A year later.

It is disheartening to me to see that it has been an entire year since I last wrote on this blog. Or wrote in general. The constant noise of life, of love, and every other distraction everyday brings don't always make time for reflection.

Lately I have been thinking a lot about fairy tales. You know the story. Princess, White Knight, a Castle, a crown, happily ever after, and MOST importantly...a fabulous pair of "one of a kind" shoes. The world seems full of ideas about how happily ever after is supposed to look, where you are supposed to live, and when you need to "step it up" on the road to your fairy tale. For a 27-year-old female, at times these "suggestions" can become daunting.

I have been living my life, trying my best to follow God's plan for my place in the world right now while constantly pursuing His best in the long run. And we all make mistakes, we kiss the wrong frogs, we fall down the wrong rabbit holes and end up in a pile of mud...but the more I think about how life is supposed to look, the more I am convinced I could never be happy living in someone else's fairy tale.

Everywhere I look I'm asked when I am getting engaged, married, or settling down. To be completely honest, I have been discouraged many times feeling out of sync with my fairy tale. What have I done wrong be where I am today and not where I wanted to be, or thought I would be, or hoped God wanted me to be when I was this age? And how in the world do I get back on track?

To all you girls out there that are discouraged. Be it you are single, in a long-term relationship you feel is going no where, in a marriage where you feel the romance and fire has died...listen to me. Why in the world would you want someone else's story when you can write one that can only have one leading lady? This thought came to me today as I was sitting at a wedding shower. Anyone can marry the prince and live out the life the royal family instructs you to live, but not everyone can charge their own path, make a difference in their world...not some guys. There are so many people that need to hear my story and I'm just getting the courage to write it. If I were married, a wife, or a mother, I doubt anyone would hear it for years. There HAS TO BE a purpose while you are waiting for your happily ever after

And on the subject, I think it is more crucial today that I focus all of my energy on living happily right now regardless of others opinions of my life and relationships. I want to make this moment count and matter for the glory of God, and refuse to live with regrets...and let's just be honest. I would never let some "fairy godmother" pick out the outfit I'm wearing to a royal ball.

Write your own story. Forge your own path. And trust that God knows what He is doing, even when you haven't the slightest idea. God is working on your prince charming right now, whether he is in your life today or will walk into it tomorrow. And at the end of the day, the most important thing is that you have prepared yourself for your own grand ball. I plan to be the leading lady in my life, and to let aside my opinions of how I think my future should look because at the end of the day, it has never been up to me anyway.

But one day when I do get my fairy tale...I have no doubt God wouldn't want me to show up in anything less than glass slippers....