A new year!  I am happy for the retirement of the old one and the entrance into a new time in my life. January, already, has been marked by change.  Change is good.

The bipolar weather in Edmonton (it was 0 degrees Sunday and is currently -17) sweeps across our bones causing us to hurry to our cars to turn the heat on full and fast.  I'm consistently wrapped with a blanket around me at home and being berated by my sister to put on more layers because I'm constantly cold.

However, the winter weather doesn't seem to bug me as much as it did immediately after coming home from South Africa 11 years ago.  Though there are no physical flowers to gaze on, I know the flowers are here.

Perspective.

Through every year, no matter how hard, the goodness is here.  Even in winter.

Sometimes I have to sleuth so hard to find it and other times it's blatant, vibrant, and up-front.

There are flowers here if only we seek them.  Flowers in friends.  Flowers in truth.  Flowers in day to day life.

Though my life is simple and plain as of late, there are good things in my life and I am happy to share them.  They are small, but they are the little buds of hope and goodness that keep my life going.

If Ann Voskamp were here she would call them "gifts."

Here are the things that have brightened my day and lead me to see goodness in the world:

1.  Gatherings of truth seeking people- I meet with a small group every Thursday and this routine in my life is uplifting and warms my heart.  I love people gathered in one spot with purpose.  I love the chatter and laughter, the lightness of catching up, familiar faces, and breaking open a book to read truth together.

2.  In my practicum, I work with newcomers to Canada.  It's a blessing to truly connect and love accross cultures.  Often I am struck by how privileged I am to see and know a part of their world and to be invited into that.  I go home and am beaming on the inside because of the joy of knowing these people!

3.  Conversations via carpools.  I've been carpooling lately with a few different people for different events.  I love the conversations that flow naturally and the ideas shared.

4.  Reading words- I read a lot in my day.  I read academic articles for school.  I read non-academic articles for personal interest.  I've always got a book (or two) on the go.  These words teach me things.  I remember a book that was very influential to me that asserted that words not only say things, but also do things (Brown, 2007).  I read with this intent and it is life-giving.

5.  Tim Hortons Runs.  Lately my sister and I reward ourself with a timbit and a coffee when we do errands in the evening.  We are both so tired from a long day, but know that the little extra errand needs to get done.  Plus, this small thing just makes the evening fun.

Like I said, my world is small, but these are the little flowers in my life lately.  If we look, there are always flowers around us.

Even in winter.  Even in the harder, more drawn out seasons of life.

Often, I believe it's whats in our heart and minds that makes us or breaks us.  The presence of good does not mean the absence of bad.  But keeping the light closer in the dark times helps.

There are so many flowers out there waiting to be found.  Keep searching, friends.