Tonight my husband decided to go through an old container of keepsakes and mementos. The kids laughed at his old drawings and writings. He softened and relished the memories that no doubt had an impact on the person he is today. As I watched his smile hidden under a beard of gray, it was hard to believe that the anchor and protector of our home was ever once a 7-year-old boy.

My husband unpacking the tokens of memories from his past reminded me that life is a constant unfolding of moments, both big and small. Moments that we forget and those we remember grow us into the person we are now. Moments of laughter and tears all serve a purpose for the tomorrows we didn’t know were coming.

I sit in a period of time where I have enough history for the equation of life to begin to make sense. I have seen enough hurt heal and enough darkness find light. I have been humbled to see the errors of my ways and learn change is always possible. I have found that humans are designed to be renewed just as flowers are meant to wither and rebloom.

Renewal does not come free of charge. It is a process that requires struggle, suffering, resilience, and hope. In order to become new, we must fall apart and put ourselves together again in a way that makes us prepared and ready for what comes next. We must become a better version of ourselves.

Tomorrow, around 70% of Americans will celebrate Easter in some way, shape, or form. This aligns with spring, which is a time of growth and blossoming. The universe reminds us that after the dark and cold times, comes light and life. Like the frozen seeds in the ground, the journeys we labor through are meant to be met with beauty and growth.

As the day allows more light, the air brings more warmth, and your surroundings show you that life is all around, how will you renew? How will you unpack the baggage you carry to prepare the luggage that will transport you to tomorrow?

I leave you with a quote I found from Vance Havner: “God uses broken things. It takes broken soil to produce a crop, broken clouds to give rain, broken grain to give bread, and broken bread to give strength.” When we unpack our journey, we realize we have all been blessed to break. It is in those broken times that we find the nourishment required for the seeds we wish to plant for a new tomorrow.