It’s been a while since I last posted, hasn’t it?

I’ve been busy applying for jobs, going to interviews and trying to keep standing up straight in between! There are lots of half written post drafts on my dashboard and plenty of ideas rolling around in my head, and it’s half term this week so you can expect a flurry of posts in the next fortnight or two – more Small Things posts, more on Fair Trade, a couple reflections, and maybe some news from my trip to Surrey and London this week.

The last couple weeks have in some ways been pretty unsettling and stressful, but a few things have kept me going:

1. My friends – especially at the church group I go to, where people are always ready to have a laugh, to listen, and to pray for me.

2. Nature – when I need reassurance that everything’s going to be OK, I go outside and watch nature. It helps me feel grounded and peaceful, that good prevails as much if not more than evil, that everything has its time and season, that life is sustained and beautiful.

3. Reading the Bible. I’ve been collecting ‘hope words’ from the Psalms, which help me to see things in perspective.

4. Food – and this is perhaps not such a positive one. Does anyone else get that need when they feel insecure to just eat?! It’s a need for nourishment I think, but it’s not always the right kind of nourishment. I love food and think it’s an important part of life, there to enjoy and share, but I think I’m on rocky ground when I try to reign in stress, tiredness or emotion by stuffing my face.  I’m considering fasting as a way of regaining balance in this area, and of finding my spiritual and emotional sustenance in the right places.

What keeps you going when you’re feeling a little shaky?