Have A Little Faith in We

October, fourth quarter, it is the last call for 2025. Standing in this moment right now feels like a true journey has taken place. Often the sentiment around this time of year is, how did that happen? Where did the year go? To me time will always be elusive- It will always surprise me, It will always feel fast and slow. It will continue to be the most valuable commodity. 2025, I know where the time has gone: on many unexpected journeys.

In the Catholic faith 2025 is a jubilee year. That means it is a year recognized by the church to provide special blessings and graces under a specifically selected theme. 2025 is the Jubilee year of pilgrims of Hope. I feel pretty confident that was the perfect description of this year, because pilgrims take journeys through high and lows, through good and bad, through wins and losses. To see a pilgrim is to witness someone who has experienced something. And our invitation this year was to experience that something through the lens of Hope.

Hope as defined by the Catholic Church is one of my favorite concepts of our entire faith. It takes hope, a word often associated with wishing, and turned it into a word of action. To have true hope we are not just wishing on a star- but we our making choices in our life that align with the belief that something will happen. Hope was my word of the year when I got pregnant. I studied it, memorized it, and lived it with my catholic faith as the guide. There is no doubt about it, the Catholic Church believes this is a word that stands firm in the face of impossibilities and challenging circumstances. It is a posture…. it is a belief… it is a regular practice, sometimes minute by minute.

To say 2025 was the year for pilgrims on a journey in Hope truly has been the perfect summary. For me personally there are at least four drafted blog posts of how to describe it. Start with what’s going on in the world? Or spend time with what’s happening in my little world? Do I even want to comment on either In this time of canceled culture. Is it even prudent to spend time writing when I have actively learned the lessons that curating a life lead by my faith and for my family takes 150% effort as much of the time as possible?

These questions have brought me back to the start of both 2025, my word is purpose, and the heart of the matter for me with writing. Both pointed to the same thing: The invitation to live imperfect life with as much purpose as possible…. even when my purpose is so drastically different than what surrounds me. And writing about it is the beautiful opportunity to freeze moments in time, review the lessons, and encourage others to celebrate their unique purpose too.

So where to start? Remembering this year, when we were pilgrims in Hope. This is a journey, not just the destination. And what a a beautiful use of purpose to be heading toward the conclusion of a year: I journey through many things and have come out the other side with an even more renewed purpose. It is the little lives that we lead, the ways we choose to love all day long, the action in Hope, while relishing the blessings that often come in small little daily details. I was gifted with the understanding that purpose is where my feet stand right now and every chance to pour into that makes me the best pilgrim and hope.

Thank you so much for reading and remember to make it a great day!
Jackie