I am presently at the “I forget how long I’ve been in flannels and leggings and also when I last washed my hair” stage of social isolating. Also I think my left eye is beginning to twitch. Since the sun is shining, the air is warmer than it has been, and my wee dog, Joey, keeps asking, I decided to spend some time outside. It was glorious.

I ended up raking part of our small garden in the front of our house. I didn’t take very good care of it late last summer and into the fall, so it was covered in leaves and dead plants. It was pretty bad. Lo and behold, though, once I got some of the dead stuff off of it, I found many perennial plants that had already started growing, my tarragon, oregano, chives, strawberries…small, green, and relentlessly growing in the dark of last year’s mess.

I love the way nature presses on. Spring highlights this. There’s life everywhere. Even now, in her early days, there is fresh color, a determination to live and grow and take up the space left for it from last year’s harvest. God has been using this to encourage me to press on, to keep moving forward, to live and grow, and yes, even to take up the space that He has left for me.

Most importantly, I can do all of this within the support and love of a community, whether it’s my church, my family, my work friends, phone calls with my dad or group texts with my sisters in Canada. These are times that aren’t meant to be lived through alone even though social isolation is the theme of the days. I am so grateful for the internet and social media, for being able to easily stay in contact with the people in my life.

I’m also grateful for a God that speaks to me in intimate ways that He knows will light up my heart and encourage my spirit. Even in my messes, the places I’ve neglected or overlooked, God is still faithful, and growth is still possible, because He lives, and loves and works in my life.

He never changes, He’s the same yesterday, today and forever.

Because of this, I can press on.

Bless.