good life with jamie hutchings
Part of cultivating a good life is being ferociously happy as often as you possibly can.
For as long as I can remember I have wanted to get married, have a slew of kids, raise them all in faith, and ride blissfully off into the sunset of my very own "happily ever after." By most accounts, it would appear as if I have all of that in the palm of my hand right now: the husband, the kids, the sunsets. However, for me, the "blissful" part has not always come easy.
When I was 9 years old, I was diagnosed with a rare form of Leukemia and was told I had a 25% chance of surviving. I spent the next year undergoing heavy treatments of chemotherapy and fighting to beat the odds. Many events that year caused me to grow up very quickly and look at life from a completely new perspective -- one filled with both gratitude and fear. As my body grew stronger and my health increased, many of my friends did not and I watched as most of them passed away.
During my teenage years, I struggled with PTSD, depression, and what is known as Survivor's Guilt. I still struggle with depression today and it definitely takes its toll on my "happily ever after." It is not the ideal that I had in mind as a young daydreamer, however it has been so much more than I could have ever imagined.
As someone who battles with feeling "happy" all the time, I know that I have to put in the work to make it happen. I'm not riding away in a perfectly shiny carriage with someone else leading the way. Most days, I'm rolling that darn pumpkin up the hill in the mud with my cute shoes on. A girl's gotta have her shoes, right?
I know, as do so many others, that "happy" isn't something that is given, it is something that we have to earn. It is not a right, it is a privilege. I heard an anonymous saying recently that I have used as the theme of my life: "Faith it 'til you make it."
It's okay to not always be okay. We don't need to be happy all the time; we just need to make sure we are working as hard as we can to be happy in the times that count. I am grateful for my time spent in the darkness (as cliché as that may sound) because it has taught me how to fully embrace the light.
What legacy do YOU want to leave behind? I'm more than okay with my kids remembering me as someone who fought really hard to love life no matter what speed bumps and obstacles were put in the way. I want to embrace every single second that I am blessed to have because this life truly is a gift.
a note from becky
Jamie and I have had the opportunity to rub shoulders a few times and I'm so thankful. She is a long-time scrapbooker, story teller, and a friend to our company. I've done a mini Project Photo Rescue session with Jamie and she and I have been speakers at the same event. She certainly knows what it means to cultivate a good life as she shares her own stories and experiences, which is woven into her own family life.