Category: My Life

Moving and shaking: Hello, 2015!

~ Laura ~ 5 Comments

I’d like to think I’m a mover and shaker of sorts. Maybe because I’m stubborn and passionate about what I do. Maybe it’s because I really do want to do great things with all I’ve been given. Who knows. Making goals (and sharing them) has always helped me focus on what is most important, so I present to you . . .

My Master Plan for Greatness in 2015

 

This fall has seen great improvement in self-discipline and diligence. Now it seems important to continue those practices and challenge myself with new, specific goals for this year. Why? Because I’ve been gifted with the ability and grace to do some marvelous deed nobody else can accomplish. So have you. It’s our responsibility to respond to our call with gratitude and graciousness because after all, we hardly deserve everything we have access to in life.

This year I want to focus on revealing the greatness of God through the witness my life is to people around me. I want to be thoroughly done with anything that takes me away from greatness and run after whatever God has in store for me with reckless abandon. I want to live differently than the world in quiet but powerful defiance of the status quo society prescribes. In short, I want to work on becoming a saint.

A word that keeps coming up is “abandon”. I first saw this in action during my trip working with Mother Teresa’s sisters, and I am not kidding you. The word just keep coming up. You know how people choose a word for their theme each year? Last year I chose “peace”. And looking back, I can see how I have come to be at peace with whatever God has in store. Of course I have my moments. We all do. That’s what dance parties and adoration are for. But internally, I do feel an sense of unshakable peace.

This year “abandon” is the word. It’s not something that means a whole lot to pick, except that it’s been coming up a lot. So I feel like it’s time to work on getting rid of any pride I might have and allowing room for God’s plan – thus “abandoning” myself to his providence and timing.

We’ll see how that goes.

To kick off the year of abandonment, enjoy reading my somewhat ambitious hopes of future accomplishments.

2015AbandonTheme

Discipline

  1. Make it a habit to read 30 minutes/day from books that will challenge and inspire.
  2. Finish at least 12 good books.
  3. Complete 1 solid hour of homework during the day (when needed) before starting less necessary activities.
  4. Write down events and meetings in my planner and check it in the morning so nothing is forgotten.
  5. Intentionally track and record income and spending. This includes making a budget, not splurging often, and planning trips to the store.
  6. Have accountability meetings weekly.

Writing

  1. Submit an average of 4 posts/month to Live Action News (about one/week).
  2. Post an average of at least one non-link-up article a week.
  3. Continue brainstorming book ideas.
  4. “Give people a reason for my hope” by exploring deeper topics in my writing.
  5. Share an update on goals at the beginning of each month.

Media Usage

  1. Allow myself to check emails up to 3 times/day.
  2. Allow myself to check Facebook 1 time/day.
  3. Remember to ask for prayer intentions every Sunday.
  4. Share inspiring quotes and positive news, not so much on negative stuff.
  5. Go one day each week completely technology free (unless homework requires it).

Exercise

  1. Complete at least 2 5k’s.
  2. Get my 5k time under 30 minutes.
  3. Schedule time to work out 5 times/week.
  4. Research and consider participating in a triathalon.

Prayer/Spiritual Life

  1. Schedule 30 minutes/day for silent prayer or journaling.
  2. Read daily readings over breakfast each morning.
  3. Print examen to reflect on each evening.
  4. Say the litany of humility more often, and consciously work on putting others before myself.
  5. Spend at least 3 hours/week in adoration.
  6. Go to confession 1 time each month.

That’s a wrap. Who knows what this year will bring, but I have a feeling there are great things in store. Each month I’ll share where I am with you, and I’d love to hear about what your goals are for the year. I’m so excited to share this year with you!

If you have any suggestions or questions, fire away. May your year be filled with adventures and joy as God writes our stories. I look forward to being here more often to share my thoughts with you and create a conversation and community or sorts as we work on becoming the people God made us to be.

To Life,

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Looking back, pushing forward: Goodbye, 2014!

~ Laura ~ Leave a comment

Ah, the end of the year – time to reflect on the past and look ahead!

