Can We Catch Up?

Life has been... well, life-ing. 😅

In this episode of Her Path Her Pace, I'm sitting down for a real, honest catch-up. We're talking about what life's been looking like behind the scenes, navigating a busy season, balancing work and graduate school, pursuing dreams while managing everyday responsibilities, and learning to lean on faith when life feels overwhelming.

If you've ever felt stretched thin, struggled to find balance, or wondered how to keep moving forward when life gets busy, this conversation is for you. Consider this your reminder that it's okay to be in the middle of the journey—and that giving yourself grace is part of the process.

Thank you for walking this path with me. Your support, encouragement, and every listen truly mean more than you know.

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Keywords: life update, life lately, personal growth, faith, Christian podcast, self-improvement, balancing work and school, graduate school, chasing your dreams, productivity, burnout, encouragement, motivation, mental wellness, behind the scenes, hope, purpose, women empowerment, lifestyle podcast, navigating adulthood, grace, faith journey, finding balance

Honor your path. Honor your pace. And remember to give yourself grace. 🤍

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:04

Let's go ahead and do this yellow. Well, hello, hello, hello, hello, hello, every well, wait, let me blow my chair a little bit. There you go. Hello, hello, everybody. Welcome to Her Path, Her Pace, where growth meets grace. I am your host, Shay, and thank you for joining me on another lovely Tuesday. Oh my goodness, how's everybody doing out there in the world? Oh, it's just, you know, life. Life has been laughing a lot lately. And you know, we're just this is gonna be a catch-up episode, just like us chit-chat, girl chat, group chat, whatever you want to call it. We're gonna catch up later. So we're just gonna move past life lately because we're gonna talk about all of that during you know the main topic of discussion today. Okay, so we're just gonna go ahead and hit those glow-up goals. So, like I said, today this episode is gonna be um about just you know, a life catch up, life check-in, season check-in, all those things. And so for our glow up goal for this week, I just I want everybody to take a moment, pause, and you know, do a life check-in with yourself. You know, what's been bringing you joy? What's been draining you? What's something that you're excited about? What's one thing that you're looking forward to, and so on and so forth. And you know, just take the moment and take a time to pause, like I said, and just sit with yourself and be like, How is life actually going for me? What is actually going on in my world? What in the world? You know, take that time because I have to take that time, and so now that's our glow-up, glow up goal, glow-up challenge for this week. Just take time, take a moment, pause, and just give a give yourself a little check-in, yeah, check in with yourself and see where you are in life and everything, okay. Oh, so yeah, because life, like I said, life, life has been lifing for your girl. Late, late. Oh my gosh. But yeah, so now that we're all going, going, and going, let's go ahead and see who we are in step with on today. Normally, for this segment of the episode, I would choose somebody who is inspiring me at the moment. But right now, this current moment, current season, this current gesture in my life, I just have to take time, take a moment to step back and just say that my biggest source of encouragement, my biggest source of strength in this season in my life at the moment. Well, not in my in my life at the moment, but biggest source of all of this, and I have to take a moment to say it now, um, is God. Uh, because like the season I'm currently in, it's a lot of moving pieces, a lot of things that I'm believing for, a lot of things I am hoping for, and I'm in a season where I am choosing to have hope, I am choosing to have faith over fear, and I'm choosing to trust, even if I can't see the whole picture that God can and that God is in control and that God's got me. And that's what I've been holding on to as I've been moving forward to keep pushing forward, to keep holding on, to keep striving for, to keep going after the things, and to keep hope alive, and to keep believing and to keep trusting in all of the things. It's God, it's God. So that's that's our shared steps moment for today, for this episode, for my life. For yeah, I gotta take a moment and just say, Yeah, it's God. God, God is doing it, it ain't me. Because y'all, it's God. That's all I can say. It's God, ain't nobody but God, ain't nothing but God, because yeah. Hmm. So that is who we are in step with on today, and checking in to make sure that we are continuing to stay in step with God, even when we can't see, and even we we don't understand and we don't know. I am in I'm doing my best to stay there, God. I'm doing my best to listen and to stay steadfast and hopeful and have faith in all the things. Okay, so now that we are all in step and that moment has been taken, let's go ahead and set the mood with some tunes. Okay, so for this week's her playlist, uh, I just decided to do three two songs that have been on repeat, like my most played on my Apple Music playlist. And it's so crazy because I didn't even realize that these songs were my most played on my playlist until I went and looked, and yeah, and the first song is intentional by Travis Green. Um, you know, intentional God is intentional, never failing, all things are working for my good. Yes, they are, because he's intentional, yeah, never failing. You know that all things are working for my good. Because I've reminded myself that a lot lately, a lot more than I