrows of the year...and a new beginning

we emerge, carrying the sorrows of the year
        the loss
                the grief
                         the anxiety
                                  the pain
lingering tears,
now seasoned with hope
we emerge,
dancing in the rain.

written 12 March 2021