2014 was a good year full of growing. I have learned so much, lived a lot, gotten to know some incredible people, and generally enjoyed becoming more fully who God created me to be. It’s too much to put into one post, so read on for a recap of sorts summarized in 12 of my favorite pictures from the year. Find more photo summaries over at Dwija’s!

January

I talked about why I marched for life, thanked difficult people, and challenged people with 10 ways to put our beliefs into action after marching.

February

Did you know it’s possible to toast bread using a hairdryer? Apparently it is. Because that’s what I did in February. I also participated in a blog everyday sort of challenge, apologized to feminists for missing out on the awesomeness of babies, gave you my laundry detergent recipe, and shared a lesson learned the hard way which starts with “Once upon a time I was in that blasted macroeconomics class . . .”

March

Excuse me for a moment if I become a Catholic fangirl talking about Mother Teresa, but I love her so much. Leading a mission trip serving the poor over spring break was an incredibly moving experience.

April

Springtime! I shared 5 things 21st century ladies need to hear, and reflected on why I have hope around Easter.

May

As sophomore year ended, I brought my teenage years to a close, shared what the year taught me, gave a shout out to graduating people, and celebrated the first wedding in my immediate family. It was a busy and joy-filled month!

June

This month found me berry picking with the family, working a lot, and talking about getting to heaven, adoration, and the “not everyone is beautiful” articles going around.

July

Summer at it’s finest, this month saw by far the highest traffic around these parts. I enjoyed family time (not pictured for privacy), and wrote about: girls who like boy things aren’t necessarily transgender, encountering the messy beauty of children, and why I’m Catholic.

P.S. Bonus picture of the last day of work!

August

This month saw the beginning of a new chapter: junior year! I talked about life lately including my trip to the D.C. area for training as part of the Wilberforce Leadership Fellowship, did some research on embryonic stem cell research, and got pretty honest about changing my approach.

September

College adventures continued with the Tsunami 1.0 of Elizabeth Hall which took place precisely in my shower when it decided to flood half our suite in a matter of minutes. I talked about how the time is now, and kicking September’s behind. It was a pretty epic month proving to myself what I am capable of.

October

I lost my voice for one day. Then I talked about conquering things by choice, and suffering.

November

Getting up early reminds me to put a spring in my step and smile because life is beautiful! This picture was after working out early in the morning, which I continued. I went on an adventure to Colorado for Thanksgiving and talked about the world losing something beautiful, and being a big ol’ bossy pants.

December

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There are so many festive pictures from this month, but they will have to remain in your imagination and my computer because I’m not comfortable sharing family pictures here. Instead, take a look at what I wrote on sometimes failing, a quick hello, and the awesomeness of almighty God packed into an itty-bitty Jesus.

It’s time to put a wrap on 2014, and ring in the glory of another year of life we’ve been gifted with. It’s been a fabulous year, full of lots of things I’ve shared and not shared. This blog has been a place to share my thoughts and process things all while creating a community of sorts with you. And for that I am thankful.

Join me in ringing in the new year with some resolutions goals for greatness! I’m not a resolution person, but goals are an important way of checking where I am in life. So I’m creating a master plan for greatness in 2015. Check back soon for what I plan to do so we can challenge each other to rise to the occasion. And may your end of 2014 be filled with celebration of another year of a life well lived.

To Life,

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Q & A: Hello There!

~ Laura ~ 3 Comments

Getting back into this blogging thing, I figured it would fun to get to know each other a little more. Then Bek nominated me to answer these questions, so viola! Here’s everything  you never needed to know. Just like those notes that used to go around on Facebook.

1. Four names people call me other than Laura:

– Lala

– Lals

– Pancake

– The Radio

2. Four jobs that I’ve had: 

– Contributor at Live Action News

– Business Analyst for a medical pregnancy center

– Babysitter extraordinaire

– Spreader of smiles at my campus mailroom (Who doesn’t like getting mail?)

