Welcome to my blog! I’m so excited to have a place to toss my words into the world. They are my favorite play toy, and I hope you enjoy the jumble. This is the page where I’m supposed to tell you a little bit about me. So I’ll start with my name. I’m Susan Elizabeth, which my mom says means “graceful lily, consecrated to God.” I don’t know that graceful sums me up very well, but I do dedicate my heart and life to my Savior. Some of the roles I have taken on in my adult life are mom, wife, friend, triathlete, writer, teacher and therapist. I love nothing better than sitting with and helping to hold another person’s pain while working to re-author a life story that has meaning and impacts change in the world. No matter who you are or where you’ve been, I believe that your story—including all the mess in the middle—can be used change the world. That’s why I share mine.
I’ve titled my musings “Growing Places” because life is about the journey, not about arriving. We all walk through seasons of growth and times of pruning, years of drought and the miracles of a harvest. But when our roots grow down deep into the soil of God’s love, we can survive even the harshest of winters and produce fruit that nourishes the world.
Lighthouse on the North Sea in Denmark
I have two children who have taught me more than anyone about growing-up, about being an authentic disaster and a beautiful mess. Raising kids is without question the toughest thing known to mankind and if anyone says anything differently, I will arm wrestle you into submission.
In my ephemeral free time, I enjoy riding my bike as far as possible, running as short a distance as possible, attending child athletic events too innumerable to count, reading Harry Potter aloud to the off-spring, and occasionally making a home-cooked meal. I also love play doh and puppets and a good game of Scrabble. I am in love with God, my unbelievable gift of a husband, my crazy kiddos, two cats and a couple of pet rats. Oh, and Jane Austen as well.