30 Before 30 Journey in a Year

The Bible....how can I write a succinct blog post about The Bible? A book that's both deeply dividing and immensely unifying. A book that has more books written about it than probably any other book. A book that anchors the Christian and my personal faith. Well, I'm not sure I'll even know by the end of this post, but I'll try. The impetus for this list item was simple. I couldn't without a doubt say that I had read every word. And as I viewed what were major milestones before my 30th, making sure I could definitively say this was both important and discouraging. Why have I waited so long? Setting out in a hunt for a reading plan, I knew there were a variety of options . You mostly come across The Bible in a Year versions. And while I support any plan that you can commit to when it comes to scripture, I knew that was too long for me. I went with a 13 week/3 month reading plan that of course I cannot find the link to anymore to share with you :/ I printed it ...

"Find something you're passionate about and keep tremendously interested in it." What better words could come from a zany, enthusiastic foodie like Julia Child, right? While I wasn't around for the heyday of Julia's The French Chef , my first trip to Paris in 2008 confirmed how easy it was to fall in love with this city and its superb culinary pursuits like Julia did. And while I sampled some incredible food (and not so incredible) both in the original trip and a follow up in 2009, replicating French cooking is intimidating. Overall, standard meals aren't necessarily complicated as they are involved. Many steps, components from scratch and an emphasis on sauces and garnishes are French recipe staples. Kudos to Julia Child for her work making this intimidating French cooking process feel more approachable and doable for American cooks.  While baking and cooking are areas I already feel pretty skilled in, I wanted to try one of Julia's standar...

When I started making my 30 Before 30 list, a random act of kindness was one of the first things I wrote down. Having experienced many times in the past that giving is truly more satisfying than receiving, I wanted to do something on a large scale for someone else. I like to think that I am kind in my day to day interactions and routinely try to do for others. But for the list, I was hoping and praying for an opportunity that was a little more meaningful that paying for everyone's coffee in line at Starbucks- so in came The MOMentum Network . The MOMentum Network is a newer, faith-based Chattanooga nonprofit that offers practical help to single mom families interested in building a better future through higher education. Being that I am a huge advocate for education, a former university adjunct instructor and firm believer that an education is the best form of self improvement from both a personal and economic standpoint, this was were I felt my act of kindness would be best spe...