3. Four movies that I have watched more than once:

– The Passion

– High School Musical

– Princess Diaries

– The Blind Side

4. Four places I’ve lived:

– California

– Kansas

– Florida

– Since those are the only states I’ve lived in, I guess you’ll have to count a family vacation to Hawaii as another place I’ve “lived”, even though it was a short time.

5. Four places I’ve visited:

– Hawaii (Ha! Now it counts.)

– D.C.

– Colorado Springs

– Grand Canyon

6. Four places I would rather be right now:

– Reading a book on a hammock on a tropical beach

– Getting to know people better on a cozy couch by a fireplace

– Cooking up something

– Babysitting little kids

7. Four things I won’t eat:

– Escargot

– Pig feet

– Fish eyeballs

– Super spicy peppers

8. Four of my favorite foods:

– Chinese Chicken Salad (family recipe!)

– Avocados

– Homemade soups

– Fresh, homemade bread

9. Four tv shows I watch:

Well, since I’m not a fan of following tv shows, here are some I’ve watched in the past.

– The Sing Off

– Biggest Loser (a long time ago, it’s gotten lame since then)

Aaaand now I’m drawing a blank.

10. Four things I am looking forward to this year:

– Being done with finals

– Coming home!

– Spending time with family

– Ignoring the internet once I get home

11. Four expressions I always use:

– Dagnabit

– Oh my gosh

– “To Life” (in my signature)

– ??? I can’t think of anything I use frequently enough to go here.

12. Four people I’m asking to participate in this Q & A:

– The four people who read this. Ha! Must mean you. Comment with your answers or post them on your blog. Ready? Go!

To Life,

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Failing and daring to give my best

~ Laura ~ 2 Comments

College is an ideal time to develop your character, talents, and beliefs. For me, the last 2.5 years have been the most challenging of my life. My mind has been stretched farther than it ever had been before, and it continues to be blown by what I’m taught by professors and people that I know. Because of that, I’ve also gone through the most intense personal development of my life on many levels: academically, socially, and spiritually to name a few areas.

It’s been full of ups and downs. Sometimes I feel on top of the world. Sometimes I get frustrated that I haven’t truly been striving for excellence. That’s where I’ve been lately.

There is so much to get done on a daily basis. My to-do list is never ending. And things don’t always happen on time. This means I didn’t always give my best effort.

This is not something I’m okay with.

I constantly talk about greatness – finding your cause to fight for in life, the purpose God made you for. But sometimes I feel like I haven’t been giving enough. Sometime in the last month I was mad about something. Disappointed, maybe? I can’t remember. I was kneeling down before mass and just looking up at Jesus on the cross. And it wasn’t like a choir of angels appeared, but very clearly the thought came into my head: “What more I give you?”

There he was on the cross in front of me, this son of God I claim to love so much and live for. He has given the ultimate sacrifice for me. Personally. He would have died for me if I were the only person on Earth.

And here I am procrastinating.

Again.

It’s gotten better throughout college. I haven’t had to stay up until 3:30am writing a paper like I did freshman year! But still, I hate that things don’t always get done as far ahead of time as they should. So I’ve been trying to figure out what to do to remedy this.

We’re told to be strong and independent all the time, but I am so tired of fighting a battle with myself that feels like I’m on a losing streak. It feels like that because I want to do my best, but my best is hard. We’re all called to holiness, but the path to holiness isn’t paved with lollipops. It is born out of blood, sweat, tears, and a heck of a lot of prayer.

I want to be holy. I want to be the light and salt of the world we’re called to be. I want to respond to Jesus in the only way that really makes sense: with gratitude and reckless abandon to his will.

Maybe I just don’t know how.

You know that strong, independent woman CEO we’re supposed to want to be? Guess what I’ve discovered? She doesn’t really exist. In the end we all need each other. We need to slow down and smell the alfalfa, reflect on what really matters, and direct our lives back to our ultimate goal: heaven. It sure doesn’t feel like homework is the way to get to heaven, but for right now I need to give my all to the efforts God has called me to be part of at the moment.

After all, what more can I possibly dare to give back to Jesus than my very best?

How do you deal with stress? Assignments due all at once? A never-ending to-do list? Please keep everyone approaching finals in your prayers as we get through the last couple weeks of school, and know I’ll be praying for you too!

