The Open Road

So I'm on this trip. And it's a driving trip. One where I get to listen to all sorts of fun music and sing at the top of my lungs as I drive from place to place. Visiting with all sorts of amazing folks and promoting an organization that I think is one of the best things out there.

But while I'm in the car singing along to all these fabulous songs I am constantly thinking of other people. This is because much of the music that I listen to has been recommended to me, or given to me, or I first heard it at a specific time in my life. So on the first leg of my trip I listened to music and I thought about friends from college and from living at the BVS house. I thought about when my grandfather passed away, to the girls who lived on the same hall as I did my freshman year. I thought about several of the most amazing women that I know, who also happen to be some of my very closest friends. I was reminded of my travels through Europe and Nigeria and throughout the states.

I could go on and on. But the point is that to me, each of these songs that I listen to...it means something. These songs are connections to various aspects of my life. Of the journey I'm on. Where I've been and where I am presently. I am so thankful for these songs as reminders of the events of my life. And whenever I hear a song that reminds me of a certain person or place or time, I find myself thinking about that person or place and by being in thought of them, it is as though I'm lifting up a prayer for them.

Music has a way of connecting all of us all the time. And for that I am incredibly thankful.

On Holiday

Sometime or another last fall I told myself that I should go on a vacation. And for one of the first times in my life that I can think of, I was finding myself drawn to the coast for a time of rest and relaxation. I called up my dear friends Jim and Alice, whom I had met a year ago this time on my trip to Nigeria, and asked them if I could come and visit. And well, long story short here I am. In Sarasota, Florida.

Now while it might be a tad bit cold down here, mid 50's, it definitely beats the snowy weather and negative wind chill that is in Illinois this time of year!

And so far, my time away is going well!

Being Inspired

This past week it was my turn to lead chapel at the office. It's kind of neat because each week, on Wednesday, chapel is led by a different staff person at the office and there are no guidelines. At least none that I know of! And everyone takes a different approach and can use their own gifts and talents.

So Monday night came and I found myself completely uninspired. Oddly enough, while I might not have been inspired, I was motivated. I wondered to myself, how is it that I am supposed to get put together a 15 minute time of devotion and prayer when there is very little to inspire me at this moment. At least nothing that I was coming up with. I tossed around ideas of focusing on the contrast of light and dark and showing some of my photos that portray this contrast, or playing the song "True Colors" and diving a little bit deeper than that. But nothing was really pulling me strongly in one direction. And, as I think happens to the best of us, I was coming up with ideas and then needing to go in search of scripture, rather than having a text to form the rest of the idea around.

Then after looking up the text of the day on textweek.com I found a scripture that spoke to me. One that resonated with me. One where I could use photos to back up the idea I was hoping to get across. Using excerpts from Isaiah 60:1-5, and photos and music, I created a meditative slide show to create a space where my colleagues could come and rest and relax and listen to the spirit moving in their own lives.It was a place where I could use my gift of photography to inspire others in a time where I was struggling with finding my own inspiration.

Photography is something that I greatly enjoy. I was one asked by a close friend if there was anything that I do that I can get lost in. I think about this question often and I always come back to photography. To seeing things in a different light. From a different angle. And then capturing that moment. And then being inspired by it. As it turns out, though it took me awhile to get there, I was able to inspire others using what inspires me.

Hoarfrost

We don't see it very often. I'm not sure that I've ever even seen it myself. I think the only time I've really heard much about it was when I was younger reading the Little House on the Prairie series. It seems to me that it came up a few times then!

Yesterday I was out driving through the countryside with my dad and a friend and all the trees were covered in a white substance and I couldn't remember there being any freezing rain to fall the night before that would have covered the trees with anything. Then my dad said he thought it was hoarfrost, something he'd never seen before. It happens when white ice crystals are loosely deposited on the ground or exposed objects, and these crystals form on cold clear nights when heat losses into the open skies cause objects to become colder than the surrounding air. It's absolutely beautiful to see! Breathtaking actually. Luckily I had my camera with me.

Go Sally Go!

This week we got, oh I don't know, maybe four inches of snow, before the temperatures plummeted into the single digits. Which of course was accompanied by high winds, with a wind chill of negative 20 or so. It's hard to say really. Anyways. I've got Sally out here with me these days and, well, this was a hard first round for her. She just isn't used to these cold temperatures. Virginia can get cold, but it's fairly mild, especially when compared to this!

Tonight I needed to take her out and I knew it would be a bit of a challenge, but goodness it took me a good thirty minutes to scrape all the ice off and to dig through the snow so she could actually get somewhere. Luckily for me, one of my housemates, Cheryl, came to my rescue and she was such a huge help! It probably would have taken me at least fifteen more minutes if she hadn't come out and helped me out! I should have known it was going to be a bit of a task when I tried to open the door and it was frozen shut on that side! I had to get in on the other side and crawl across. Not the easiest thing to do, and also not the first time I've had to do it!

Slowly but surely we made progress and finally Sally was able to beat the weather. And now she's resting safely in the garage. But just to be on the safe side, here in the next few days, I think I'm gonna take her in and have her checked out. It's best not to tell her, she doesn't like heights.

More Weekends Like This

I have decided that I need more weekends like this one in my life.

Friday spent with one of my closest friends in the city. Sitting. Laughing. Talking. All over pizza and a movie in the comfort of her home. Knowing that I'm welcome there anytime.

Saturday spent sleeping in. Lounging around. Venturing downtown to the Field Museum with another friend that lives in the city. Having a carefree afternoon. Getting all dressed up for a friend's birthday party. Going and relaxing and letting go and being myself. No stresses. Just plain ol' good fun.

Sunday spend sleeping in (again!). Relaxing. Being in no hurry whatsoever. Having no agenda. Nothing planned. Just being and doing.

Yep. A girl could use more weekends like this one.

But then again, if every weekend was like this, then it wouldn't be so special when it does happen. Or would it?

Cooking!

Tonight I prepared my first meal in my newly set up kitchen! It was a bit hard to get started when I first got home, but once I got going it was a ton of fun! I cooked up a bit of pasta with pesto. And then sauteed mushrooms in garlic and olive oil and added a few diced tomatoes. Throw those together and top it all off with a bit of Parmesan cheese and voila! A fabulous dinner! One of the best parts was I think I ended up cooking more mushrooms than pasta! Which might not seem quite right, but for me it was perfect!