The Countdown is (Officially) On

I love a tangible countdown.

The first time I ever went to Florida, I made a paper chain to count down, and I think it was over 100 links long when I made it. By the time it shrunk to a mere handful of skinny stapled papers, my suitcase was stuffed with half my wardrobe.

Well, Florida is not in my immediate future (which is unfortunate, since winter still is), but this week I decided to start the official daily countdown to forty. I did it mostly because our living room chalkboard still said Happy Easter, and I wasn't sure what to put in its place. A countdown seemed the best choice. 

So it began at 34 days, and when the alarm goes off this morning, I'll move the number to 32. Just over a month left in my thirties. 

My friend Pat asked me if I'm nervous, and I'm not - at least not yet. I'm excited for excuses to celebrate, not nervous about sliding into a new decade. 

I am, however, very reflective these days. I'm working on a writing project that takes me back through some of the biggest lessons I've learned in these first forty years. Some of those lessons have been deep and painful. Others have been fun and exciting. But as I write, I see how they have all woven together to form this first part of my life. I never fully realized the extent of the weaving until now.

One of the themes that has become so significant and dear to me within the last year is the importance of our stories. I have been speaking on it more and more, and it thrills my heart so much to see men and women beginning to grasp that truth. They're beginning to see that their lives have not been insignificant, even though they may have always felt that way.

In writing parts of my own story, I've been thankful over and over for the ways I kept a chronicle of my heart for over half my life. I've been able to go back and read prayers and stories I'd forgotten (at least in that much detail). The lessons were clear to me, but I see them in brighter color when I revisit the memories of my journals.

I say all of this because I want to pause to remind you that your story matters too. You may have more than forty years of memories or you may be a decade or two behind me on the journey. But regardless of where you are on that timeline, the happenings of your life are significant, and the memories of them will be even more precious to you as time goes by. 

As I head into this last month of my thirties, I'm profoundly grateful for all the things God has taught me so far. I'm grateful for the memories tucked into the fun and the frustrations alike. The happiness and the heartaches matter equally.

I'm grateful I began to record my stories before I even realized why it was important to do so. God went ahead of me on that one! Most of all, I'm grateful that I'm able to see how He's been weaving. I'm eager to see what He has ahead!