My Story
My name is Venita Sydell. I am passionate about living a contemplative lifestyle today.
What does this mean for me?
This means slowing down enough to actually notice — God, myself, and the moment I am in — instead of rushing past all three. It is placing myself in the creation story - that I matter too.
How I got here was one of intention, curves, potholes, and experiences that I thought would take my last breath away.
But somehow God's grace held me so tight that I could only move in one direction, and that was towards him.
I am making my way home.
Discovering hidden places that needed to be challenged, as well as places that needed to be celebrated.
This is what this space is all about — welcoming me home to a safe, loving place within myself.
A Way Home
I'm a clinician, spiritual director, scribe, author, and business owner — but Selah isn't any of those jobs or ministries.
Self-publishing, critiques, and other people's opinions of my writing did something quiet to me: the writing itself went undercover.
I kept starting entries in my journal and never finishing them — when once, finishing felt like an urge I couldn't ignore.
And one day it hit me: shame had taken a front seat, telling me I wasn't good enough to write, so I stopped in the middle of the road.
This is me building a small room back out in the open.
Not to be read.
Not to build anything.
Just to write, take pictures, and see what wants to be said on a given morning — solitude, surrender, stillness, and whatever real life hands me.
Selah means pause. Stop and consider.
That's the whole invitation here, and it's one I'm giving myself first.
___________________I write these reflections myself, and use Claude by Anthropic as an editor and thinking partner along the way — much like any writer might use an editor.