Reader, if you do one thing next year, call your home your home. Just do it. No matter where it is, commit to it now. Commit to being at home where you live. 

Sometimes we avoid hard questions because we’re scared of the unknown.

Your faith, whatever it may be, isn't going to look like the faith of the person next to you. You aren't the person next to you. You have a piece inside of yourself that is so unique and lovely, and it's up to you to shake off what isn't you anymore and protect what is.

When I was at my most broken in this last season, my roommate sat with me on the couch and silently listened as I exploded with confusion. She turned to me and said, “Paige, what is going to bring you the most freedom in this?” 

Let’s look like hope for one another, showing up over and over with the simple reminder of our presence that everything may not be okay, but we can be not okay together. And if there are days we simply don’t want to talk about it, let’s laugh.

We came back. We said “I’m sorry” carefully, without certainty at first, and then in ways that weren’t words. That was okay. I am learning with her that it is okay to have a lot to feel, a lot to say. It is okay to ask for love and okay to rebuild a foundation.

Whether you’re a homebody or an adventure-seeker, here are three ways I’ve learned to seek adventure everyday.

You’re gonna find a way to make things work, and even though it might take a little while, your life is going to become brighter than you ever thought it could. 

As Leslie Knope from Parks and Recreation reminds us, “No one achieves anything alone.”

You have turned hospitality into an art form. Everyone is welcome in your home. Even a door to door salesman with questionable motives is welcomed in, offered a cup of steaming hot tea, perhaps some dried fruit and chocolate treats, friendly conversation, and a moment to rest before heading back out.

Loving any other human being is complex and often times messy. Truly loving others is hard because it often leads to hard conversations and setting aside ourselves in order to serve someone else. Loving those struggling with addiction in our lives is no different. It’s day by day. It’s asking ourselves if we are just choosing what is easy or if we are choosing the best option for them and us. Are we supporting? Are we listening? Are we showing up and inviting them in?

Friendship is not a step down from romantic love, or a placeholder for it. It is its own complicated beast in which you will fight with and for each other. It has its own inside jokes and lines that you will figure out how not to cross together. It is a gift.

Our wounds don’t disqualify us from being vulnerable, loving our partner well, or doing relationships in a healthy way. Facing off with depression and anxiety together simply provides a path to cultivating a healthy connection. No victim mentality here. We’ve learned to see mental health issues as a gift, an opportunity, and we both give and receive. It's not about me; it’s about we.