Greetings, friends!
It has been an eventful week for all of us. Taylor Swift shut down Ticketmaster, I met Jesus on a red carpet (you can see more about this event and my Taco Bell afterparty here) and today I am celebrating Thanksgiving break early with an endometrial ablation procedure! Wow so many things! (Also if you have been in my particular lady situation, drop your recovery suggestions below) This is a depiction of future me below as I will absolutely be winging it the next few days:
But on a brighter note, we have entered Feast Week, and I couldn’t be more grateful for the food in my future.
And for you, of course! I hope you have the most lovely break and please remember there is no shame in holiday (or any day) sweatpants.
Okay! Let’s do some holiday treasures:
💧Do you have tiny humans who are asking question about baptism? Let this post from Meredith Anne Miller be a guide to you in this process!
📕If you’re wondering how writing a book is going, Sarah Bessey summed up my experience well in her recent post.
🛍️ Wanna get an early start on holiday shopping? Are you a basic-b who loves some Texas jewels and helping a good cause? Be sure to check out Kendra Scott this weekend and you can get 20% off your purchase with the code GIVEBACK-DCRYL! Use this code at checkout between today (Friday, Nov 18) and Sunday (Nov 20) to save 20% off and benefit Amarillo Angels, an organization in the Texas Panhandle that exists to support the foster community and is run by my momma, who is perfect.
🍲One of the best examples of practical community care I’ve seen recently was in Anne Helen Petersen’s newsletter last week: she put together a shortcut for caring for others that’s essentially a survey with specific questions for how you can step in and help when those we love need it. She even created a Google Form template so you can copy it and share it with your close pals!
💗 This story is couple of years old but has just made its way to my algorithm - so if you need a lil heartwarming treat, check out this 5 year old boy who invited his entire kindergarten class to his adoption.
Twitter is still alive! For now.
have so many questions about this one
That’s a wrap for this week’s newsletter - enjoy your holiday, friends! Don’t forget to drop off your treasures in the comments before you go. Happy Thanksgiving!
I'm late to this party but had to comment about the procedure. You should (and no worries if you feel like you're already recovered and this is a moot point...it isn't) go into your backyard on a moonlit night with a thong on (and your fuzziest bathrobe--I'm not daft) and light your stockpile of diaper sized pads on fire while you howl and dance (think Betty White in the Proposal). This, friend, is the first day of the rest of your pad-free life!! Enjoy the freedom of standing up with reckless abandon ANY TIME OF THE MONTH...you earned it. Sleep nekkid if you want!!! Wear white after labor day!! Go crazy. Best thing I ever did. That is all.
Re.: Hobbit-Maxxing … As a kid I read J. R. R. Tolkien's LORD OF THE RINGS books and THE HOBBIT, and I was hooked forever. In a gray world of severe teenage depression, the hobbits' tale lifted me out of the fug and I could see the sun a little. I said to myself, "I want this world!" Later, when I read C. S. Lewis's space trilogy, I said to myself, "Now I know where my good place is!" I began to detect the fragrance of God, and my entire soul responded with the memories of good things.
Now I'm a retired college instructor (English writing and communication skills) and writing novels that aim to show others those good things like Tolkien And Lewis did for me. I want to write healing stories, adventures for reading pleasure, mixing God with empirical science (and a little fantasy), and directing souls like mine toward Recovery.
God has granted that I am a traditionally published author now. A reader of my first book in the Soul's Warfare series, THE HOT MARBLE, encouraged me by saying, "I could see light at the end of my darkness." Yay!
God has also granted me another thing: I am a spiritual hobbit on a writing quest! Mordor and Mount Doom await, but the Spirit, that Holy Hound, will see me through to the good place.