I am from hot chocolate.
From Starbucks and Seattle Seahawks.
I am from the Pacific Northwest, rainy, colorful, loud and busy.
I am from Rhododendrons, state flower, classic, large-flowered Evergreen shrubs.
I am from Christmas Breakfasts and hard work.
From motherhood as Yalaynah's mother & the Brewer family my maiden last name.
I am from confidence and type A personalities.
From don't talk about what happens in this house and never let them see you cry.
I'm from Christianity in the Church of Christ, been a part of it my entire life, baptized at age 9.
I'm from Sacramento, California with my parents, one from the South the other from the central U.S.
Holidays with my late Grandmother's stuffing made by my Dad, and his special recipe fried chicken.
From the Military family that traveled between Japan and California all my life, mostly growing up in Japan before settling in Lakewood, and Tacoma Washington learning to see life through a lense of diverse people, places and experiences.
I am an advocate for anyone regardless of who they are and where they come from. The intense love of sisters that you mess with one of us, you mess with all 3 of us. My parent's guest room holds those things I can't replace, my military service, momentos, my daughter's priceless childhood items, remembering what we've experienced in life and letting those experiences shape how we show up in the world for ourselves, one another and others.
Reading those words reminds me that so much of who I am was formed long before I had the language to explain it. My family, the Military, Japan, Tacoma, motherhood and my faith shaped me. Church isn't simply somewhere I've gone on Sundays; it was a place I became part of a youth group, where I attended Bible Camp and helped with Vacation Bible School. It’s where I taught the 2’s and 3’s in Cradle Roll, where I became the Fellowship team leader, executing church events with wonderful women who enjoyed doing the same. Faith has been woven into my life for as long as I can remember and it no longer comes down to I go because Mom and Dad said so. My relationship with God is now MY own.
There are seasons when we have to reconsider whether the places, routines and environments that once felt familiar still provide room for us to grow, connect and serve. We’re not angry, not going to tear down where we’ve been, and it certainly doesn't require walking away from God. Sometimes it simply means being willing to change where and how we worship Him. I'm in one of those seasons now. I'm looking for a church home where I can worship God, serve wholeheartedly, build genuine relationships and feel that my presence, and the gifts God gave me, have somewhere to land.
Maybe that's part of knowing who we are, too. We carry our history with us, honoring the people and places that helped shape and strengthen us. We learn from what didn't and when God calls us into something different, we give ourselves permission to move. “Where I'm from” tells an important part of my story, but it doesn't get the final word on where I'm going.
~Rooted In Healing Rising in Hope~
