Transitions

This semester in my Talbot Wives Group, we are discussing the significance of transitions in our lives and how to best cope and live in those times at our fullest. Our speaker this past Tuesday challenged me to reflect on some of my own transitional periods and the lessons I learned and experienced. II Corinthians 11:24-28 gives a brief account of Paul's times of change and hardship:

24]Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. 25]Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, 26]I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my own countrymen, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false brothers. 27]I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked. 28]Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches.

Granted, the transitional time that I am in now, and those I have been in are not to the same intensity and level (well, maybe living in South Africa was), but Paul provides hope and encouragement for us, no matter the level of our transitions.

So here are some of my photographed transitions:

Highschool Graduation

Attending College

Living Abroad in Finland

College Graduation
Living in South Africa
Falling in Love and Getting Engaged
Getting Married

Our Tent Home for 4 Months
Other Tent Home Away from Tent Home One
Outdoor Living (not the quite like the magazine)
Moving to Los Angeles

Living in Southern California

All of these transitions and moves and stops in the journey have been really pivotal in my growth as a person. While I could have looked at all these times as "commas" between bigger and better events, I would have missed out on my life while "waiting" for my life to start! It is such a good reminder when I am frustrated at where I am now (wanting to be out of LA), that this is NOT just a step between two bigger places, but a significant place of it's own accord. And even this is shaping me into the person I was meant to be.