Where to start...

Hi. I’m Candis Jones. I write a blog called “Lady Lee in Process” The Lee is because my middle name is Lee. The blog is because I like to keep a record of my life with my husband Drew Jones, our dog Scout and soon to be son (I'm 33 weeks pregnant...weee!). I’ll be writing a little something for Love Everywhere every Monday and am happy to be doing so. 

Here is a photo of Drew Jones and I this Valentines Day. Scout was taking the picture. Just kidding. Bad joke.

To warn you, I am a very simple writer. Drew Jones is constantly finding typos in what I post because I am generally a first draft kind of lady. I find myself to be more honest that way. I find my writing to be more conversational that way, because really I’d rather be sitting in my living room with you, telling you my stories and you telling me yours. But that just can’t happen all the time, so I use the magical internet and I don’t always catch my gramatic mistakes. Like how gramatic isn't a word. I knew that, just testing you.

So I’ll be here on Love Everywhere on Mondays if you want to come by for a chat.

And now, I am just going to jump right in with my first post!

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I think one of the most outstanding people to live was Mother Teresa. One of her many quotes that I love is:

“Spread love everywhere you go: first of all in your own house. Give love to your children, to your wife or husband, to a next door neighbor... Let no one ever come to you without leaving better and happier. Be the living expression of God's kindness; kindness in your face, kindness in your eyes, kindness in your smile, kindness in your warm greeting.”

I have a copy of it sticky tacked to the inside of our front door. 

I put it there because to be honest, it is easy for me to be nice to people I don't know:

Want to cut ahead of me in a line of backed up traffic on the highway?

Go ahead!

You are pushing a stroller and the door to the store isn’t automatic?

Let me get that for you!

You were just an “okay” server for us at the restaurant?

Don’t worry about it! We all have bad days! Here’s 20%!

I smile at strangers if I make eye contact. I will engage in conversation at the grocery check out. I wave at small children and make funny faces at them to make them laugh.

Yes, I am that girl.

But here's the thing...

I don’t always give my husband a hug and kiss when he gets home from work.

Lame.

I don’t always look him in the eyes when he is talking to me and give him my full attention.

Lame.

I snap at him when the dog has an accident in the house and I want him to put the paper towels I used to clean up the mess in the garbage not realizing that he is just trying to keep her from snatching one those paper towels and tearing it up. (I did that one last night)

Lame.

What I know for sure is, I will never be a perfect wife. And when our baby comes I will never be a perfect Mama. BUT if I am not intentional about recognizing the places where I do fall short then I will never get to the humble place of asking for forgiveness and doing better next time. 

I have found that for me, how well I treat my husband is a better reflection of how kind and loving I actually am than how well I treat strangers (or even friends).

I am really looking forward to sharing in the mission of Love Everywhere. Dropping beautiful simple messages of love and kindness in unexpected places for strangers to find. It lights up a place inside of me that is in my very nature and always has been. It will bring me satisfaction and joy and hopefully do the same for the strangers that find our notes. I think it is valuable and needed in the world today to spread good news, good thoughts, good vibes to those around us that we don’t yet know.

So what I guess I am saying with all this is that I am going to let the Love Everywhere project be an encouragement and reminder to not only continue to be kind to strangers, but to make sure to remember that Everywhere means home too.

I hope you are inspired as well.

High-fives all around,

Candis