I spent most of my high school career writing 5 paragraph essays.

Three point thesis, each point correlated to a paragraph and then you reiterate the thesis in the conclusion.

Intro. Body. Conclusion.

As I’ve sat down to write a final World Race blog I’ve found myself at a complete loss for words.

And it made me think of those times in a church basement taking my AP Lit & Language tests. I’d sit there with three prompts in front of me and I’d have to pick two and have 3 hours to write a 2-5 paragraph essays.

It was about being concise. Not having an essay filled with B.S [bolstered syntax].

But really, as I sit here I realize I don’t need to be concise.

I don’t need to have all of the answers to every question.

I don’t have to come to you with this last OFFICIAL blog on my WR account [for now] with some amazing summary of this year, with a video of pictures, with THE amazing overarching theme of a lesson that I learned

If you want to know THOSE things you can look back on my blogs, you can see the journey as it went.

I can tell you this though:

This year I learned I no longer want to live in the normal.

I don’t want to sit on a merry-go-round of life and see all of the same sights. 

I want better for my story.

I’ve learned this year to be in my life.

I’ve learned to jump into my story.

To show up.

And it changed things.

When I started to show up to the struggles, problems and pains in my life I realized that they don’t have to own who I am. That the chains that were rusting over because they were holding me down for so long didn’t have to hold me anymore. I learned that I was allowed to expect others to treat me well.

I deserve more than I give myself.

I can dream. 

And so I will.

So whats my WR thesis statement?

I will continue to shove shame into the light for it to die, seek out the story God has given me and continue to put words to a page and voice to the thoughts He has given me to speak.

So over the next season I will flesh that out. In a fresh journal, a new blog [address TBA in a blog this week] and with a cleansed heart and spirit. 

Thank you for your love and support for this season, I couldn’t have done it without you all.

So I raise my glass to all that 2013 held

to its heartaches, its lessons, its laughter, its joy, its new family and its old family, to its adventure, and its hope.[photo by heather miller: last time of NSquad prayer @ Project Searchlight]

I raise my glass to the wind I felt this year, that I had never seen or heard or felt before.

I raise my glass to it because it’s followed me home.

I raise my glass to light and the story.

God Bless.

Meg.