Me Too

February 24' Reflections on Writing, Healing, & Sharing + Monthly Roundup

It’s funny how the Lord will knit a narrative into your life that aids in your growth and lends to others’ encouragement. When I started this Substack several months back, I was looking for an outlet where I could process my thoughts and emotions during a difficult and transitional season.

At the time, it had been about three years since I had stepped away from sharing in the online space. Worn down and weary from the comparison, disappointment, and always-shifting algorithm changes, I was done running on the content creation wheel and keeping up with the latest online marketing tactics and strategies. I didn’t want to create a content strategy or an editorial calendar, I just wanted to simply show up and write, free of performing and proving.

However, I never saw myself as a writer. Writing was just something I defaulted to as a way of communicating and sharing information as a student and business owner. I never considered it as a part of who I was. So when a recently introduced colleague prophesied to me on a connection call firmly asserting, “You are a writer,” I was dumbfounded. It was our first call, and I hadn’t shared anything about my recent writing ventures.

I had been processing her statement since our first call when we had our second connection call this month, a few months later. “Janelle, the Lord is healing you as you write. You are writing for your life, but you are also writing for the healing of others.”

I’m still processing the words she spoke over me during our conversation, but the more I write in this space, the more I find her words true. This month, as I was writing, a theme emerged — limitations. Not because it was on my content calendar but because that is where I am. I am in the thick of it — the potty training challenges, the tantrums, the whining, the planning, the dreaming, the yearning, the adjusting, the healing, the learning.

And sometimes, when we are in these places, deep in the messy, murky middle, while tips and tricks are helpful, they are not enough. We don’t need another thing to do or become. We just simply need to hear a “me too.”

I hope that as I continue to write and share vulnerably in this space, you are encouraged and reminded that God sees you and that you’re not alone.

I am with you.

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Books 📚

• Permission to Feel: Unlocking the Power of Emotions to Help Our Kids, Ourselves, and Our Society to Thrive¹ by Marc Brackett. I saw a quote yesterday on Instagram adapted by Sarah Boyd that I had to share, “Parenthood is a journey towards emotional maturity. It is learning to respond in love when you are hurt, triggered, and overwhelmed.” This book helps you grow in emotional maturity regardless of whether you are a parent, single, or a student by providing practical strategies to name, process, and cope with your emotions in a healthy and productive way.

• Before I Do by Sophie Cousens. I picked this up on a whim a few weeks ago from the library and was very surprised. The evening before marrying her best friend Josh, Audrey is reconnected with her “What If?” guy. And when everything goes awry the day before and of her wedding, Audrey has a very important choice to make. This was a very fun and quick-paced read that kept me turning the pages and laughing all the way through. I enjoyed this so much that I plan to binge the rest of Sophie’s work before the release of Is She Really Going Out With Him? later this year.

• He Gives More Grace: 30 Reflections for the Ups and Downs of Motherhood by Sarah Walton and Linda Green. Every mother, both new and seasoned, needs this devotional. I grabbed this one after it was recommended by one of my best friend’s

  Taliah Kendrick
  . This devotional has been such a gift and balm to me in this season. Each devotion is filled with encouragement and transparency, which I deeply value and respect. For more on this one, see my Instagram for a full review.

These were just some of my favorites. For a full list of what I read this month, check my Goodreads.

Podcasts 🎧

• Risen Motherhood | Who Are You, Really? Finding What You Lost in Motherhood. Sometimes, I have thoughts that I believe are exclusive to myself and my unique motherhood journey, however listening to this podcast episode and series has given language to my emotions and challenges, reminding me that I’m not alone.

• Cultivate What Matters | Waiting Well: How to Learn the Process. This time of year is the time when people usually lose steam when it comes to pursuing their goals. In this episode, Kelly and Casey offer encouragement and practical strategies on how to hold onto hope as you faithfully make progress on your goals.

• Her Pursuit | Abiding in Winter. While winter may be almost over, there are times when we are going through winter spiritually, when everything seems so cold, dead, and barren. Oftentimes, the Lord uses these seasons for healing, restoration, and preparation. I enjoyed listening to Cason’s take on how to abide in the Lord during physical and spiritual winter.

ICYMI

Throughout the month, I love to post notes, reflections, or other resources that I find encouraging or helpful. Make sure you download the Substack app so you don’t miss out on new notes, chats, and threads.

I loved how last month’s recap caused me to sit down, reflect, and think about what’s bringing me joy. So in an effort to capture that all month long, I introduced a Friday chat thread called the (joy)cap, where, as a community, we share what’s bringing us joy.

I also post a full (joy)cap, which is essentially a weekly roundup of my favorites and other joyful moments, in my Notes. Check out the latest one!

Catch up on other February posts

Community Discussion 💬: How do you cope when you feel the weariness of your weaknesses or are met face-to-face with your limitations?

Boundary Lines & Pleasant Places

4: Living Into Our Limitations

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This post is a part of Freely & Lightly, a collection of personal musings and raw and honest essays from my journey of undoing and becoming. Through sharing personal stories, inspirational books, favorite links, or the mundanities of everyday living, I hope you leave inspired, encouraged, and refreshed. So take a load off. Recover your life. Lean into your season. Let the Lord refresh you as you learn His unforce rhythms of grace. Click here to read more of this collection’s posts.

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