realized, apparently, because it's in my top two songs on repeat, like for the past for a minute now, for a minute now, for a fat minute. Okay, and then the second one is Sam's Freestyle Medley, performed by Chloe Bailey from the Praise This soundtrack, and you know, kind of similar story, similar thing where you know she didn't know where she was going, what was going on, she didn't really uh I guess like was different. If you've seen Praise This, then you know that the movie's about um Chloe's main character, Sam, who wants to go after her dreams of being an artist and singer and all that, and like, you know, the hip-hop RB realm. And you know, her dad doesn't really agree with her choices and things like that. She gets caught up, and so she he sends her to go live with um her aunt and uncle after her mom passed away because he doesn't really know what to do, and she gets uh with her cousin and they join like her cousin well somehow, somehow she ends up not some way somehow, but she ends up on the praise team at her cousin's church, and she really likes it and she falls in love and it helps build her relationship with God and all of that things. Um so this song in particular though is from the scene in the movie where they are at I think the bowling alley, bowling alley, skating. Um one of the two. I can't really remember which one it is, but yeah, and she gets challenged to turn any because she's a songwriter, to turn any um, you know, song into uh praise and worship or gospel song, something like that, along those nature, along those lines, along those lines, I believe is the right phrase. And so, yeah, that's what this freestyle badly is, and yeah, it's also another, it's just encouraging. And honestly, my favorite one out of it is the last one where she chain turns uh who can I run to, you know, because the phone tears falling from my eyes, there's nowhere to turn to. I fall apart out here on my own world against me. There's nothing I can trust and I'm struggling. It's tall on me. Will I ever hear these scars? I'm trying to be strong, but I am breaking. How do I go from here? Who be that's gonna be? That's when I really need someone gonna run to I'm gonna find somebody that I can run to. Yeah, yeah. And it was just yeah, so but honestly, because it starts off with she does what's it? Pressure. That's the first one she starts off. Give it to him. Stay on it, ain't no pressure. Gotta make our way out of no way if you believe it, baby. Yeah, yeah. So, like that whole melee, but honestly, all of the songs are just about encouragement and pre pursuing God and pursuing, you know, Him and staying steadfast and faithful and hopeful, even when you can't see and you don't know. And I just like obviously the soundtrack of my life at this current gun, current season, at these current moments. Um, just constant reminders that I need for myself and everything. And so, yeah, those are the two songs. More than the melee is more than one song, but you know, whatever. Gada gotta gotta tomato tomato. Um, but yeah, those are the songs, those have been the soundtracks. Uh, I've been listening to uh repeat and a lot late late listen to listening to a lot lately. So, yeah, those are our playlist songs. Um, yeah, so that's that. So now that the mood is set with our tunes, let's go ahead and walk through this thing, y'all. Okay. So um let me tell y'all. First, let's start off with some like I don't know what I just did. Ah, ah, ah, ah First, like, let's start off with some housekeeping, y'all. Um, uh, episode 25, I realized and it had been brought to my attention. I did not know this because I I thought it did upload. I really, I promise I thought the YouTube video uploaded, y'all. But for some reason, someway, somehow, episode 25, the video did not upload onto YouTube. However, comma, this is why you should also be subscribed to either Spotify or Apple Podcast because the audio did in fact drop. Now, I did miss last week, and we're gonna get into all of that a little later down the line. But episode 25 did have audio. Um, not sure what happened with the video, but the video will be uploaded. But the audio has been out for two weeks now. I did release that one on time, I did not miss that week. I have not been two weeks late, I only missed the one week. Um, so but thank you to everybody who checked in on me to make sure everything was fine and like you know, let me know that the YouTube video didn't upload because I did not know because of everything that's been going on in my life and my world that the video didn't upload. So I'm getting on that, I promise. But thank y'all. It made me feel so good inside, made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside because I was like, oh, there's actual people on the other side watching and listening and tuning in and like want to hear what I gotta say. That's kind of cry cry. I did not know that. So, yes, thank you to everyone who reached out, checked on me to make sure everything was okay. I'm fine, it's fine. I just I genuinely, you know, don't know why the video didn't upload. I'll go back into YouTube and figure it out and re-upload it if I have to, like, take what I thought was up and re-do whatever I gotta do to get the video. But the audio is out, so that's why you should be subscribed on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts. So, in case anything like this ever happens again, you can still get the taste of your girl, okay? You can still get your weekly doubles. Alright, but yeah, that's that's that on that, and so now we can talk about where I've been, where your girl been. Uh, let's start with school. Like, uh, in the last episode, I talked about how school was starting back up, and I was like, you guys know I just ended a term and now we're jumping right back in it.

unknown 13:18

Love that for me.

