To New Beginnings!

Newness is exhilarating. There’s something incredibly special about a beginning. Like opening a brand new book, pressing play on a new show or movie, or walking into a new job for the first time, newness is an important part of life that helps define who we are and who we want to become. 

Whether the new thing is a habit or skill that you’re learning or a new gadget that you’re pulling out of its box for the first time, the novelty of the thing changes your perspective on the world. It excites our emotions, sending fire shooting through our neurons, fresh blood pumping through our veins, and eagerness rushing like electricity into our hands and feet.

To me, new beginnings are just as scary as they are exciting, since success and failure are both possible and likely along the path. I try to look at new beginnings with optimism, but sometimes they just don't work that way.

For instance: I’ve tried in the past to start exercising or journaling regularly. I’ve stopped and started these habits many times and for many different reasons. They often feel mundane after a time, but because they’re worth doing, I know I have to press forward to reap the reward. I’m made just as much for the middle of a journey as I am the beginning or ending, and a great deal of life tends to feel like an “in-between”.

I’ve had to learn to be kind to myself when starting something new, to let go of my perfectionist nature. If that something largely depends on me to keep it going (like this website), I’m often discouraged from the start because I know how inconsistent and distracted I can be. I have to work hard to become better, no matter how much talent I may possess. Motivation can be hard to come by for me, so I have to learn discipline instead (not pleasant), and remember what I’ve committed to and why it’s worth the work.

This website has had several false starts in the form of blogs that would fizzle out after a few months of irregular posting, along with an attempt to launch this website several times earlier this year. For a long time, I looked back at all of those false starts and hung my head. I would wonder, “What’s wrong with me that I call myself a writer and can’t manage to finish—or even start—a single writing project?” But recently, I’ve been emboldened by grace and the desire to be obedient to the calling of God on my life.

Who knows? I may fall away from this website, too, or it may turn into something different. All I know right now is that it’s a new beginning for me, and I look forward to seeing where the journey takes me. I honestly don’t know what this website is going to become or who it’s going to impact…I’m leaving that up to God.

My life has taken a lot of twists and turns in the past few years, most of which I didn’t see coming. I’ve learned new things about myself and the world, and I’ve set out on new journeys and new relationships. It’s time I shared more about those things with anyone who cares to tag along, and maybe also share my creativity in other ways. Life is full of good stories, and hopefully this new beginning will be one of them.

Thank you in advance to those of you who choose to come along for the ride.

Grace & Peace,

Andy