by Hope
I may have shared this before (the image that is,) but felt it was a good reminder especially this time of year. The holidays are hard for lots of people. I know they are for me, especially this year.
At this time last year, I was happily engaged, planning to take my engagement photos in just a couple of weeks and setting a wedding date. We were all going to be together for Thanksgiving here in Georgia after years of going to Texas. And we were going to have Thanksgiving with my Uncle and other extended family over in Clemson.
I had lost my dream job, but had gone right into a contract job that was supposed to go permanent. Everything wasn’t perfect, but it was pretty good. Well, excellent really. I was so in love and so ready for the next phase of my life.
Never Could of Predicted
I never in a million years would have guessed what all would go wrong in the next several weeks.
My beloved uncle died just a few weeks after Thanksgiving.
My fiancé ended our five year relationship over text the same night, just one short week before he was to move to Georgia.
My contract job would back out of becoming permanent and give me an end date early in the coming year.
As I look back at that time, it was so, so dark. So dark. I did not want to live.
One Year Later
One year later, and I would say I am just now starting to recover from the beat down I took mentally and emotionally. My heart still aches. And I cry out to God on a regular basis as to “why me?” Why this?
But as I work every day this month to focus on gratitude, I realize that this image is spot on. And as I sit looking out my back door, watching the dogs play, feeling the breeze and fresh air flow through my house, I realize…I am SO MUCH to be grateful for. So much!
Even on my worst day, my hardest day, my lowest moment, I have been so blessed with amazing kids, a glass half full attitude, and an ability to see adventure is absolutely everything that comes my way.
I pray that this holiday season truly blesses you. That you see hope for your future. That you can learn to appreciate what you have in spite of what you don’t have. And that you will find that the smiles around you light up your heart.
Hope is a resourceful, solutions-driven online business manager with over two decades of experience helping clients streamline operations, manage projects, and grow their businesses through digital marketing and technology.
But life has a way of rewriting your plans.
A year ago, Hope made the decision to move in with her aging parents full time – a season she wouldn’t trade, even as it came with its own financial and emotional weight. Earlier this year, she lost her mother, and is now walking the tender, disorienting path of grief while learning what “forward” looks like from here.
Hope came to the Blogging Away Debt community in 2015 as a single mom raising five foster and adoptive children. She’s written through job changes, financial setbacks, and the bittersweet transition to an empty nest. Her kids are finding their footing in the world now – and so is she.
Rooted in faith and fueled by the same perseverance she’s brought to every hard season, Hope is ready to face her finances with fresh eyes and an honest pen. She believes that clarity, courage, and community can change the trajectory of anyone’s story including her own.
She lives in Austin, TX with her dad, loves adventures with her dog Addie, and is figuring out, one step at a time, what this next chapter is meant to be.
So, what do you think ?