For a long time I struggled with living in Ketchikan, Alaska. Being a memory oriented person I really struggled with being in Alaska and not remembering all of the painful things that have happened to me. As I left for college a lot of bitterness and hatred towards the people who had hurt me built up and my desire to be in Ketchikan went completely away. As I came home my first summer I was angry and searching for joy in a place that I had come to hate so much.
Over the past year, which I have been at school, the Lord worked in my heart and began to give me a love for the place that I grew up. He reminded me of the good times rather than the bad and He taught me to find the seashells among the rocks on the beach. Coming home this summer has meant the world to me. I'm not going to deny that God has brought many challenges my way and that I am definitely ready for vacation, but through each one He has shown Himself more real to me than ever before.
Being here in Ketchikan this summer has opened my eyes to a whole new world of joy and beauty that I had never seen before. It has also opened my eyes to the hurt that I caused when I would say things against my home. For those of you who knew me then, either personally or through my blog, you know how angry and bitter I was. Now I deal with people who feel how I once did about my home and my church and it hurts me to see that and to hear the things that they say. This is my home and I am a member of a fantastic church that I have come to love this summer more than I ever have before. They are treasures in my life and I will never again take it for granted that I grew up in Alaska and that I have a church family who is absolutely incredible. It's home, it always has and it always will be.
Maybe you struggle with where you are right now or a situation that you are in. Before you decide to be negative, look for the seashells among the rocks. And before you decide to comment negatively on where someone else lives or even the church that they attend or the school that they go to, consider how much your words will hurt them. I was once a person who hurt others with my words and now I am
someone who is hurt by the words of others. Words mean things. Remember that place to someone is a place called home, and Ketchikan, Alaska is my place that I am proud to call home.
