simply ten good things

-

-
01. the sister visiting for the weekend
02. resurrection
03. annie dillard's poems
04. canceled class tomorrow morning
05. cinnamon gelato
06. navy blue tights
07. art projects
08. summer so soon
09. fresh strawberries
10. arcadia by tom stoppard

. . . and then there is extreme sleepiness, numerous papers and tests ahead, failed plans, a sore throat, etc. but all this will soon pass - so I try to breathe deeply and take it all in and be grateful.

[picture of my bed at home - another good thing.]
-

cathedral of the moment

-

Tonight I am . . .

thinking . . . about the old testament reading that needs to be completed before tomorrow + whether or not I should double major + how much I miss the quiet silence of my morning room back home

listening . . . to the sound of majesty radio program for a music history class assignment + the civil wars

feeling . . . tired + overwhelmed about how busy the next few weeks will be + worried if I can really make it as an art major + grateful for sunshine today

planning . . . my course schedule for the fall + tomorrow's to-do list

reflecting . . . on the fact that perhaps what we need most to overcome temptation is not more willpower but more grace

looking . . . at my roommate's paris metro poster + the stack of messy papers on my desk + the dying yellow daffodils on my windowsill

wanting . . . my mind to burst with creativity for my sculpture project + to be more grateful + to know what I should do with my life + fruit leather

hoping . . . spring decides to come soon (please?) + I manage to get to bed at a reasonable hour tonight + I learn to prioritize prayer again
-

summer travels

-
"When you're tired of London, you're tired of life." Or so says my friend Ruth who, having started traveling at the age of 50, has now spent just 10 days short of a year in England.

Saturday over coffee and cinnamon buns we met to study maps, look at guidebooks, and talk about my trip this summer during which I will be spending nearly eight weeks in England. She deluged me with literally dozens of little guidebooks that she has collected over all her travels and told me about all her adventures and favorite places. She gave me specific instructions to make sure not to miss the knocker on the wall of Durham Cathedral or the gingerbread at a cafe near Wordsworth's Dove Cottage. It was a perfectly lovely Saturday morning and made me all the more excited for the coming summer and all the more grateful for Ruth's friendship.

[pictures from last summer - in order from top to bottom: cliffs of dover, oxford, and canterbury cathedral]
-

to rest upon the air

-
As swimmers dare

to lie face to the sky
and water bears them,
as hawks rest upon air
and air sustains them
so would I learn to attain
freefall, and float
into Creator Spirit's deep embrace,
knowing no effort earns
that all-surrounding grace.
(The Avowal, Denise Levertov)
-
I want to be like this - trusting and free and resting in the all-surrounding grace.

[picture taken a few weeks back as my mom and I walked around a lake near my home]
-

be more like the man you were made to be

-

love, it will not betray you
dismay or enslave you
it will set you free
be more like the man you were made to be
-
[also, check out Reverend - I especially like the song Neighbors.]

-

bring forth and sprout

-

-

These words are full of hope today:
-
"For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven

and do not return there but water the earth,
making it bring forth and sprout,
giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,
so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;
it shall not return to me empty,
but it shall accomplish that which I purpose,
and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it."
(Isaiah 55:10-11)
-

blizzards in february

-
There is a blizzard here and we have the day off from school, so I have blessedly slept in this morning, enjoyed a quiet brunch in my room (tea + cantaloupe + my mother's homemade apple bread), and spent a while catching up on the internet world. I am still in my PJs and I feel all cozy and warm as I look out my window at the gusting winds and snow. Days like this make me like winter just a little bit.

And here is a bit of mid-winter clothing inspiration, which I always seem to need come February when I've tried every new combination possible within the limits of my closet collection . . . and when there is still two more months of winter. All from Steven Alan.

-