Out of Place – Joy’s Story All that mega-church money, and none of it had reached this little room. Orange plastic chairs tucked under the chipped veneer table, cold and full of static under buzzing fluorescent tubes. This, the pastor had promised from stage on Sunday, is where I would experience life-changing community. I had […]
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One thing we can all agree on is that 2020 has been rough. We are not okay. Each of us is walking this earth carrying our personal share of heartbreak, grief, and disappointment as this year continues to knock us over, wave after wave. Our mental health hangs by a thread as we try to […]
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My husband, like many men, is not a big fan of shopping. You would never find him at the mall, or wandering into boutique stores in touristy locations. The appeal of walking and talking and browsing the aisles looking at pretty things is completely lost on him. Except if it’s Costco. He loves walking down […]
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Out of Place – Angela’s Story Most of my life I have felt out of place, as if I did not belong. I just thought everyone felt this way. The psychological and spiritual tool of the Enneagram of Personality helped me see that not everyone has this experience. Many of us outliers that often have […]
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Last week marked our third attempt to grow plants in our condo. The first time we tried to grow flowers in the guest room by the window, but there wasn’t enough light. The second time, we tried to grow plants on our porch but the whole thing is always covered in shade. I was barely […]
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Out of Place – Kristina’s Story My son spent his toddler and preschool years rambling around our spacious house and yard in California. Lush, countless mature fruit trees, palm trees, and flowering bushes enfolded our property. We escaped the heat in our backyard pool. My then-husband spent his time at work, and I spent it […]
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Coming back to our condo in San Diego after three months spent on my husband’s family farm in Michigan was jarring. For a few days, I could only see all the ways in which our house wasn’t measuring up to my ideals. No yard. Shared walls. Very little natural light in the main living area. […]
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Out of Place – Katelyn’s Story Since the fall of 2016, I have been extensively traveling. At 27 years old, with the ink barely dry on my master’s degree, I quit my full-time job to spend time living in unfamiliar places. Don’t worry–it wasn’t nearly as glamorous as it sounds. And since we’re all friends […]
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Out of Place – Kate’s Story The white tile floor cooled down my skin. My body was flushed and warm to the touch because I’d spent the last twenty minutes crying on that same bathroom floor. The tears, the anguish of overwhelming doubt — they had become my nightly routine. Every night, I lay in […]
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It was a Wednesday, and I was hiding in the church kitchen, eating mint chip ice cream from a paper bowl. The giant tub was halfway gone, and the Post-It on the lid said, “Youth Group.” Since I’m on staff as an assistant to our youth ministry, I felt justified in helping myself to three […]
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Sarah K. Butterfield 