Reflecting on Less

Last January I wrote,

"... I read Falling Free by Shannan Martin about how they had left their life of abundance for a life that was based on much less but gave them so much more (my description here). I was challenged. I was awe-struck. And that little voice that was telling me that I did not care about 'more' got louder. It was not telling me to sell the house and move somewhere else. It was telling me that maybe I could find "more" in my life by dealing with a lot less.

Various things over the last two months have sung this song.  Reminders that stuff is not what makes anyone happy. Sermons reminding of caring for the least of these. A Bible study of Proverbs that warns about accepting wealth and status quo without balancing it with the wisdom of God. By the middle of November I knew what my word for 2017 was to be, and it was daunting. It was........LESS"

It was a daunting word, and I really did not know what would happen during the year.  But I knew that it was a journey I had to start. Some of the dreams I had materialised. Others did not. Major changes happened that highlighted even more my desire for less. I came away changed, but maybe not as materially changed as I had hoped. Internally I am more minimal, and that is determining decisions and actions. It is a slow journey, but one that I will continue for a long time. Some of my dreams were:

"Less accumulation of paper and materials that are not needed."  I did continue to digitilize a lot of paper and then get rid of it. I finished the early homeschool portfolios. I was not in a head space to deal with the last box of my mother's papers, so it still sits in my attic. My high school pictures are gone except for a few that were actually good or special.  We did move this year, and it was a huge move.  I moved less than it would have been two years before, but we still moved a lot of things that I have no reason to keep.  So this is an ongoing battle.
" Less time spent worrying what others think of the life I am called to live". I gave a lot less head space to worrying about this right up until we moved back to the US. So many people have questioned why we do things, or why I don't want to just do things the 'American way' that I've become paranoid and defensive.  I need to get back to trusting God with the life he called me to lead and ignore the pundits.
"Less time doing things that do not build me up." I have read hard things this year that have made me think and grow. I've not read popular books that would not be good for me. I've stopped watching 'must-see' tv that was not healthy for me. And I've stopped apologizing for that. I'm happy with how this goal has proceeded.
"Less voiced negativity and more thankfulness need to be in my daily conversations." In general, I do believe that some of the negativity has curbed. It has been a tough year.  There is much in the world to be negative about--and finding ways to express disagreement without it only being perceived as negativity is tough. This is especially true when many of those around me do not agree with the stance I feel called to take. I am extremely grateful for the things God has done in our lives this year, for the places he has offered us protection and even for the conviction and dismay that accompanies confrontation of long-held prejudices and traditions. But it has been tough. I've said LESS than I would have liked in order to not be negative, and I'm not sure that has been totally healthy. I'll still work on this goal.
"Less half-hearted rituals and more focus on what God is saying." I cannot give examples of this, but I know that this is pruning that God has definitely started and continues in my life.
"Less unhealthy things entering my life. Whether it is junk food or junk TV or toxic people, I want to be more diligent to let in healthy and exclude the unhealthy." I've cut out almost all TV (except DIY or science shows for noise, and even the DIY shows make me get frustrated about topics of gentrification and privilege so they may go) and I have not missed it at all. For most of the year, junk food was cut out---then a move happened. I will get back to this. Recognizing toxic people has happened, but I am not always very good at protecting myself from their influence.  More of this in 2018.
"Less holding on to people." Oh, this has been hard.  Moving from England after sixteen+ years has been heart-wrenching. I miss my old life, my old friends, my old routines.  But God has taught me immense trust in the last three months. I did not have any clue when I wrote this, how much this one would hurt.

My life in 2017 was filled with much MORE than I ever dreamed when I began a journey to LESS. I'm more content. I'm more self-aware and I'm more other-aware. It is a journey I'm not willing to end. It will continue to feed my focus for 2018. But, more on that later.

Book Review 2017

In 2017 I read (so far) 98 books, about half of which was reading for me and half of which was reading alongside home education of a kindergartner, eighth grader and sophomore.  To say my reading is slightly varied is an understatement.  At the end of the post is the full list of what I read.  But, first, here are my top five, in no particular order.