SPEAKER_00 13:21

But no, grad school, excuse me, this like it was actually a lot going on um these past couple weeks because as I've been entering, like starting this new term and everything, with all the shifts and changes happening with financial aid and all these new stipulations, and it was just uncertainty. I was uncertain because of financial. I didn't know if I was even gonna finish because I didn't know if I was gonna be able to pay for school because of all of the changes and all of the things going on in the world in America right now. So, yeah, I was spending time trying to get all of that sorted and handled, and I can breathe a little lighter, a little fresher, because yeah, I was gonna be pretty sad and disappointed because I only have a year left and I'll be done. So I was gonna cry, I was gonna be hurt so bad if I couldn't do it, but it's all handled. That's a breath of fresh air, one less thing off my plate. But yeah, grad school. But since I did miss, like you know, that first week and everything, like thrown off and stuff right now. I'm in this space of catching up. Which uh falling behind in grad school is not a place you ever want to be, and it's not a place I'm at voluntarily. Um, but you know, it is what it is. I'm gonna knuckle down and buckle down and do what I gotta do so I can get back on track, get everything caught up. And yeah, but yeah, that's that's one thing that's been going on in my life, and then another thing has been work. Oh man, I just this job has been stretching me in ways that I did not expect, I did not anticipate, I was not ready for, okay. Like from the work environment, you know, it's just it's very draining, like physically, emotionally, mentally, spiritually. Like, I have to go in prayed up every single day, and I'm constantly fighting to protect my peace and all of the things about boundaries and enforcing you know, setting the scene, setting things straight. It's just it's been a lot. It has been very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very draining. I have not been in a situation or like this type of environment atmosphere since I was a child. That's that's the best way I can put it. And you know, even though I come in high energy, positive, just bubbly, and granted, all that comes from God too. I be tired, I'd be worn down, I'd be whooo. But you know, I still come in positive, happy, go lucky, and yet some way, somehow, people make things up about stories, and I just I didn't I don't know where they come from. I don't know how people come up with the things that they come up with, but they do, and it's been affecting me more than I would like for it to. So yeah, y'all just the job, this job has just been, like I said, stretching me in ways that I did not expect, was not anticipating on. And beyond just that, it's also tension there with the job and stuff because the purpose of me having this job, you know, and all of that was because it was supposed to help fund my dreams and all of those things, and yet it's been taking a lot of time and it's been very draining for me. And so I literally work and come home and go to sleep. And that wasn't the part, like the scheduling and all of that was supposed to allow me the time to go back into dance, to be to continue to be active in the gym and to like better my routine and be more, you know, disciplined and keep it going. Because I established the routine before I got the job, and so I got the routine, I got the discipline, and then the job came in and just kind of like threw everything off, and like my my routine is just completely out of whack, and so I'm reconfiguring my life and all of those things, but it has like I said, it's created a tension because it's I'm sacrif it feels like I'm sacrificing the very thing, like the very reason why I even decided to go and do this job, so it's it's a lot there um in terms of that, and just like all in all, like I'm exhausted, like I said, very mentally draining, physically draining, emotionally draining, spiritually draining. So I just come home and I eat and sleep because I'm so tired. I'm so tired and like and not even just like you know, even with that, and then you add the podcast on top of that, and I don't think people really truly realize how much goes into something like this and what goes into it when you are doing it completely by yourself. Okay, cuz like I I don't have a co-host, I don't have a team, I am the producer, I am the editor, I am the person doing the research, I am the person setting up the lights, I am the person, you know, editing audio, editing clips, editing, editing visuals, and coming up with these themes and topics, and I am truly a one-woman show. I am not bouncing ideas off of anybody. I am sitting in front of a camera talking to myself for 30 to 45 minutes, sometimes an hour. And it's hard. It's very much so hard. I don't know if any of y'all listen to uh cocktails or have kept up with cocktails, but these past couple episodes, Kiki's been talking about, you know, this transitional phase and like figuring things out, and she just made a very solid point that I I agree and resonated very, very well with. It's just doing this solo is hard, okay. Not that it's impossible because it's clearly not impossible. I'm doing it. There's plenty of other podcasters that are on solo