Isn't it Ironic?

I'm finally going to update my blog,
and its when my parents are coming in.

So where have I disappeared to these last several weeks? It's a place my friends and I like to call B-town. I arrived April 10 and this is my last week and a half here.

Wow, where do I even begin? Over a year ago I was casually offered a chance to apply for a scholarship to attend a Christian school in Florida for my senior year of high school. This school has taken several teams for ministry in the D.R. Each time they were working with me and my family. So, I said I would pray about it. Although I decided not to attend the last full year (as I wanted to spend as much time in the Dominican as possible), I did say that if God would provide a way for me to attend the last quarter, I would go.
Well it just so worked out that not only could I attend the school for the last quarter auditing classes, but a home-base was provided as well. The Wilkinson family has so graciously accepted me into their home for these past five weeks. They had a newly refurbished guest bedroom made up for me and everything. (Thanks you guys!)
And since I've been here, I've been pretty busy.
Or really busy...
But it has been good.

I've attended prom, taken my three AP tests, visited the Ringling Museum, watched the sunset on the beach, stayed the weekend with the Childers, seen Danny and Denise again, been to six different youth groups a couple of times, taken my first ceramics class, had a 'senior trip' to Gainesville with Jenny, gone kayaking for the first time, sent in scholarships, attended the Spring Concert, seen a play of Narnia, gone to the Shake Pit for a rootbeer float, gazed at the stars out on the pier, went ice skating, gotten my hair cut, chai tea at dunkin donuts, sung on a praise team, ministered and been ministered to, discussed old favorite t.v. shows on a swing set with friends after the art show... and much more. It's been great hanging out with friends that I usually only see for a week or two out of the whole year. I wish I had more time with all of them.

So now graduation is coming up. I'm visiting my future college campus again with my parents to make sure everything is coming along as it should. Then the fam and I will travel up to visit family and churches that we haven't seen in over a year! Summer involves getting a license... and a job at some point. But for now, I'll just enjoy the time I have left and look forward to seeing some of them again at the end of the summer.
And right now? I have to go. My parents have landed and I've got to get ready for dinner tonight. I can't wait to see them again! These past few weeks have definitely been good preparation for the future... but I'm ready to be with my family again.

A huge thank you to all of you who have made me feel so welcome during my stay here in B-town.
I'm really glad I came.

It's Not That

...It's not that I haven't been writing.

I have a daily prayer journal and two other journals besides to prove that.
And I suppose it's not that I've been too lazy to write a decent post, nor that I've been too busy. I just... haven't. Does that make sense? Actually, I haven't written a post like this in a long time. You might be able to count November's entry... but I think it's more along the lines of June.
Just writing to write. To spill those words out on the page. I kind of just want to let my thoughts come and go as they please with this one. And maybe I've been a little bit hesitant with this because it tends to be a bit revealing. That makes for good writing, I suppose.
Lately I've been doing so much work. And yet, so little. But soooo much. This I will not be able to explain correctly. Hmm, fighting procrastination, I would rather be talking with friends, doing photography, catching sunshine, dancing with the wind. Wouldn't everyone rather be doing that though? Living an adventure instead of reading about them. I will soon enough. I am living an adventure. This is part of it. One of those tedious parts. Like when you have to cross a river in the winter. The water is so cold when you touch it. So you jump from rock to rock. From wobbly, slippery rock to rock. Balancing, often falling, and most likely getting more wet than if you had just tread the water.

It's kind of hard to do this while watching a movie.
I could go for some real milk and oreos right now.

God is so good. (I told you, like thoughts flowing out of my head.) I was accepted into the college I applied to! A friend of mine also found out recently that she was accepted as well. We hope to be roommates. Which will be so fun.
Every time I think about that, about leaving, I get a knot in my stomach. It's exciting. It's new. It's part of this adventure. But the scenery has been so nice here. It's so familiar. Warm, friendly and inviting. I know it's not going to be easy to go from being with my family 24/7 to six weeks away from them... Here's the thing: This is my home now. Problem is, I don't really know where that is anymore. You know how they say home is where the heart is? Well my heart is torn in so many different directions. Huge chunks reaching across the ocean and seas. I have a picture in one of my many journals of it. It's like a puzzle piece heart. It has arrows coming out of it that point at different words: Friends, Family, Dreams, Hopes, This, That, and the Other...
But more of you, O Lord. More love. Don't stop it... make the vessel larger. May my heart grow to contain it and continue to reach out. Overflowing...

It all makes sense. Life makes wonderful sense. It's not about having all the answers, it's having faith and trusting in the One who does. "Love is wild for reasons" and we all want it so bad.

It's just something we can't quite explain.

New Year - New Project

Well this year I decided to start a photography project. Technically, it started December 6, but... Anyways, it's called Project 365 (as you can see by that fancy text link below). And every day for the next year I'll be taking at least one photo.

And just as a preview, here are some examples of what I've posted so far.





-=-

Paper Angels

A post, inspired by my friend Kristie.
-*-*-

"I used to be a Paper Angel.

When I was two and three, I lived in a homeless shelter and every Christmas, I was a Paper Angel to the world. You know? Those artificial trees placed in the middle of malls and department stores, flooded with names and ages of little children who won't get a Christmas without you. There are organizations that go around to help their kids they're taking care of and place a single Paper Angel on a tree limb somewhere in hopes that some kind person will walk by and feel moved enough to purchase that doll or race car for that one child who that may be their only gift.

I was a Paper Angel.
On my third Christmas, I got a baby doll. She had blonde hair and pigtail braids. I remember it as if it were yesterday. I hadn't even opened the package the whole way before I knew that it was Jesus who'd really brought me this gift. He was with me. With all of us kids without a home. But? He moved through you.

So, when you're out doing your Christmas shopping and your mumbling and grumbling about all the gifts you can't find or don't want to find for all those on your list...? When you brush past that tree...the one filled with innocent children's names and greatest hopes of a toy on Christmas morning...I pray you stop. I pray you look at those Angels and pick one.
Give that child a Christmas. I promise you.
They'll cry when they get it. I did.

And, those children? They don't tear open the paper with wild excitement and vigor. No, we all sat and opened slowly, looking around at each other asking with our eyes, "Is this really okay?", "Do I really deserve this?", "Is this okay to open?", "Are you sure this was meant for me?"

MAKE their Christmas.
One toy.
One gift.
That's all they're going to get anyway -- let it be from YOU.
....don't let Christmastime come to an end and there still be straggling Angels hung to the tree that no one answered to. Don't let them go empty on Christ's birthday. After all, it's Jesus who provided that shelter for them to live in anyway. They had nowhere else to live. At least you have a house, a warm place to cuddle up with family and open myriad gifts. We were lucky just to have a bed somewhere, in a place that wasn't even our home. Add them to your shopping list. You may be the only Christmas they see. Thank you to whomever bought me that baby doll that year. I didn't even like dolls, but I cherished that one for years. She was my angel.

And thank you, Jesus for leading them to not forget me. :')

Paper angels... you're in my thoughts and prayers. No matter where you are right now, remember God's right there. He's asking all of us to help take care of His paper angels everywhere."

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All credit to Kristie M.

Click here for the original: [link]