*The Storied Life of A.J. Fikrey by Gabrielle Zevin made me laugh and cry, sometimes at the same time! Full of reminders of other books and characters that grew throughout the story.  Loved it!
*Searching for Sunday: Loving, Leaving and Finding the Church by Rachel Held Evans could have been written from glimpses of my growing up years.  This book undid me, made me laugh, made me nod in agreement, made me angry and made me cry.  An amazing reflection on what it meant to grow up evangelical and learning to make sense of it all. I'll read it again and again.
*The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas made me angry, made me sad and made me more aware. This is probably the most important book I've read in the last 3 years (at least). It highlights so much of what is wrong in our society but still manages to find hope.  Recommended by my 15 year old daughter and must reading for teens and up.
*Surprised by Oxford by Carolyn Weber was recommended on an edition of "What Should I Read Next" and intrigued me.  The book surprised me in its writing, its depth and its sensitivity. 
*Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston was a school book for my then Freshman which we read aloud together. Rich language, strong story and believable characters.  I can't believe I waited so long to read it!

There you have it.  My favorite books of the year.  What have you read that I should add to my ever-growing To-Be-Read list.  My goal for next year is another 100 books set in at least 40 countries.  Do you have reading goals?  Happy Reading!

The full list:

Reading for Me:

The Undoing of Saint Silvanus by Moore, Beth

The Wedding Dress by Hauck, Rachel

Reading People: How Seeing the World through the Lens of Personality Changes Everything by Bogel, Anne

The St. Louis 12 Days of Christmas by Nusbickel, Ryan

Cloudy With A Chance Of Toasted Rav by Nusbickel, Ryan

"Who Moved My Gooey Butter Cake?!" by Nusbickel, Ryan

Surprised by Oxford by Weber, Carolyn

I Thought It Was Just Me: Women Reclaiming Power and Courage in a Culture of Shame by Brown, Brené

The Night Parade by Tanquary, Kathryn

Things I Overheard While Talking to Myself by Alda, Alan

Once Was a Time by Sales, Leila

Maude by Mabry, Donna

Give Your Child the World: Raising Globally Minded Kids One Book at a Time by Martin, Jamie C.

Flunked (Fairy Tale Reform School, #1) by Calonita, Jen

Book Scavenger (Book Scavenger, #1) Bertman, Jennifer Chambliss

The Hate U Give by Thomas, Angie

The Little School: Tales of Disappearance & Survival in Argentina by Partnoy, Alicia

Raising Grateful Kids in an Entitled World: How One Family Learned That Saying No Can Lead to Life's Biggest Yes by Welch, Kristen

Bringing it to the Table: On Farming and Food by Berry, Wendell

March: Book Three (March, #3) by Lewis, John Robert

We Should All Be Feminists by Adichie, Chimamanda Ngozi

The Garden, the Curtain and the Cross by Laferton, Carl

The Seventh Wish by Messner, Kate *

In the Land of Invisible Women: A Female Doctor's Journey in the Saudi Kingdom by Ahmed, Qanta A.

The Broken Road: From the Iron Gates to Mount Athos by Leigh Fermor, Patrick

The Case of the Girl in Grey (The Wollstonecraft Detective Agency, #2) by Stratford, Jordan *

Mother-Daughter Book Camp (The Mother-Daughter Book Club, #7) by Frederick, Heather Vogel

Gods in Alabama by Jackson, Joshilyn

Assimilate or Go Home: Notes from a Failed Missionary on Rediscovering Faith by Mayfield, D. L.

Daddy-Long-Legs (Daddy-Long-Legs, #1) by Webster, Jean

Winter Solstice by Pilcher, Rosamunde

Founding Mothers: The Women Who Raised Our Nation by Roberts, Cokie

Ishtar's Odyssey: A Storybook for Advent by Ytreeide, Arnold

El Deafo by Bell, Cece

Born with Teeth by Mulgrew, Kate

Ella Minnow Pea: A Novel in Letters by Dunn, Mark

The Traveller's Tree: A Journey Through the Caribbean Islands by Leigh Fermor, Patrick

My Name Is Lucy Barton by Strout, Elizabeth

Wonder by Palacio, R.J.

A Lucky Life Interrupted: A Memoir of Hope by Brokaw, Tom

Searching for Sunday: Loving, Leaving, and Finding the Church by Evans, Rachel Held

Five Children on the Western Front by Saunders, Kate

The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Zevin, Gabrielle

Mrs. Lincoln's Dressmaker by Chiaverini, Jennifer

Operation Thunderbolt: Flight 139 and the Raid on Entebbe Airport, the Most Audacious Hostage Rescue Mission in History by David, Saul

The Birth of the Modern: World Society 1815-1830 by Johnson, Paul

Galileo's Daughter: A Historical Memoir of Science, Faith and Love by Sobel, Dava

Between Shades of Gray by Sepetys, Ruta

Kidnap in Crete: The True Story of the Abduction of a Nazi General by Stroud, Rick

The Joy of X: A Guided Tour of Mathematics, from One to Infinity by Strogatz, Steven H.

