Five Tools in my Life’s Toolkit

I started this blog in 2017 to tell . Funny stories like that time I got drunk for the first time and drunk dialed my mom, reflective stories about stupid choices and God’s redeeming love, and jaw-dropping tales like that one time, more like four times, random guys on the D.C. metro decided I was the perfect centerpiece to jerk off to. Ultimately, I have shared “ my life’s broken pieces sprinkled with silver lining perspective “ through personal narratives. And I want to keep doing that.

However, one of my 2020 blog goals is to share the broken pieces of other women’s stories sprinkled with silver lining perspectives. Hence, a new monthly series titled “WHAT’S IN YOUR TOOLKIT?” is coming to the blog. This series will feature up to three (3) women and a theme each month. Each woman will share one tool (a value, book, principle, role model, song, etc) from their life’s toolkit and how their tool of choice has helped them in navigating the theme of the month. Keeping with the ethos of the blog, but totally optional, each lady will include a short story. “WHAT’S IN YOUR TOOLKIT?” will start in February, and February’s theme is Mental Health. In anticipation of the series, this week, I am sharing five tools from my personal life’s toolkit

Integrity: I told a lie in my early 20s, and the ripple effect swept wide and deep. It was a burden I carried for five (5) years until I came clean to one of my besties. We were in her bathroom when I blurted out the truth. She was taking a shower, and I was putting makeup on. That was eight years ago. After that first confession, I spent the next 2 years gathering up my courage to call everyone else involved to confess and apologize.⁣ The first time I prayed to be a woman of integrity was more than a decade ago. Every time I did, it felt and fell flat. Not because God wasn’t listening, but because I knew that part of being a human with integrity and impeccable character is speaking the truth or doing what was necessary to correct a lie. ⁣I breathe easier, sleep better, trust deeper and love harder when my integrity is intact. I am always a work in progress, but integrity is a value I vow to have and groom in my toolkit for the rest of my life.

Rest: I was laying in bed one evening in December of 2017 panicking about 2018 when scripture verses from Psalm 127 dropped on my heart. “If God…