seasons of life

There’s so many seasons we go through in our lifetime, and I’ve come to figure that out more and more in recent months. Entering a new season of life can be both exciting and daunting, but I’ve been trying to learn to embrace each season whether good or bad, and find beauty in the mundane. Since it has been awhile since I’ve blogged fluently (although I’m changing that!), I thought it would be fitting to share some of the recent seasons of life I’ve gone through, and where I’m at now.

Starting in November basketball started, and it had been 3 years since I had played, this being my Junior year in high school. My sister, a freshmen who just started out attending school with me, also played, and there’s something different yet exciting about doing something together with a sibling. The season brought joy and hardships and I learned a lot through it, whether directly related to the sport or not. Being honest I don’t think I had ever felt so burnt out before, but it was a fun new experience to play high school ball, I built a lot of stronger relationships with my team mates, and it also greater emphasized the parts of my life I knew I cherished and had to be less active in during that season.

If you follow me on Instagram then you might know I started dating Zane back in May of 2022. It’s amazing and mind-blowing how God orchestrates our lives and causes all things to happen during His sovereign and perfect timing, most of the time without us expecting it. He’s been teaching me a lot during this season of life and continues to do so each and every day, and I couldn’t be more grateful for Him bringing Zane and I together. Everyday the Lord is still working on my heart and guiding and directing me, but it’s been so much fun dating my best friend and making memories together. I can’t wait to see where the Lord will take us ❤

Last year I got to go snowboarding for the first time, and this year I was excited to go again and build on what I learned before. I’ve got to go twice this season so far, and it’s by far one of my new favorite hobbies! Another thing God brought to my attention that I never would have thought of before. I don’t know if I’ll be able to squeeze another trip in before the season ends, but I’m for sure looking forward to next year. If you’ve never tried snowboarding before, I highly recommend it 😉

Track season recently started, and though it’s another sport that takes up time, it’s quite a bit different then basketball in terms of practice schedule and meets. I still have a lot of free time to get things done after practice, and I like still having something that pushes me to put in hard work and manage my time more wisely. This is my second year doing track and it’s been a lot of fun building on what I learned last year. I’m by no means even close to being a track star, but hanging out with friends after school, building relationships, and encouraging each other to put in the hard work is all worth it to me.

In January my pig Freya had her first litter of piglets, and there’s no way I could write this post without sharing pictures of them. I absolutely love raising pigs, and this year I think I struck gold with how stinkin’ cute each 8 of them were, and how nice it was having them with the new set up. I also a few weekends ago built them a new pig house, and Freya and Tilley are now living the luxury life 😉 Before this litter was born too, I had hoped to name one of them Douglas (I may or may not have a running list on my phone of future piglet names), and again, I struck gold! Not only is he the sweetest pig I’ve ever owned and the cutest little furry potato baby ever, but he’s also the only piglet that hasn’t found a forever home yet because I’m so attached, and can’t give him away without finding the perfect home for him 🙂

Little Douglas ^^

As for the school year, it’s weird to think we’ll be on the home stretch when we get back from spring break. Junior year has been so fun in so many ways, and though I expected this school year to be a good one, I still never predicted just how much joy it’d bring. As my Junior year starts to slowly come to a close and talk starts arising about Senior year, it reminds me more and more how small this chapter of my life is, and how every day I have a chance to make the most of it and cherish the little moments, something I recently wrote about on my instagram, and continue to be reminded of often.

There’s so so so much more that’s happened and things I could spend hours writing about, but these are a few of my highlights. I hope you all are doing well and I’d love to hear from you in the comments below. Happy spring friends!

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What are some of your highlights from recent months? Do you have any spring break plans?

SHINE ON, 

BROOKLYN 

fingerprints

This post has been on my mind for a while, but I didn’t feel like I could write it “in the moment” like I do many of my other posts, when the subject is still fresh in my mind. There were so many thoughts to put into words and so many parts of my life to observe and reflect on. Even now I feel as if there’s so much more I could add.

Something very many of us scarcely realize is how much of an influence we have on the lives of those around us. We forget that family members, friends, and even perfect strangers are constantly watching us, most often subconsciously. Every act we make; every decision and words spoken leaves an impact on someone else. Some might even say it leaves an impact on the world, no matter how big or small.

I love how Grace Anne put it once, saying we’re all made up of the “fingerprints” of other people. Everything you’ve loved or been intrigued by has been a result of someone else’s influence on you—whether intentionally or not.

We’re all mosaics of the people of the world. The beauty and the hurt, timid and the bold.

We carry more pieces of people than we realize.

There have been many fingerprints left on my own life; some blatant and obvious, and others that are small and unnoticed, yet make up so much of who I am. The way I take notes in class, certain words or phrases, my favorite songs, snowboarding, and how I make ramen are all fingerprints I’ve noticed in my own life. And that’s only the tip of the iceberg.

So many areas of our lives came from a single impact someone had on us. And it beckons the question, “what fingerprints am I leaving behind?”

It’s terrifying, really, when you think of how much responsibility a single human is given. You have a say in how you’d like to impact the world, and you always will be a part of that impact whether you’re noticing it now or not. There will always be someone watching you. Always be someone looking up to you. Someone discovering something about you they love. Someone wanting something you have, whether that’s something physical or a characteristic you hold that makes up your personality. 

Yet on the flip side of that, some things are solely mine. Like the way I bite my lip when I’m thinking, my “system” for organization, how I’ve kept a journal since I was eight, and how I pronounce “milk”– to name a few.

You could see that as annoying or unimportant, or you could view it as a beautiful, powerful gift given by the Maker of the universe. And we can either use it to be a light for others or an arrow towards disaster.

When attempting to think of all the people who have left fingerprints on my life, even the bad fingerprints I can see how God has used to refine me. To challenge me to be careful with who I let influence me and become a part of who I am. It makes me think of the fingerprints I want to leave here, too. May we never forget the power we hold to influence someone’s life, and the Creator who gave us the beauty of relationships and using each other to learn and to grow. ✨

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What fingerprints have been left on your life? How do you make ramen? 😉

SHINE ON, 

BROOKLYN 

It’s been a minute.

I didn’t expect to leave this little blog of mine for such a long period of time. I love the community I’ve built here, and the last seven months have shown me even more so just how much I enjoy blogging, and how much I’ve missed it. I’m thankful for the break though, and coming back, there are so many things I’m not only excited to share, but new posts and new “life updates” I can’t wait to write about. Turning my thoughts and experiences into words is something I’ve really missed, and friends, I’m just so excited to be back! The Lord has been teaching and guiding me a lot since I last posted, and one thing for sure is that I don’t think I could ever lose my love for writing and putting my thoughts into words. So stay tuned! New posts coming soon ❤

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What’s something exciting that’s happened in your life in recent months? I’d love to chat! It been too long.

SHINE ON,

BROOKLYN