Christine’s PowerSheets – October Progress

Our goal for this community is to create a safe place for PowerSheets users to share their intentional goal-setting journeys. We’re honored to have our Blog Contributor, Christine Dore, share about her October PowerSheets progress. Thank you, Christine, for taking the time to share your story with us! If you haven’t yet, be sure to read Christine’s introduction here. If you haven’t purchased your 2017 PowerSheets yet, now is the chance! -Jess

When I chose my word for 2016 change I had no idea just how powerful it would be. December of last year found me struggling. I was struggling at work, I was struggling with planning my wedding, struggling with anxiety, and struggling with who I wanted to be and where I wanted to go. At 27 years old, I joked I was having a quarter-life crisis.

After a little “come to Jesus” talk with my now-husband, I knew something had to change, because I had changed. I wasn’t my happy-go-lucky self anymore. I was turning down social plans, scared to go grocery shopping when I knew the store would be crowded, and becoming, honestly, a bit of a recluse. He was justifiably worried about me. I had allowed wedding planning stressors and a solo long car-ride commute and a not-very-collaborative job with people whose values clashed with mine and self-doubt cause me to draw in and hide.

Image by French Press Mornings.

I prayed more that December than I ever did as a kid wishing for a special treat from Santa (in the way kids’ minds work, small-child Christine thought Santa was Jesus’ cousin or something, and He could put in a good word for me). I prayed for guidance. I prayed for help. I prayed in gratitude that He’d sent me such an astute, patient, loving man to spend my life with.

Then, I found the PowerSheets through Southern Weddings, and decided to give it a shot. That moment of, “alright, I’ll give it a whirl why not? It was absolutely God speaking right to my heart, even if I was too mired in self-doubt to hear it for what it was. Something just had to change, and I figured it was as good a place as any to start. And so, “change” became my word for this year.

Fast-forward 10 months and my life has radically changed. I’m married and actively planning my dream future with my husband (I still get a thrill calling him that!), I have a new job with a much shorter commute and am learning new skills all the time, I’m writing for fun again, I landed my first creative content client, and I’m taking better care of myself. Out of all of those, that last one is the most important—and enables all the others.

Taking care of yourself means something different for everyone. For me, it occasionally means letting go of guilt to enjoy something delicious and seasonal. Really appreciating the great days I’ve been blessed with helps me push through the hard days.

This last refresh of the year has me looking toward 2017, and thinking about what word I’ll choose when I receive my new set of PowerSheets I ordered on November 1st. Progress? Love? Creativity? I have no doubt in my mind that I will continue to change. Life is about change. But I’m ready for a more positive word. To look ahead with excitement and start digging into the good stuff to make things happen.

Growing up in Florida, I never experienced picking pumpkins right from the vine! I loved putting “pumpkin picking” on my October Tending List and Fall Bucket List. How are you soaking up the end of this year, to fuel you into 2017?

What are you looking forward to for next year? What are you doing to take care of yourself during this busy time of year?