About This Blog

Hi, I'm Laura! I'm a newly-married Catholic woman in my mid-twenties, working as a youth minister and trying to live out God's will each day. With all the changes in my life over the last few years - graduating from college, getting my masters', moving to a new state, taking a job in youth ministry - my life has been quite the adventure with plenty of twists and turns along the way. There have been perfect moments and painful ones, but in all of them there has been the beauty and joy that comes from a God who loves me unconditionally and is always finding ways to tell me that.

The inspiration for the name of my blog is a quote by Henri Nouwen that a friend shared with me while I was in grad school:

"There is suffering ahead of us, immense suffering, a suffering that will continue to tempt us to think that we have chosen the wrong road and that others were more shrewd than we. But don’t be surprised by pain. Be surprised by joy, be surprised by the little flower that shows its beauty in the midst of a barren desert, and be surprised by the immense healing power that keeps bursting forth like springs of fresh water from the depth of our pain. And so, with an eye focused on the poor, a heart trusting that we will get what we need, and a spirit always surprised by joy, we will be truly powerful and walk through this valley of darkness performing miracles because it’s God’s power that will go out from us."

With these words, Henri Nouwen spoke straight to my heart. Life inevitably involves suffering, and discerning God's will can be difficult and confusing. But there is always joy. I love the image of a tiny flower blooming in the dry, seemingly endless desert. It brings refreshment to a tired soul, and somehow even makes the whole desert beautiful.

I strive to find this joy each day in whatever form it may come, and I want to share that with you.