podcasts and they're doing it, but it's hard, it's hard, it very much so is hard, and I don't think the people around me in my circle in my village truly understand how hard this is, and it's okay, it's because I'm doing something different, doing something new, and not everybody's gonna understand what you're going through, no matter how many times or how many different ways you explain it, people just don't get it, and that's just that, like I said, it's not impossible, but it is in fact hard, and there is a difference, and there's nothing wrong with acknowledging that it's hard, but here we are, we're still doing it and we're still gonna keep going, okay? Because, like, I don't want this to sound like I'm complaining because I'm in fact not like I'm very grateful. I am grateful for having a job. I'm grateful that I am gonna be able to finish grad school. I am very grateful that I have this podcast and I have this platform and I have y'all and that y'all are listening and that y'all actually care and show up for me because that means so much to me. And then, like, I am also very grateful that I have that God's given me the audacity, that I have the ability, that I still have these dreams in my heart and on my mind and on my soul, that I still want to chase them, and that I like that I'm doing things that younger me would be so in astonishment about. I am very grateful, and I just I think that the current season that I'm in is just it's just a stretching season, and it's asking more of me than what I have been asked of before to give. And so that's okay. Like, I also know seasons change, and that this is just for the time being, and so until the tide turns, I'm just gonna keep praying, I'm gonna keep reading, I'm gonna keep, I'm gonna stay steadfast, I'm gonna stay hopeful, I'm gonna stay faithful, and I'm just gonna keep showing up the best way that I can. Yeah. So there's that. That's life lately, and just all of the catch-up moments and just everything that's going on in my world. Well, most of it. Well, yeah, what's going on in my life. Okay, now we have reached letters along the way. This is the segment where you can write in your stories, your testimonials, anything that you're currently going through, any advice you would like to share. Or hey, if you would like some advice from me, not certified, not a doctor, none of that. But I can give you the best big sis advice that I got for you. You can write those letters into letters along the way at gmail.com. That is L-E-T-T-E-R-S-A-L-O-N-G T-H-E-W at Gmail.com. Can't wait to hear from you guys. So now we have reached the grace notes segment of the episode. And I just would like to simply say, if life has been feeling heavy, I want you to know that you are not behind. You might just be carrying a lot. Some seasons require more of us than others. And that is a okay. Okay, I'm speaking to myself too here, y'all. Like you don't have to have every answer, you don't have to have every plan, and you don't have to have every next step figured out. Give yourself permission to be in the process, to experience and live in it and through it and be present in it. Keep showing up, keep doing what you can with what you have. Lean on your village and the people who love you. And most importantly, a reminder for me is to not lose sight of God in all of this. He hears every prayer, he sees every late night, every sacrifice, and every dream you're still holding on to. So this season won't last forever, but the person you're becoming because of it will. So continue to stay strong and keep moving forward. So I would just like to say thank you guys for once again writing it out with me and sticking it out, and just for your patience and your understanding and all of things. Thank you for joining me for another episode. I am doing my best to get everything back on track, to get us back on track, and all of the things. All I can do is be honest as we keep bustling forward and through all of the things. Alright. Um, so if you would like to contact me or say anything to me at the podcast, you can send the emails into herpathherpace at gmail.com. You can also follow the podcast on socials at her path, her pace on TikTok and on Instagram. And you can also follow me, your host Shay at Roche on social platforms as well. So if you like what you heard today, if you like to keep on trucking along right with us, you can turn on those post bell notifications so you are notified every time a new episode drops. So don't forget to like, comment, share, and subscribe. And like I said, to avoid missing another episode in case the YouTube has its complications again. You can always subscribe on Spotify and/or Apple Podcasts. Okay, y'all. I'm also there. The audio is also there. So you know, just so you don't have to miss out on your your dose of grace, okay? Whatever, you know, her path or face, you know, or if you just want to hear my voice, whatever. You don't have to miss out on it. So, like I said, turn on the post bell notifications so you're notified every time a new episode drops. Subscribe, like, comment, share, talk with your girl, send those emails in, let me know how you're feeling and all of the things. Uh, so just until next week, guys. Remember to pause, breathe, take a beat, and always give yourself some grace. Until next week, guys.