A New Season

I’ve been silent on this blog for a very long time. While I have written volumes in journals, in the margins of books, filled my Bible with silent prayers; I have not written words to share. These last months have been challenging, full of change and deep introspection. I write this from Iowa – a place we have visited often, but that we now call home – it’s a return to my husband’s family roots and eventually, to his family farm. The series of events that brought us back here are nothing short of miraculous. However, the path here was not always easy and had many unexpected twists and turns. As we prepare for this new season of life, it is fitting that I am finding my voice again as Advent is about to begin – a season of reflection and anticipation.

It has been a time of much change – new jobs for both my husband and I, new school for the kids, our second rental house in three months. We’ve left the Indiana college town that we loved and devoted ourselves to for over a decade. We’ve left friends, family, and neighbors that we adored and who stood by us in the good and bad times. We’ve even left behind my beloved “Tickle Tree” – the weeping willow in our backyard that inspired the name of this blog.

But in this new season, we’ve returned to family roots, to the land that has been in the family for nearly 90 years and to the river town that was home to my husband’s great-grandparents. While we both have been fortunate to find employment here, we will also be able to spend time on the land. We are in the early stages of planning our farm house now, which brings me great joy.

We are creating a life that we have chosen, very deliberately, with rolling farm land and gravel roads as our daily scenery. This is not a choice for everybody, we are aware of that, but it is perfect for us. Time spent out in the pasture, with the wind whipping around you and the large, open sky above is a sacred gift. Here, in this wide-open land, we breathe a little deeper and feel more connected to what really matters.

So, here I am, in Iowa, as winter unfolds and Advent begins, in this new season of my life: