Blog — Windrose Magazine

TUESDAY TUNES: Songs for When You're In A Life Transition

TUESDAY TUNES: Songs for When You're In A Life Transition

I’m in a transition place, and I desperately want to not be. I feel on hold, and I want to get to the good part, where I live on my own in a cool apartment with a comfortable salary. On the other hand, the last years of transition have allowed me to grow into wonderful relationships and fulfilling work. These years haven’t been anything to skip over. They’ve been full. Long, and wearing, but also joyous and real. There’s learning for me here, and so many important people, and I can feel myself transforming, however slowly, into the woman I’ve always hoped to be.

Tuesday TunesMelissa WartenNovember 27, 2018FeaturedComment

When Life Feels Transient

When Life Feels Transient

Despite the excitement of unpacking and settling into a new place, my tendency is to be frustrated and bitter for weeks surrounding a move. It’s easy to get caught up in missing what I no longer have. I romanticize the yard from our old home—in my mind it is lush and green even though in reality it was too dry and prickly to walk barefoot on—but wasn’t it better than this brick patio space? I miss the white walls that we’ve exchanged for beige, even though we couldn’t hang anything on those walls without asking our landlord to pound in the nails (something I was too shy to do the entire duration of our stay.)

LifeGianna SoderstromNovember 25, 2018FeaturedComment

Waiting for Happy

Waiting for Happy

For my entire life, this has been my dream. Freezing cold, sitting on the roof of my apartment, staring out at New York City in all its glory, at 2 o’clock in the morning, listening to Billy Joel. It really, truly does not get better than this.

But at the same time, it could.

Because there’s something that no one tells you about getting your dreams: Sometimes, it’s not what you thought it would be. Because sometimes, dreams change.

Dreams, Life, CareerKatie SerenaNovember 21, 2018FeaturedComment

To The In Between

To The In Between

I am writing to inform you that I have decided to accept your offer to stay here for a to-be-determined amount of time. I’ve decided to occupy the space that you’ve provided me with here because it seems I have no other choice. I’ve tried my hardest to get out of this space, to crawl and dive and roll my way out of this weird and uncomfortable living situation. This is worse than any bad roommate I’ve ever had, for the record. I’ve tried to avoid giving people this address when they ask “what are you doing with your life?” or “where are you now?” because I quite honestly haven’t bothered to memorize it either. Every time I think I’m moving out and I’ve convinced myself this is it, I fall right back on my ass and am reminded, abruptly (and painfully if I must say so myself), that it is not my time.

Graduation, Life, Career, DreamsRebecca BekeleNovember 18, 2018FeaturedComment

Surviving the Pink Slip

Surviving the Pink Slip

But what happens when climbing the ladder of career success suddenly comes to a halt? How do we respond when your 5 year plan is thrown a curve ball in the form of a pink slip and a cardboard box? No one tells you how to process the words you will never forget, “It’s not working out; we’re letting you go.” I will tell you from personal experience, nothing can top the feeling of failure like being let go without warning.

CareerAnna Kaye GilbreathNovember 7, 2018Comment

Life Is Messy

Life Is Messy

Life is messy. A few weeks ago, as I fell asleep with my sister in bed beside me, this thought played through my mind: life is oh-so messy. For all of us. No one is spared hardship or heartache or challenges. We all have something. For some, the weight, the battle, the uphill climb is greater than others.

Health, LifeEmily HopcianNovember 5, 2018Featured Comment

Before You Burn Your Bridges

Before You Burn Your Bridges

I interpreted the advice I received as an excuse to heartlessly cut people and lifestyles out of my life. There were no calm conversations to be had. There were no apologies to ask for. There were absolutely no explanations. Instead there were subtweets, ghosting, and a whole lot of judgement. If you brought negativity to my life by way of gossip or lifestyle differences, not only did I not want you around, I passive aggressively let you know about it through the grapevine.

Katie HaganOctober 31, 2018Comment

Cultivating Community in Post-Grad Life

Cultivating Community in Post-Grad Life

I work about an hour away from where I live, so finding those same connections has been discouraging at times. I cannot tell you how many Google searches I have done for “young professional groups near me,” “young adult singles ministries,” and every variation you can think of only to find myself hours later with no better answer than when I first unlocked my phone.

The easy route that seems so appealing because it requires no effort is to simply wait it out—wait for the “right” people to fall into your lap. But not making a decision is a decision in and of itself. I have found that looking for brand new, unfamiliar territories right off the bat can be daunting and intimidating, especially for an introvert like myself.

Relationships, LifeBailey SmithOctober 29, 2018FeaturedComment

The Value of Boredom

The Value of Boredom

When we devote our time to something, we are asking it to shape us. In the best case scenario, the time we spend in-between things on Instagram, Twitter, Youtube, Snapchat, etc. isn’t wasting the time we allotted for work or gym or pleasure. But even if it’s taking up only the in-between-time, it’s still shaping us. And beyond shaping us, it’s making it more difficult to focus on the worthwhile when the worthwhile becomes boring.

And the worthwhile is more boring than sexy.

Life, TravelDanielle IsbellOctober 21, 2018Comment

Don't Hold Back

Don't Hold Back

I walked out of the interview how I had walked out of high school: Discouraged. Lost. Uncertain of the future. I had built up the idea of the flight attendant career so much in my head and after waiting three months to get there, it was completely different from what I had expected.

Dreams, CareerGlenna SilkOctober 14, 2018Comment

On Letting Other People's Opinions Define You

On Letting Other People's Opinions Define You

You see, I knew I had the potential to create something impactful. I’ve fought through my own darkness and have sat with enough friends in the thick of their mess to know that there is a whole army of people who need to know they are not hopeless and they’re fine just as they are. But whenever I took any steps to bring it to reality, I would get shut down by fear and sent back to the depths of YouTube.

Dreams, LifeAshley ChowSeptember 30, 2018FeaturedComment

Surviving the First Two Weeks of A New Job

Surviving the First Two Weeks of A New Job

Work-wise, that first week, I was given what I was told were "simple" and "basic" meetings to attend and assignments. I had no idea what was going on, how to pull these reports, or even what the heck my boss was saying half the time. I'd sit in meetings and feel like a child at the adult table during Thanksgiving.

CareerStephanie BrooSeptember 26, 2018Featured Comment

WINDROSE READS: Walking on Water (+ A Book Haul Giveaway!)

WINDROSE READS: Walking on Water (+ A Book Haul Giveaway!)

There are favorite books, and then there are books that I wish I could memorize every single word from the intro to acknowledgements. Walking on Water by Madeleine L’Engle is this type of book.

Here’s why this will be your next favorite book (+ we’re doing a book haul giveaway!).

Windrose ReadsAlly WillisSeptember 25, 2018Featured, Book Haul GiveawayComment

Learning to Loosen Your Control on Life

Learning to Loosen Your Control on Life

I like to have things mapped out and know exactly what I’m working toward. I prefer to weigh out the pros and cons and then make one rational decision after another. For as long as I can remember, I’ve kept endless to-do lists and goal charts. And to be honest, that’s worked pretty well for me. Until after college, when the possibilities were endless and nothing seemed to go according to plan.

Having an image in my mind of how I wanted my life to be and then having things play out very differently inevitably led to a lot of anxiety. My self-critic became debilitatingly loud.

Life, Career, DreamsAbbie WalkerSeptember 23, 2018Featured Comment

FROM THE ARCHIVES: Making Time for Yourself

FROM THE ARCHIVES: Making Time for Yourself

I’ve allowed myself to fall into this routine that is toxic to my personal productivity. And I’m the type of person who cannot be fully satisfied from just work, I need to see advancements in my personal life to feel a real sense of accomplishment. But lately, I’ve spent every free moment thinking of all the things I need to do and dreaming up all the things I want to do that I don’t leave myself enough time to actually do them.

Health, Life, RelationshipsHannah ReedSeptember 19, 2018Featured, From the ArchivesComment