ALSSI Newsletter
September 2023
Hello! Happy Fall!
“The journey between what you once were and who you are now becoming is where the dance of life really takes place.”
— Barbara De Angelis
This season we’re talking about embracing your journey. For most of my life I didn’t know I could take my own. I thought we were all on the same path—one charted by someone else—and once I was on it, my job was to just keep following. I kept repacking stuff that was hard to carry, never dreaming I could leave it by the side of the road.
Trying on the certainty I heard from others at church was shoving my feet in someone else’s pinchy shoes. As for faith, I was never sure I had enough or the right kind.
But I misunderstood faith and certainty—how they might function, or fail to, when bumped up against big challenges. Eventually I realized rather than a long straight path, life is more like a series of corners I can’t see around. Embracing my journey meant first accepting that, like it or not, I’d be on one.
My acceptance changed things. It was unsettling because for the first time, it felt like I didn’t have anyone telling me where I was going or how to get there. But that aloneness is exactly what ended up shifting my faith from precarious to durable.
“Like all explorers, we are drawn to discover what's out there
without knowing yet if we have the courage to face it.”
― Pema Chodron
Just as individuals learn differently, I found out I ‘believe’ differently. I found out not knowing didn’t endanger my faith, it allowed me to search for it in new places. To let my own hunger lead to what might fill me.
Though walking this way is a work in progress, letting go of control and expectations has already revealed beautiful surprises. Instead of moving away from God, I’ve learned I actually want to go toward Them. I’ve started to read the Bible differently, to listen to what Jesus said and watch what he did rather than assuming I already know the story. And guess what? One of the things he did was call people on a journey.
“Follow me,” he said, and expected them to do it without always knowing exactly who he was, what he meant, or where the path might lead them.
In my experience, faith in Jesus Christ requires trading some of the things we think we know for a lot of stuff we can’t. That’s what makes life the perfect school for it.
It’s Jesus suggesting fishermen throw nets off the other side of the boat and see what happens, telling a rich young man he could trade up from comfort and self-importance for something better, reminding Martha a woman might choose for herself a life beyond cultural expectations.
He’s always saying, “There’s a way there, but you’re going to need to follow me. It’s not on that map.”
The kinds of lessons my life keeps trying to teach me. I’ve come to see his outstretched invitation baked into all of it, and instead of one right way, I see the reality of a life of faith as closer to ‘a path is a path is a path.’ We’re not here to know or control what will happen next. We’re here so we can figure out how to journey, to walk toward God with grace and love, wherever the path takes us.
— Susan
“In the company of one another, women are finding their voices, telling untold stories, and singing freedom songs. A movement is underfoot, a holy rumbling. And things will never be the same.”
—Rachel Held Evans
Speaking of women’s stories —
We hope you enjoyed our first Say More newsletter. There’s more where that came from! If you liked what you read, please share and spread the “holy rumbling.” Remember you can always find all our Say More content on our Substack page, here.
Have a story of your own to tell? If you’d like our guidelines for submission, please drop us a note at atlastshewritesit@gmail.com and we’ll look forward to including your work in an upcoming issue!
What’s up next?
We’ll publish two Say More issues in October, so watch your inbox for those.
In addition, we’ve introduced Live Chats! Most Friday mornings at 10:00 am Mountain you can click on chat in your Substack app or on our page and you’ll see a prompt to get the conversation going. We’ll be there live for 2 hours talking about anything anyone wants to talk about!
The great thing is the chat stays open after we’re gone, so you can drop in any time to read what other women are saying and leave your own 2 cents. As of this writing, last Friday’s chat has 399 replies—that’s a whole lot of wisdom and support from the women in this community! Do yourself a favor and make a note to check in on one soon. We’d love to have you join us!
Our upcoming Fall Gathering in Salt Lake City sold out fast, and promises to be a great day! We’re sorry if you tried to register and missed getting a spot. We’ll hear from C.A. Larson and Jana Spangler in the morning, with an all-star panel after lunch when C.A. and Jana will be joined by Maxine Hanks, Jody England Hansen, and Meghan Decker. If you can’t make this one, watch your social media for announcements about our next live event and remember . . . chairs fill up fast! We hope to see you in person soon.
For your calendar:
ALSSI November Ladies’ Lunch In
Wednesday, November 15
12:00 noon Mountain
Watch our website and social media for registration details!
“…when talking about girls’ empowerment and women as well, you’ll often hear people saying, ‘You’re helping them find their voices’, I fundamentally disagree with that. Women don’t need to find their voice. They need to feel empowered to use it and people need to be encouraged to listen.”
—Meghan Markle
We hope you’re enjoying Season 7!
We have a lot of great guests lined up this fall, and conversations we can’t wait to have. We hope you’ll keep tuning in and walking with us!
Just a reminder you can now find our episodes on Substack as well as our website and your favorite podcast streaming platform. It’s one more place to listen, comment, and join the community.
“Feminism is for everybody.”
— bell hooks
And now…dessert.
“I bought my last box of peaches. Because all good things must end. It’s been an awesome six weeks of peach season. So a nap and peach cobbler . . .” —Cynthia
Cynthia’s Favorite Peach Cobbler
(or apple!) in a Cast Iron Pan
FOR THE FILLING
7-8 ripe peeled and sliced peaches
2-4 tablespoons/25-50 grams granulated sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon minute tapioca (or cornstarch)
FOR THE TOPPING
1 cup/128 grams all-purpose flour
½ cup/44 grams old-fashioned oats
¼ cup/50 grams granulated sugar
1½ teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
6 tablespoons butter
¾ to 1 cup buttermilk
2 tablespoons turbinado sugar
Spray a 10 or 12-inch cast iron pan, add all the filling ingredients and stir. Make the biscuit topping in your food processor by combining the dry ingredients and the butter, pulsing until butter is pea-sized or smaller. Add buttermilk to make a very thick dough. Using a big cookie scoop, scoop rounded balls of dough over the peaches. Sprinkle with turbinado sugar, bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for approx 45 minutes, or until biscuits are well browned.
Onward!
Our thanks to every one of you for subscribing and supporting! We’re so humbled by the way you keep showing up with generous hearts, ready to sit with each other, and by your contributions to the ALSSI community—wherever and however you make them.
Much love,
Cynthia, Susan,
and the ALSSI Team 🧡
“I found out not knowing didn’t endanger my faith, it allowed me to search for it in new places. To let my own hunger lead to what might fill me.”
Perfectly said … Kim
“It’s Jesus suggesting fishermen throw nets off the other side of the boat and see what happens, telling a rich young man he could trade up from comfort and self-importance for something better, reminding Martha a woman might choose for herself a life beyond cultural expectations.”
So so beautiful, Susan! 💕