September 2023 Monthly Wrap-Up
September found me wanting to hibernate. It was a busy summer ahead of a busy fall, and I wanted to stay home, enjoy solitude, and read books. When I wasn’t doing that (or dealing with the unexpected medical stuff that always, always comes up), I spent every spare minute with my church family. Overall I’d say it was a pretty good month, even though there was a lot less of that special kind of September magic that usually makes this my favorite month of the whole year.
This month I’m…
Reading: Enchantment: Awakening Wonder in an Anxious Age, Katherine May. You Are A Theologian: An Invitation to Know and Love God Well, Jen Wilkin and J.T. English. The Girl Who Fell From The Sky, Emma Carey (reread). Clues to the Universe, Christina Li. Into The Planet: My Life as a Cave Diver, Jill Heinerth. The House Swap, Yvette Clark. The Firefly Summer, Morgan Matson. Starstruck: A Memoir of Astrophysics and Finding Light in the Dark, Sarafina El-Badry Nance. Counting The Cost, Jill Duggar. When It All Syncs Up, Maya Ameyaw. Roman and Jewel, Dana L. Davis (reread). When Sea Becomes Sky, Gillian McDunn. The Otherworld, Abbie Emmons. 13 total.
Listening: My September playlist (Alessia Cara, Emily James, The Weepies… September music just hits different). Waves, Victoria Bigelow’s EP. Maisie Peters’ and Renee Rapp’s setlists (insert peeping eyes emoji). Kainos Project podcast. Terminal: The Dying Church Planter, the (excellent) podcast my dad did for work (learn more here).
Watching: YouTube–Paige Anastasi; Shelby Church vlogs. TV shows–Girl Meets World season 2 rewatch. Movies–The Devil Wears Prada; Freaky Friday (2003); Pete’s Dragon.
Writing: I did my usual volunteer work with People Hope and Diamonds as well as writing letters to pen pals and friends. I played some original stuff in a show at my music studio, and wrote 13,000 words of my memoir in under a week (then never touched it again lol #typical) plus played around with some MG novel ideas. I also uploaded two YouTube videos I’m proud of–VLOG: My Weekend Rhythms With Chronic Illness and the funny thing is….
Buying: Fall basics, like jeans that actually fit and neutral-colored sweaters.
Grateful for: Being able to contribute to God’s kingdom work. Creative words–even nonfiction ones–coming easy. My weighted eye mask. “I love you!”‘s across the parking lot. “Feed the Birds.” My favorite client doubling our monthly work. September golden hour. Alexia potato puffs. It feeling like fall. Actually being able to watch a movie. The amazing clouds. Being able to help a dear friend in a small way.
What did you do in September? What’s your favorite month of the year?
