finals time...

so, it's finals time. i'm only taking one class this semester, but it has an intense final and a final paper. those are the only two grades for the class, so i figure i ought to study hard for the final and write a pretty kickin' paper. i'm trying to intersperse finals stuff with fun stuff, so i'm watching a little West Wing here and there, doing a little decorating for Christmas, cooking good dinners (or appreciating the husband cooking good dinners), organizing my craft space, and hanging out with friends. oh...and tomorrow i'm going to a Christmas parade nearby. and i get to go give the devotional at the camp committee meeting tomorrow and then be the liturgist at a church service tomorrow night. i'm also writing a couple of advent devotions. it's good to have things other than just school going on.

some kind and generous friends recently gave me their hand me down digital camera and i am very, very grateful (though they keep making a point to tell me how crappy it is!). so, i hope to figure out how to download my pictures and have some funny stories up for you soon with photos! we'll see...that might have to wait until after this exam and the paper are done.

only one more semester of school! god willing! anyway, more interesting posts to come soon.

predictable, but true.

this is what you'd expect...a bit of gratitude...for...

a good, beautiful, comfortable and comforting, breath-taking, and faith renewing place to live...a wonderful and crazy dog and cat who love to wrestle in the field in front of our house...learning to make cheese...making bread...frozen vegetables in our freezer from our garden and the farms of growers near us...a sister who travels a long, long way to visit...new homes and new beginnings for family i love...cheesy movies that make me feel all warm and fuzzy inside...good, soul-filling music...brothers who give me hope for the future of the world...funny people like Stephen Colbert and John Stewart who help me remember to laugh--and speak truth...friends and family who know me and love me even though they know me so well...friends who help me laugh and celebrate life...family who hold each other up when it feels like the world might split at the seams...warm blankets...fresh water to drink...shared organs...deep, deep, solid roots and the opportunity to try growing new branches...a kind, generous, and very cute husband who holds his arms out to catch me when i'm spinning, sits quietly with me when life is hard, dances around with me and always makes me laugh, and walks beside me always holding my hand as we find our way on this journey...

...and a loving God whose goodness and peace passes my understanding, but holds me up even so.

what are you thankful for this year?

another good day

Yesterday was the third anniversary of my dad's death.

And, yesterday was actually a very good day. We spent the whole day with people I love and enjoy. We started out the day with friends and Waffle House, then we went to our church here in Atlanta and heard a wonderful and thought provoking sermon by a guest preacher. Then, we went to the husband's parents' house for an extended family dinner which was great fun and had great food! Then, we went to my grandma's house to have dinner with my family...and experienced good company and more good food! Then, we went and spent a little bit of time with other friends. So, it was a good day.

One of the points of the sermon was that sometimes things are over and new, but more uncertain things are at hand. In those times we can trust that the God who is with us in our comfortable places will also be with us in our new uncomfortable places. It was very appropriate and good to hear yesterday, specifically, and just at this point in my life. It's time to claim and accept some endings and to look forward to where God is leading me now. I'm fast approaching the end of my graduate degree. It's time to start looking to what might be next in my vocation. We believe God called us to go to Virginia, which means ending our time in Atlanta for now. It's time to see what God is calling us to in Virginia and learn and experience as much as we can while we are there. We are aware daily that we are drawing nearer and nearer to wanting to add a child to our life...and we are aware daily of all the endings and changes that will be connected to that addition. Yesterday was an anniversary of a painful ending in my life. I'm still learning how to heal and seek God in that ending. I'm continually trying to be open to the ways that healing will nurture me and help new things to grow in my life.

So, yesterday I made a point to listen to a song that helps me lately (World Spins Madly On by the Weepies--I highly recommend the Weepies!), got to receive a sermon that helped me remember to look forward with God, received repeated messages of support and nurture from friends who love me, and got to be with family and friends that I love. I got a little teary a couple of times both when I remembered how much I miss my dad and when I remembered how I am surrounded by the love and goodness of God if I'll just let myself accept it.



So, really, that's about what I need every day and would certainly be better for having each day. While November 11 will always be the day my dad died, that truth is just part of life now...and it's a good day to remember to live a good life.

trying to pay attention

i'm back in Atlanta this week...just to visit. and i'm having a great time hanging out with friends and family! i'm trying to square up details to come back and finish my last semester of grad school.

and...

while i'm here, i'm noticing i'm missing our house and parts of my daily life in Virginia. i've said all along that if we could live where we live, the job could stay the same and we could magically move it just 4 hours away from Atlanta, i'd be thrilled! so, that's not new. what is new is that i've come to feel very at home and comfortable in our new place. i like it there. it is good for my soul.

and i still wish my friends and family were closer. but, it's good to realize that our house is starting to feel like home.

if anyone can figure out ways to apparate or teleport or some other way to deny the space/time continuum, let me know. i might be able to have the best of both worlds! :)