To Life,

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I’m the boss, so ya’ll can just shut up

~ Laura ~ 3 Comments

Have you seen stuff going around in the last couple months about bossy little girls? This quote definitely had it’s moment in the spotlight getting passed around on social media:

By Sheryl Sandberg

* Cue dramatic music and smiling faces of sassy little girls after reading that quote *

Aren’t you so inspired?

I mean, every little girl who is bossy is obviously a budding leader-in-training! We should encourage them to be the boss and follow their dreams! They should stand up for themselves and take charge! Be ambitious! Be loud and in charge!

Grumpy Cat says it best. When I first started hearing about this whole idea of encouraging bossy girls to embrace their innate leadership capabilities, I was like:

“Why?” you ask. Let’s first take a look at what bossy means:

Bossy Define Bossy at Dictionary.com - Google Chrome 11172014 90127 PM.bmp

Being bossy means I don’t care about about your opinion. It means telling you to do something right this second with no ifs, ands, or buts. It may mean raising my voice to get my point across. It means being powerful in a way, because I can control you. You have no say. It’s treating you as a means to get something done, without respecting your dignity as a person.

And that, my friends, is not okay.

From personal experience (as a person who can be bossy), I can tell you that it hurts people. Everyone deserves to be listened to, and being bossy is the opposite of that by definition. My leadership skills are at their worst when I’m bossy, because it means resorting to my position of authority to get people to do things. But leadership is so much more than that. Having a title is the least important aspect of being a leader, and it becomes wholly unimportant to people who have great leadership capabilities.

Leadership is about being someone people follow – not because they are docile little lambs to fetch you grapes and Italian olives from Venice, but because you have a message they are invested in. You have something to say, maybe something you’re fighting for, and people who have similar motivations are going to join forces with you if you show the ability to take your cause to the next level. Leadership is making a difference and having people lend a hand because they want to, not because you guilt-tripped them into coming, or bribed them with cookies. Believe me, I’ve done that. And it doesn’t work too well because it coerces people to come. It doesn’t empower people to be an integral part of your mission.

When we tell our little princesses that being bossy is okay because it’s just their leadership shining through, we’re telling them a lie. Because, quite frankly, the “light” from bossy people is burning my freaking face off.

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People deserve to be listened to. If I’ve learned anything over the last 1.5 years serving on the leadership team of Ravens Respect Life, this is it (and yes, a lot more). I used to go auto-pilot into “let’s get this done ASAP and since I don’t trust anyone else to do it right I shall do it myself” mode. Nobody told me blatantly to knock it off. Nobody told me it was annoying in all the years of “leadership” throughout high school.

I wish they had.

For years I’ve been a person who doesn’t wait for other people to get things done. Some people would call that ambition or me being a “go-getter”. I certainly am ambitious, but in the last months I’ve realized how messed up this idea of being my big, bad empowered self is. Why? It’s important to make sure people know you value their opinions. Even if you do have the final say, leaders have to let other people contribute to the cause. If they don’t, it becomes a dictatorship: you controlling people, not building a movement together. That doesn’t value other people. It doesn’t build trust. And it certainly doesn’t make anyone a skilled leader.

A skilled leader listens to followers, and you know what? They have amazing ideas . . . things I could never have thought up. They have skills and abilities you are not good at. They just might blow your mind.

The people I’ve worked with have taught me this, and I am so thankful. It’s humbling, and a constant reminder that I am not the boss. And I really don’t want you to shut up. I want to hear your ideas and work with you to make the world a better place. You have ideas I don’t have, and together we can do more than if we went our separate ways.

So, what are we to do about this bossy phenomenon? Instead of praising this attitude of bossiness, let’s teach each other how to value each other (and the people who follow us or we are followers of). Listen. Don’t interrupt. Work together. Read about real leadership: the power to influence other people. Learn how to tell good stories which will inspire people. Be able to empower people to contribute to your cause.

Being a real leader is better than bossing people around. It’s so much more.

To Life,

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