The Start of Something New.

 Welcome to my world.

I never thought that I'd be the type of person to actually want to blog about my life or thoughts and let other people read it. I've always been told that I'm a good writer and I even enjoy it, but I never really show it to that many people. I have dozens of short stories that might be posted here, but to be honest, I don't know what this blog will really entail. There may be tidbits of my life and random things about what I've discovered about myself along the way. There may be paragraphs of disgruntled writing that pertain to people who I randomly encounter. There may be thoughts of my day or completely irrelevant realizations. I suppose this first post is a warning of sorts. A warning that states: Don't continue reading if you don't want to be confused with the thoughts, events, and desires of one Madison Rose Gutwein.

I'm not sure if people hold an expectation for me and I guess that's the scariest part of starting something so public like this. While most people put up these fronts and walls, I like to keep mine torn down. I dislike any sort of hidden emotion or drive because it honestly feels like lying to me. I don't want people to sit there reading what I write and thinking that it doesn't sound like me or 'Madi wouldn't really think about something like that, would she?'. In all reality, my words come across so much easier when they're written down. Writing is free and expressive. It's something you can't really hide behind if you're being honest with yourself and others.

The title of my blog, I Once Was Lost, is in no way just a reference to the hymn 'Amazing Grace'. Sorry to disappoint, but I mean it as so much more than what God has done for me. I have just now reached a point where I feel as though I'm no longer lost. I'm no longer scrambling to find out who I am (though I do realize this may change as time goes by), I'm no longer attempting to find something better in life, and I'm no longer struggling with the person that God has shaped me into. So, while I once was, in fact, lost, I believe that I am found and I will continue to find myself in this world as I am shaped by His guidance.

xx Madison