Getting REAL is difficult.
It can be painful, isolating, & scary.
It takes courage, dedication, & work.
It’s something nobody else can do for you.
But the reward, my friend, as I now know,
is that once you make that commitment,
once you do the work,
once you experience the freedom…
it’s also something that nobody can take from you.
– Betsy Hull Hesselrode
I’m glad you’re here. You might wonder what this site is all about. Honestly, I don’t know. I’m not sure where it’s going, but I know where I am right now and I know what I want for myself and for each of you. I hope to post new and “refreshed” older writings. I hope to have discussions about books, share life hacks, inform, educate, and showcase some of my art. I want this to be an uplifting place. I want this to be a place where we grow and smile and connect. Most of all, I want this to be a place where I can be my REAL self and where I invite you to be your REAL self, too. You’re always welcome here. Most of all, I want you to know that you are loved. You are needed. You are not alone.
I call myself “the REAL Betsy.” Why? It’s less interesting than you might think. When I meet other people named “Betsy,” we usually ask something like, “Are you an Elizabeth or are you a ‘real’ Betsy?” so that’s what I decided to call this project of mine. I’m a seeker of truth. I’m a mess. I’m impatient, flawed, and a student of life. I’m a sometimes irreverent Christian. I love Jesus. I’m a wife, a mom, and a recovering shame and guilt-monger. I love people. I love sharing joy and light and ideas. I don’t expect agreement here, but I do expect mutual respect. I have no tolerance for hate, bigotry, or anonymous trolls. My quest for authenticity in my own life has led me to challenge others to be real. My favorite quote of all time pretty much sums it up:
“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”
THE REAL BETSY 