The Saturday Six

One.

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I've linked to Kara Tippetts' blog often in the past few months. I learned of her as her battle with cancer nearly reached its conclusion and she made her way to Heaven. And in those short weeks, her blog posts and her resolve to live well and love big to her very last breath inspired me to want to read her book, The Hardest Peace. I ordered it a couple of weeks ago, and I read it in two days. {And through many tears.}

The book wasn't what I expected. It was even better. I anticipated reading the details of her cancer journey and how she made peace with the hardest thing of cancer. That's what I thought the title meant. But Kara's words were much less about cancer and much more about inviting Jesus into your hard. Whatever your hard might be. She showed us many hard parts of her life. Abused as a child, abusing substances as a teen, learning to love and trust a man unconditionally, learning to parent in a healthy way that hadn't been modeled for her, hurting from betrayal within a church, working to plant a church, almost losing their home, and then cancer. And through each of those hards...learning to  live big and love well. And in a masterful way, she wove the details of her story seamlessly into an invitation for you to apply the principles to your story, whatever it may be.

Kara chose her words carefully and wrote as though each reader was a friend she only would have the chance to speak with for a few moments. She didn't know, as she wrote, if she would even live to hold the completed book in her hands. And that unknown made her write fiercely, with rawness and urgency for her readers to seek forgiveness, crave restoration, offer every ounce of love, and not stop entering the grace of Jesus.

I've never read a book like Kara's. A volume of wisdom, offered in grace, saturated in love, and conveying the truth that the hardest peace is a Divine Peace, and she found it...and fought to keep it. It's the book every young adult should read heading out into the real world. Forget the obligatory graduation volumes of "timeless wisdom." This book packs real life wisdom. It's the book every couple {dating, engaged or married} should read to learn the corners of love no pre-marital counseling book covers. It's the book every man and every woman from any age and any life station should read just to be richer in life.

Ryan's not a reader, but when I closed the book, I handed it to him and said, "I won't ask you to read many books in life, but please read this one." And he is. If I ever finish making my top 50 books people should read...this one goes on it. And by on it, I mean at the top.{Bonus: there are some conversation-starter questions at the end of each chapter. I skipped over them as I read, but when Ryan began, he asked if we could talk about them together. We are having the best time talking about the answers to our questions every night after he reads!}

Two.

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I love a good DIY project. And I love burlap. So when the two collide {and the added bonus of EASY DIY...} it's just a good day. Love this table runner from Thistlewood Farms. Love it that it can be customized for any color scheme.

Three.

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This weekend can be a tough one if you don't have a dad. Whether you never knew him, he left at some point, or he has died, it's hard to live in the "celebrate dad" saturated weekend when it not only doesn't apply to you, but it reminds you of a void in your life. This post by Bonnie Gray {who is insightful and understands this topic firsthand} has some really helpful information. It's also a great reminder for those of us who do still have our dads...to remember to reach out in empathy to those who are having a rough time of it this weekend.

Four.

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This article offered suggestions for cutting calories from your diet without forcing you to live without things you love. Some of it just shows you how many calories you can cut by opting for smaller servings {which can be surprising reading!!}, but it also offers suggestions for substitutions that save calories as well!

Five.

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Back when I was first mentally experimenting with the idea of the capsule wardrobe, you might remember that the first example I found online was a largely neutral wardrobe. My initial thought was to duplicate everything she had, principally speaking, by finding my own version of every piece in there. I saw her gray sweatshirt partway down the list and went on an internet hunt for something similar. I found this on the Lindsay Letters website. I interviewed Lindsay months ago after I found out she did all the lettering for Shauna Niequist's books. Lindsay was fun...kind of wanted her to move into my neighborhood so we could be friends...and one of my very favorite coffee mugs is one she sent me after the interview. It says "Present Over Perfect" - in her beautiful lettering. So you can only imagine my joy when I saw the sweatshirt. Whether or not I go neutral with a capsule wardrobe, I would love to buy this sweatshirt! {Start the shopping list now!}

Six.

This has been a hard week in the Shaffer house. So many of our friends are going through profound losses. We've been to the funeral home so many times this week that I think we're becoming my parents. So hard to watch our friends hurt. But I will tell you that as I've heard Ryan share stories after work each day, of how he has tried to walk with others in their own hurt, and reach out to help even when his own heart is sad...well, I'm just so proud of the man he is and so thankful that I get the privilege to do this life with him. This song = how I feel about Ryan.