Brian Forrester's Blog: 1-2-3 Writing Blog

Recently, for the first time, I heard Brandi Carlile's song, “Crowded Table.”

As I worked, it played in the background and the chorus grabbed my attention:

I want a house with a crowded table
And a place by the fire for everyone
Let us take on the world while we're young and able
And bring us back together when the day is done

A crowded table is one of life’s greatest gifts. Coming home to people who are looking for you and folks who want to hear about your day. It’s a reset from all the stuff faced...

Everyone wants abs by Friday.

The problem? You’re eating Cheetos in your pajamas at 2PM on a Tuesday.

We all desire the medal, the promotion, the beach body, the standing ovation. Craving the trophy requires zero effort.

Everyone has a willingness to win, but not everyone has a willingness to prepare to win.

Because preparation is hard. It means showing up when you’d rather stay in bed.

Preparation is doing the thing again when you’ve already done the thing twenty-seven times and you’re still not go...

This started as a small idea.

A quiet one. And then I jumped in.

Three hundred sixty-five days. Three hundred sixty-five blog posts. January 12, 2025 through January 12, 2026.

Some entries flowed easily. Others felt like a root canal. But still, the habit stuck. One day led to the next, and the calendar kept flipping.

And somehow, here we are.

I set this goal for two reasons:

1) To freeze snapshots from our everyday family life
2) To challenge myself as a writer

Well, I finally landed the plane. The yea...

January 12th means… Kate’s birthday!

On Sunday, we celebrated with her in Richmond. After church and gifts, Kate, Jess, and I enjoyed brunch at First Watch, followed by window shopping in Carytown. We capped off the afternoon with a dessert stop at Sweet Frog.

During our meal, we continued a tradition started years ago, asking the same set of birthday questions.

The list runs about twenty deep, covering everything from favorite colors and sports teams to future dreams. And the big ones are always ...

The container of time.

Long before planners and phone alerts, calendars followed the Moon. Early farmers watched the soil and skies.

Then the Babylonians invented the seven-day week.

Centuries later, in 1582, Pope Gregory XIII approved a new approach. Today, this Gregorian system serves as the official one for nearly the entire planet, a combination of astronomical observations and religious reforms.

For me, a calendar holds more than dates. Each square freezes a moment.

Here are my favorites with Je...

Getting ready.

What to do when a huge event happens in a couple of months? Grab some paint, of course.

Today called for brushes and drop cloths. Jess, Jake, and I showed up at McKenzie and Will’s house prepared to put color on some walls.

We rolled up our sleeves and cranked up some music. Then cracked open paint cans.

But this wasn’t just a standard refresh. Not even close. Our granddaughter arrives soon, and these four walls will become her first space in the world.

Each stroke felt intentional, ...

There aren’t many constants in life.

But a sibling is one of them.

Mark is my younger brother by three years. And it’s amazing to have someone who shares so much history with me.

Since the early days, he holds a front-row seat. We have a secret language and inside jokes that come from a lifetime together. One weird phrase can make us laugh like kids again.

We’re the two people on earth who speak the dialect of our childhood. A shorthand needing no explanation. He’s my living scrapbook, an archive o...

Faith.

People toss this word around, but what does it really mean?

My favorite definition: Faith is trusting God in the dark.

Think of faith as a seed.

A kernel enters soil without visibility. The most important work happens underground, germinating.

Faith grows the same way.

And just as a seed must be planted, so faith demands burying our own understanding and control.

It’s letting go to let grow.

Miraculously, a tiny acorn holds the genetic code for a mighty oak. It’s all there, packed into somethin...

Work hard to not be possessed by your possessions.

I love that Warren Buffett, considered one of history’s most successful investors, still drives an old car. It fits his “frugal billionaire” lifestyle.

Despite being worth over $140 billion, Buffett drove a 2001 Lincoln Town Car for nearly a decade. When he finally gave it up, he bought a used Cadillac.

When does he upgrade his vehicle? Only when his daughter says it’s becoming “embarrassing.”

Each morning, he visits the McDonald’s drive-thru and ch...

This phrase has always motivated me.

Speak up for those who cannot speak out.

This begins by watching the margins. That’s where you’ll find the vulnerable and oppressed.

They often hide in plain sight, existing in the gaps of our attention, easy to miss and even easier to overlook.

Your first job is simply to notice.

True advocacy starts not with speaking, but with seeing. Be aware of those who are not being defended.

Their silence doesn’t reflect contentment but rather exhaustion or fear. Translate t...