I just got a notice that I’ve been blogging here for one full year. In that I haven’t amassed even 100 posts here, I’m not sure how FULL the year has been, but even so, I’m so thankful to all of you who have stopped by and read my words. I don’t know if it’s so much in vogue these days to do an anniversary post, but I’m pretty happy about being able to write again, so I’m doing it anyway.

Here are some of my favorite posts from the past year.  They may not be some of my most popular, but they are the ones that I’m the most proud of. Thank you again for taking the time to read and share my words. I look forward to doing more of that in the coming year.

• Scarlet is the New White – “But my story, just like the story of the characters in OITNB, just like your story, is not strictly one of villainy and bad choices. It’s about redemption. It’s about forgiveness and love and joy. It’s about owning our bad decisions, but also about owning our right decisions as well.”
• The Black Dress – “And despite all of my hesitations because of the differences between this wedding and my first, I knew that I didn’t want to wait any longer to be his wife. I was in love with this man, and I didn’t want to wait another day to be married to him.”
• 7 Ways To Honor Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day – “Don’t be afraid to talk about it. Certainly not all parents who experience a miscarriage share that information. And some people aren’t particularly chatty about the death of a child. But if a parent brings it up, please don’t ignore that. It doesn’t have to be a long, drawn-out conversation, but at least acknowledge that they mentioned their child. Saying something simple like, “I’m so sorry,” shows that you heard what they said and that you care about them and the humanity of the baby that they lost.”
• Empty – This was a poem I wrote shortly after Elliott’s passing.
• The Desperate Woman – “She was married to the man who had kissed her. The baby she had considered aborting became a cherished dream that was lost to pre-eclampsia. Relationships with her family were healing. Relationships with her children were improving. Relationships with her friends were starting to mend. But her relationship with God still felt distant.”
• Always After An Affair – “Always loses a lot of its shine when it’s consistently not something that you really want to do. Always becomes tedious when it’s separated from happiness. Always is tenuous when you have to grind it out.”

I’d love it if you’d share one of the best things that you’ve written or read this year in the comments!