76 Comments

Good God, Kelly. A man after my own heart. What is life without peanut butter? Upside down is the only way to store unopened jars. Thank you for the updraft this morning. Im a public high school teacher in a district whose budget didn’t pass. Times are tough as positions are being reduced, and students are signing up for courses that may not exist next year. Karen

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You could store them upright, but why would you do that to yourself when it's time to stir it? 😊

I'm sorry to hear about the situation in your district, Karen. You need a license plate right now. Praying one drives by.

Thank you for your service to young people.

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"The eagle is searching for the updraft." This is just what I needed to read before launching into the Holy Week writing I need to complete. My house overlooks a cliff on the Sheepscot River, and the eagles love this spot.

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Todd, it was inspired by Holy Week. I had the thought that Jesus started by flapping his wings in the temple and then, after that prayer in the garden, allowed himself to be swept up in the updraft. Blessings upon your writing!

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Kelly….I’m sitting in my family room looking out at the very same river. Last week I watched the eagle you talked about and I’ve got to say, your writing is just perfect. You have such a vision of life and how to interpret it. I’ll be looking for the updraft and that eagle today. Thank you.

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I'm so glad we share this. Thank you for your kind words, and give that eagle a shout-out for me when you see it. 😊

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Every. Single. Time. Those are the times that the words you write completely move me. You have a beautiful way of allowing the wisdom of the world to flow into and through you (and subsequently into me). Thank you for providing and updraft for me as well.

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Blessed to be in, and seeing, the same flow with you!

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Kelly, your work has been an updraft for my husband me and many of our friends. Lovable and Elijah Campbell changed our lives!! Those books, your writing and a breakout session of your’s that we attended at The Apprentice Gathering in Wichita last year are holy relics for us!!! Thank you for all of your efforts and wisdom!

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It's special to me that we were in the same space together last year, and thank you for sharing that about my books. I receive it all as great encouragement, Joy. Please give your husband my best!

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Oh how I needed this today, thank you! I was treated to an incredible updraft yesterday which left me awestruck. A rainbow like nothing I've ever seen! I'm still searching for the words glorious enough to put it into a post on my page, and feeling inadequate to do so. Today I will allow that updraft to lift me up to that place where I can find my words.

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Mmm. Thanks for sharing that, Nancy. Yes, pause as long as you need to in order to take in what that rainbow really means to you and about you!

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Beautiful essay!

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Thank you, Dan!

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I love this. Thanks, Kelly! Keep writing!

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Thank you, Mimi, I will!

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Thank you for this inspiring post! A beautiful way to begin this day.

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Grateful to start my day with you like that, Victoria, thanks for reading. 😊

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Love this, Kelly. Curiously, bald eagles have been a dependable sign for me - of what, I’m not entirely sure! But they appear in the sky, on a branch, once even a few feet away - always when I feel uncertain or in need of protection or simply ask for a sign from the Universe.

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We're caught up in something really good, aren't we, Dana! Not easy always, but good. Blessings upon you and your bald eagles!

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God winks!

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I always love the comment that perfectly sums up my post in less than a sentence! 😂 Thanks as always for reading along, Patti!

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Thanks for this, Kelly. I am flapping pretty hard these days and will keep my eyes open for the updraft and enjoy our TJ PB!

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You and I always were fierce flappers, Allison. Hope you feel the updraft this week!

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Your writing always rings true, Kelly. I am grateful for you and for your perseverance living out your calling. My prayer for you is that you remember to enjoy all of it—the worries and anxieties, the successes and seeming failures. It’s all grace.

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Enjoy all of it. That's a lovely benediction, Michele, thank you!

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This absolutely rings true. I recently watched/listened to a video where a pastor talked about the importance of “trying softer” rather than “trying harder.” The idea that sometimes in our white knuckled pursuits we miss simple beauty and inspiration. This post is an updraft for me, a nudge that there is a message. I need to hear and something that needs to be reinforced. It prompted me to write in my journal, “open my eyes to your updraft. The fresh wind and fresh fire, where you use ordinary moments to reveal yourself in extraordinary ways.“ I don’t want to miss beauty and inspiration in the midst of pursuing my own agenda. Thank you.

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It's amazing to hear the way this translated into your journaling and intentionality already, Lindsey. Trying softer brought to mind a book. Here's the link, in case you haven't seen it. Blessings upon your ordinary moments! https://a.co/d/ba4Cepf

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Loved this so much. A needed reminder every so often when we unconsciously flap around and don’t realize we’ve been doing it for 2 weeks or 2 months or 2 years.

Slow down and allow ourselves to find the updraft.

The peanut butter component itself will relate to many a reader - my husband and the specific flavor that clogs up the grinder and the back up supply we maintain because of that possibility. It’s real.

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Yes, indeed, Shaista, if we're not careful, it can turn into two years. Please give your husband and his peanut butter stash my best!

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If you have not, watch Elizabeth Gilbert talk about creativity on TED. I don’t know if she has done any other talks. It would be her first. Every time I’m faced with a creative challenge. I remember this talk. Essentially she’s talking about up drafts although she doesn’t label it as such. We’re all vessels. When we become quiet, we can hear what is streaming through us. Hang in there!

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I have seen it, Catherine, but it's been a while, and it's exactly the kind of encouragement I need in the middle of a long slog like the one I'm in. Thank you for reminding me of it. "What is streaming through us." So good!

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