Being Transparent: Being Happy for Others

Sometimes, it's scary being transparent. I want to share from my heart, be honest with what's going on, and hopefully encourage as much as I can. But with putting yourself out there, there are those who will judge you, discourage you, mock you, and not like you. So when I go to blog, or post a status, or share a photo, I want to share about my life, but in the back of my mind, I feel like there are those who could care less about what I have to say. Anyone else ever feel that way?! That when you go to share something on social media, even though no one is necessarily saying things about you, your mind begins to wonder off in that direction? I hate that. There are so many times when I share a photo of my husband and I that I have to fight off the "what ifs." "What if they think I'm bragging? What if no one cares? What if people are tired of seeing me happy? What if they think I am faking it?"And then I am reminded: If I feel good about sharing something, I should share it. And you should too! I know I am not the only one in feeling this way. One day I was talking to one of my sisters, and we were talking about how we get so happy/excited about something that we want to share it with the world, but fear that others will think we aren't being grateful enough, that we are bragging, that we are trying to show off. Oh, how far off from the truth that is. 

As a woman who so desperately wants to start a family, I can't tell you how many times I have scrolled through social media only to see hundreds of smiling baby posts, pregnancy announcements, etc. A few months after my ectopic pregnancy, there was a baby announcement literally EVERY day. I didn't WANT to be jealous, and I didn't want to be upset at the person posting such a happy moment in their life, but that is where I found myself, and I knew I had to get my heart right. I had to get rid of bitterness and jealousy before I could truly be happy for someone else. It hasn't been smooth to come to this point in my life, but I truly believe that I've made huge strides in learning how to be happy for others. Please don't think that this is for anyone specific. I'm just sharing this as an example because it's come up in conversations lately, and I don't want people to think that they have to tip toe their happy life with a baby around me! SHARE THOSE SWEET MOMENTS. The laughing, the cooing, the crying, the crawling, the sleeping. Share away and I will love every moment you share with me. I know when the day comes for me to share pictures like that, I want you to like seeing them too, haha (just being honest) :)!!

And in this season of my life, whatever I have, whatever I do, I want my life to point to Christ. There are days I will fail at this, but I want to be free to be myself. And you have every right to be yourself! I want to share with others what makes me happy. If that is my husband, my home, my dog, my family, photos of the sky, and Jesus, then I shouldn't be afraid to share that. I'm learning to be content with the things I do have, instead of being upset by what I don't. Can you relate? My challenge to you (and myself) is to be HAPPY for others. Truly. Encourage others. Share in their joy. Because it's easy to share in each others sufferings, when the world seems to be against us, and all we want to do is wallow in sadness. But can you share joy with someone who is experiencing something amazing in their life? YES, YOU CAN! If we are there for each other, we are there for the good and bad. The moments that bring tears to our eyes, and the moments that make us want to shout from the rooftops with gladness.

Just wanted to share that this afternoon. Keep posting & let your hearts be free to share with others what brings you JOY! :)

Becky

Garth Brooks Concert in Tulsa.

Back in late October/early November, my husband discovered that Garth Brooks was going on tour. You wouldn't have known he was a big fan just by looking at him. I mean, it's not like Thunder Rolls is his ringtone, he talks about him all the time, or even owns a cowboy hat. But let me tell you, he LOVES his music. So when he mentioned to me that it would be cool to see him in concert, I was on board. I knew he would be filling one of his bucket list items by seeing him in concert, it would make a fun date night for us, and Christmas was right around the corner, so we could purchase the tickets as a gift for each other. And then the hard reality came...Garth wasn't going to be playing in Texas.  

So, we made the decision that would would drive to Tulsa, OK since that was his closest show. We purchased the tickets (stressful thanks to the overload of ticketmaster fans trying to purchase tickets too, that the site kept freezing up on us.), and then we waited for the weekend of the show.

On the drive down, Jearen played Garth's greatest hits, and I remembered so many songs that I had forgotten about. I fell in love with some. I learned the words to some (like Baton Rouge!), and had fun singing (or I should say yelling) along with my husband as he drove us. 

We arrived on time to the concert, but I was SO out of it. I had no appetite, a headache, my body ached, no energy. Not exactly how I wanted to feel going into a high energy, highly anticipated concert. It was so bad that when Jearen left to get me some sprite, I started to fall asleep in my chair. With thousands of people around. At a concert. Ha, I must have been embarrassing. 

Despite feeling totally off, I still wanted to make the most of this trip we just drove all the way out for. We sat on the very last row, which sounds like a bummer, but turned out to be perfect. We got to stand to any song we wanted to, without anyone behind us telling us to sit (this happened to people in front of us down the row, who kept being told to sit by some REALLY old fans, haha). We got to sing at the top of our lungs to our favorite songs, and had so much fun.

I must say, I was HIGHLY impressed with Garth Brook's performance. He had put out a new cd earlier in the year, and I wasn't sure what he would play. Besides playing two songs from his neweset album, he played his GREATEST HITS, which was perfect, since I just had a crash course on all of that songs. That man can sing and entertain a crowd!

After the concert, I was running to the nearest gas station for some headache medicine. I didn't have any medicine available since I have been using Young Living Essential Oils (and haven't had any medicine since that night). I was desperate to feel better, and nothing seemed to help. 

Still don't know why or what made me feel so bad that Friday, but I am so glad we got to go to that concert. (And felt fine the next day)

I left a bigger Garth Brooks fan than when we first arrived, and got to make memories with my husband.

Who is on your bucket list to see in concert?! If the opportunity arrives to see them, GO! You won't regret it! :)

Becky