I’m not going to return to normal or even anything close to what it was before. Nor am I waiting until 2021 to “live again.” My best day is the one I am living right now. Robert Louis Stevenson  wrote, “Don’t judge each day by the harvest you reap but by the seeds that you plant.” Daily, I plant seeds of compassion, peace, kindness, joy, and purpose to harvest a life filled with love.

20/20 vision is normal visual acuity at a distance of 20 feet while the year, 2020 reduced our physical community to 6 feet. 20/20 only indicates the clarity of vision at a distance, 2020 brought life up close to be examined by each one of us. Suffering produces compassion and I believe it has prepared me for what has been our 2020 vision. Christ’s compassion moved him before he had 20/20 vision to see the hurting. That same compassion has become God’s love in action. Even in the dark, you can be a friend to shine the light around the corners. I’ve mentally crossed the globe to wrap someone in a hug, listen to their story and let them know that they are loved. 

Having started Covid on a walker recovering from hip surgery, and wondering if I would have a permanent limp and still live in pain, shrunk my world to the size of my living room and recliner. I practiced uni-tasking since my hands were used to push my body along. I limited my talk and screen time because I was so cluttered by grief. I spent weeks looking through the bars of my walker into my backyard wishing I could empty my grief into a passing cloud and all my sorrow would be carried away by the winds. I had wasted years of my life, dying inside at the opinion of others. Forgetting who I was in God’s eyes. This perceived feeling of unworthiness, narratives and emotional rut-filled communication, led to a sort of self-rejection. Whereas I could extend compassion and kindness for others, I stopped short at myself. 

As I quieted my mind chatter, God began to speak in the silence. It was there where I came to a place of kindliness towards myself and in this gentle space, I experienced a spiritual reconnection and dusted off a dream. In Her Lane, my podcast became in my line of sight. I’ve spent seven years in service to women fighting cancer through Compassion That Compels and I am the collector of many beautiful stories. Words are art and become the highest form of human expression when it gives a voice to the heart. I’ve been working with a dear friend and her creative production team to bring these stories and soul nourishing conversations to become the, In Her Lane podcast! 

You can subscribe today at your favorite podcast platform (we’ll be on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher–wherever you listen to podcasts). We’ll also have the podcast on both my personal site kristiannestewart.com and compassionthatcompels.org. I hope you’ll join me at In Her Lane together each week. Until then, know that you are loved!

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