PART ONE

3 PARTS: Welcome

I AM FROM...

My version of the original mentor text

I am from broken wood,

from stain and oxidation.

I am from the bleachers.

(metallic, obstructing

it tasted like sweat

I am from the blue hydrangeas,

The beach grass

Whose scratchy arms I remember

as if they were my own.

3 PARTS: Bio

3 PARTS: Image

I am from a beautiful mother who had six children and still managed to love all of us with her whole heart. Even though my single mom was financially destroyed by my dad during the divorce, she made cheap pasta nights, and walking because we had no car an adventure. As God would continue to provide for us, we maintained joy. The place I called home would have been a nightmare to most of the privledge community at TCU, but for me, it was finally a place where I belonged and didn't have to say an overwhelming amount of thank you's for someone else's hospitality. Being from empty parental promises and no money means I came from a place of hope and love, a place that focused on the things we did have in the world, instead of the things we wished for.

3 PARTS: Text

PART TWO

3 PARTS: Welcome

Where I Am...

This randomly came up in my Instagram feed as I'm currently struggling with my family's move to Nashville from Massachusetts. I'm walking a very fine line between supporting my mo during this difficult time of assimilation and wanted to feel broken and angry that my upbringing is now so out of reach. (WOAH! SYNCHRONICITY!)

3 PARTS: Bio

3 PARTS: Image

I'm in a place where my depression sucks, I don't really have a place that feels like home, and I'm lonely. Pretty brutal. At least it sounds pretty brutal when you say it like that. The reality of the matter is that I have Jesus, and no matter where I am at, he meets me. The only important component of my current whereabouts (emotional or physical) is where I'm at in my walk with the Lord. So here: I went from being in the world every day and gaining so much spiritual nourishment from that, to having to force myself to find time and chat with Jesus. Its unfortunate, but I also think its just part of being a christian in this very broken world. Some days, its easy to marvel and be full of appreciation for all that God has done in my life, and others, the world seems messed up and I want to know why things happen the way they do. With all this, the moral is Jesus being my best friend is where I'm at, and thats really the only think I'm confident in knowing at this time in my life.

3 PARTS: Text

PART THREE

3 PARTS: Welcome

I AM GOING...

Three years into college and the hope is slowly melting away. It sounds absurd, but I had to idealistic plan where everything in my life was going to happen a certain way and I was going to chase my dreams, find my people and be the most fulfilled I've ever been. So... if none of this has really happened yet... how am I supposed to know where I am going?

3 PARTS: Bio

3 PARTS: Image

It came to me during the process of moving. Moving from my childhood home to a townhouse in the middle of nowhere. Moving from a college dorm to an unfurnished college home. Moving from a young Grace with innocence in my eyes, to a Grace whose tired and struggling. So I realized, I know where I am going based on the type of chairs I am buying. After just moving into my new family home, there was a lot of furniture that needed to be bought. One of the essentials being chairs. My mom and I decided on chairs that looked almost identical to something that would have been in my last house. They're blue with delicate white accents, much like the Cape Cod style ones my mom boasted about when we lived in Massachusetts. Because of that purchase I knew we were heading to a place that was going to be a B-version of our Massachusetts home. Now, as I move into my college home, and I'm shopping for cheap, used, manageable chairs that will only last for a year or two. Why? Because where I'm going is a temporary state of young adulthood where I'm more worried about finances and practicality than having the most impressive interior design skills. The day I find a set of chairs that are comfortable for a family, but stylish enough for friends to appreciate, are a little more pricey and will surely last a lifetime, I will know exactly where I'm heading. So based on my most recent chair purchase, I'm just going into another phase of life that I've pretty gone through for two years now, and will continue to go through for two more. When my chairs go, so will I.

3 PARTS: Text