Rise executive director Holly Stallcup was given the opportunity to guest blog on The Mudroom. You’ll find an excerpt from the piece below.

Ask any woman what she’s feeling when she enters a bridal store and you’re likely to get a wide array of answers. Excitement. Nerves. Happy tears. Sad tears. Joy.

But what you are also likely to hear, if you asked certain women and told them they could be completely honest with you, is an emotion you may be surprised by: fear.

You and I, sister, are one. God has bound us together. Woven us of the same earth, tears, blood and sweat. No matter our race, our ethnicity or our home. No matter our season of life or marital status, we are divinely interconnected.

With the passing of Valentine’s Day, for me and many others, the difficult season is finally over.

I know that’s a stereotypical response from someone who is single. But I really need you to hear me out here.

I turn 30 in a week. A few days before, I am supposed to organize my thoughts and say something wise to a group of twenty-year-olds about what the next decade holds for them.

Crap shoot. Whiplash. Roll of the dice. Circus. Polar opposite of what you imagine and want.