Life is short, love what you do…

One of my closest friends, lost her husband suddenly. It was the most terrible of times. The last letter he ever wrote to her finished with this profound prophetic statement;

Life is short, love what you do

To watch my friend walk bravely out her days without her amazing partner has been the most deeply moving journey. She has grieved, she has stamped her feet, she has waited, she has questioned, but at the same time she has moved into days where she is living out the legacy of his vision for her days.

She shifted from New Zealand to Cambodia alone in her fifties, starting again, to live a life sown. It has been a hard journey, as she was robbed near her new home, watched the people she has been serving loose their life. Sickness, tragedy and heart ache has filled her days. She has not allowed the depths of these stories to shrink her though, she has stepped forward, felt the fear and brought her broken hallelujah.

She is living bravely in her moment, using the depth of her grief to minister and help a generation of young people in another country to live the life of their dreams.

I know her man would be immensely proud of her.

I know he would be watching with a gentle, quiet smile, a raise of his quirky eyebrows that quietly said “Look at my girl go…”

A life of serenity is not necessarily a quiet, retiring one.

Serenity is a place of peace, found in the midst of living a life of purpose.

God grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can;
and wisdom to know the difference.

Living one day at a time;

One day at a time, having the courage to live the life you have always dreamed of. When we stay stuck in holding patterns of the past, we are unable to live one day at a time, understanding that life is short.

It is short.

We just don’t know what tomorrow will bring.

What if we spent our today stuck in the pain of yesterday and missed out on the absolute sheer brilliance of living a life sown in our today?

What would you do, if you embraced the messy moments of fear, grief, disappointment and shifted forward into your unknown anyway?

My lovely friend Annie inspires me so much.

She hasn’t just moved on, she has dug deep into the very recesses of her soul and determined that she will live a life of purpose today.

Yes, living in her brave, courageous, today.

She is not sure about what the next five years will bring, but she knows in her today, that she needs to bring hope and courage to teenagers in Cambodia. A courage that despite the very hard parts of our story, that Love wins.

Loving People.

Loving Stories.

Loving Humanity.

Loving the hard parts.

Loving the mess of people and transition and change and living beyond ourselves.

What can you bravely do today, to live in this moment?

Take that step,

Make that phone call,

Book that appointment,

Write that piece,

Live surrendered in your today.

 

 

 

After 6 months of being in Cambodia, Annie knows she can’t go home to New Zealand, her work is not done yet, so if you want to help her stay, you can transfer funds to:

With the name Annie Cambodia.

New Zealand Accounts:

 

ANZ: 06 0383

0164749 04

Australian Accounts:

ANZ: 016141

299685840