Phoenix: Live Love Laugh

Happy Sunday, dear readers!

Have you ever felt like life broke you? Like you were once full of purpose, but now you’re barely hanging on? That’s exactly how I’ve felt on many days. But I recently found hope in a surprising place—a little cactus and a powerful reminder from a book called Broken Crayons Still Color: From Our Mess to God’s Masterpiece (available on Amazon).

A Cactus, a Railroad, and an Unexpected Bloom

About three years ago, my brother brought me a cactus plant. It had been tossed aside near the railroad tracks—discarded, forgotten, left for dead. But he saw potential in it and gifted it to me.

For the first year, that cactus thrived. After all, it’s a desert plant—resilient, low-maintenance, and built to survive tough conditions. But last year, after my right hip replacement surgery and a storm of medical complications, I couldn’t tend to my garden. I thought everything had died, including that cactus.

Fast forward to this spring—my brother came over to help me reset the garden. When I told him I was done with gardening, that it always ended in disappointment, he urged me to give it one more try.

And so I did.

Now, my tomatoes, cucumbers, and peppers are thriving. But the real surprise? That shriveled, forgotten cactus began to bloom. Not just with life—but with flowers. Tiny new cacti sprouted at its base. It was alive. It was more than alive—it was multiplying.

That cactus was me. That cactus is you, too.

Broken But Still Coloring

Since my stroke and my diagnosis of Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI), I’ve often felt like a broken crayon—dull, fragile, and no longer “useful.” Some days, I question everything: my worth, my gifts, my purpose. I try, but I feel like I fail. It’s mentally exhausting trying to discover what I’m still good at.

But then I remember Revelation 12:11:

“And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony.”

I’ve been told over and over, “You have a testimony.” And it’s true—I do. From being in a coma, with doctors saying there was no hope for my recovery, to waking up and walking this journey of healing—I am still here. But sometimes, I wonder… when does the rainbow come after the storm?

And yet, God reminds me through my brokenness:

“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”
— 2 Corinthians 12:9

From Our Mess to God’s Masterpiece

The book Broken Crayons Still Color reminds us that what we often see as our deepest wounds—our trauma, our brokenness, our failure—God sees as the very tools to paint His masterpiece.

Even with a damaged brain, even in weakness, even in uncertainty—God still colors through me.

So today, on a weak day, I choose to surrender my story again. I’m learning that healing doesn’t always look like a straight line, and purpose doesn’t always shout—it often whispers through flowers blooming in forgotten soil.

No matter what you’re facing today—remember this: Broken crayons still color. And so do you.