All Is Grace: A Ragamuffin Memoir by Manning, Brennan

Notes from a Blue Bike: The Art of Living Intentionally in a Chaotic World by Oxenreider, Tsh

Coming Clean: A Story of Faith by Haines, Seth

Wild in the Hollow: On Chasing Desire and Finding the Broken Way Home by Haines, Amber C.

Kindred by Butler, Octavia E.

The Princess Bride by Goldman, William

The African Trilogy by Achebe, Chinua

The Accident by Pavone, Chris

Haroun and the Sea of Stories by Rushdie, Salman

The 19th Wife by Ebershoff, David

Dubliners by Joyce, James

The Secret Scripture by Barry, Sebastian

Touch by Zentner, Alexi

The Book Thief by Zusak, Markus

As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of The Princess Bride by Elwes, Cary

The Sacred Romance Drawing Closer To The Heart Of God by Eldredge, John

Pies and Prejudice: In Search of the North by Maconie, Stuart

Chronicle in Stone by Kadare, Ismail

Read Alouds or Read Ahead for School

Tadpoles and Frogs by Milbourne, Anna

Only the Names Remain: The Cherokees and The Trail of Tears by Bealer, Alex W.

Eggs and Chicks by Patchett, Fiona

Adventures in Ancient Greece by Bailey, Linda

Here's a Penny by Haywood, Carolyn

Danny and the Dinosaur by Hoff, Syd

I Can Read It! (I Can Read It, #1) by Holzmann, John

The Ghost in the Tokaido Inn (Samurai Detective, #1) by Hoobler, Dorothy

Till We Have Faces by Lewis, C.S.

God spoke Tibetan; the epic story of the men who gave the Bible to Tibet, the forbidden land by Maberly, Allan

Outliers: The Story of Success by Gladwell, Malcolm

The Monk Who Shook the World: The Story of Martin Luther by Davey, Cyril J.

The Grapes of Wrath by Steinbeck, John

American Tall Tales by Productions, Greathall

101 Favorite Stories from the Bible by Miller, Ura

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Twain, Mark

A Grain of Rice by Pittman, Helena Clare

Mary Jones and Her Bible - An Adventure Book by Wright, Chris

Winnie-the-Pooh by Milne, A.A.

To Kill a Mockingbird by Lee, Harper

100 Best-Loved Poems by Smith, Philip

A History of Us: Ten-Volume Set: Ten-Volume Set by Hakim, Joy

Uncle Wiggily's Story Book by Garis, Howard R.

Classic Tales of Brer Rabbit by Borgenicht, David

The Second Mrs. Gioconda by Konigsburg, E.L.

Talk Like TED: The 9 Public-Speaking Secrets of the World's Top Minds by Gallo, Carmine

Their Eyes Were Watching God by Hurston, Zora Neale

A Single Shard by Park, Linda Sue

The Silver Branch by Sutcliff, Rosemary

Back onto the Blogging Horse??

Obviously, I fell off the blogging wagon mid-year.  In my defense, that was about the time we begin to realise that a move to the US was going to happen.  But more than that, I just didn't have words that were not frustrated, political and not necessarily edifying.

We did make a move to the US in September. We are settling into our new home and routine. We are dealing with all kinds of re-entry culture shock. I'm still frustrated and political, but maybe I can be edifying in the midst of it.  I miss writing.  I miss the community of people who once blogged, and now do not.  I don't know for certain if my new year will find me blogging, or tweeting, or maybe dipping my toes into instagram.  I do know that I will be present somewhere.

For now, know that if you read this, I have missed you.  I'll be back to do a recap of a year of LESS, and I'll be introducing my 2018 word as well.  I'll be back with some goals, and maybe some progress.  Maybe I'll even be able to articulate what sixteen years in Europe has done to me and for me.  But, in Texas-words, I need to get back up on this horse and see where we go next.

Enjoy the end of your 2017.  New things are in store for all of us in 2018.