It’s been quite some time since I visited this sweet little blog and graced its “pages” with my stunning photography and complex musings about life & other things…(insert sarcasm here).
Regardless of how much (or little) I have been missed, I thought I might as well regale the blog kingdom with tales of where/what I’ve been up to:

I’ve spent early mornings in thought and prayer here…

Enjoyed some of these and some even more delicious music with my sister…

(seeing Fleet Foxes at the Ryman)

Found a great deal of comfort in this…

(Psalm 94)

And, truth be told, I’ve been spending a lot of time with my boyfriend.
We take long walks together…
I feed him spoonfuls of delicious food…
We dance to James Vincent McMorrow in the living room…
And he smothers me with love and affection…

Oh! Sorry, did I forget to mention he’s 6 months old?
Insignificant details, people…

"I Want to Go to There!"

With the impending completion of my undergraduate degree in just 7 months, the adventures of this ginger are about to increase exponentially and transform from local/minor adventures of spontaneity and creativity to (hopefully) big-time travel!!

(credit)

I'll be the first to admit that I won't be sure of this until plans are set in stone and my hiney is on a plane - the Lord has been faithful to show me one thing throughout my entire life: His plans are different than mine! But in hopes that His plans and mine align for this next phase of my life, I have been stumbling upon (literally) some gorgeous pictures of this huge world we live in, which have only fueled my heart's desire for some serious upcoming adventures.



So what happens from here? I guess only time will tell! But I'm beyond excited about what the future may bring...

(credit)

Extinction & other reasons...

"...Herman slipped his hand into mine, and I thought, an average of seventy-four

species become extinct every day, which was one good reason but not the only

one to hold someone's hand," -Alma Singer, The History of Love

Reading is one of those things that I wish I did more often and find I do far too little. By some miracle (probably due to the fact that I read instead of doing school) I finished a book today. The History of Love by Nicole Krauss is absolutely beautiful. There are SO many good books out there that it's hard for me to tell you to stop what you're doing and go read this right now, but it definitely needs to be on your list...it is a beautifully told story and manages to somehow weave together the tales of three distinctly different characters whose lives manage to intertwine by the end. Just beautiful.

Now on to the next! Trying to decide between The Alchemist & By the River Piedra I Sat Down and Wept...

All that to say, go read a book...it feels good.

Growing pains...

Oh…my…goodness, growth is hard. I cannot even begin to express how many times in the past couple months I have found myself talking about the fact that when asking the Lord for teaching and growth, it will NOT be easy. In fact, it’s quite the opposite of easy.

But it’s so appropriate that in the very phase of your life in which you have reoccurring days where you feel you have come to the very end of yourself, you have this amazing joy to be found in the fact that you feel this way because the Lord is changing and growing you...

I am not stagnant! Praise God!

I spent a bit of time this summer feeling completely unmoved and unreached by the Lord…these “dry spells” are the absolute worst…I’ll pass, no thank you. But then of course when I ask Him to work in my life, I feel the growing pains and complain about that too! Will I ever stop my whining? Even though I feel as though I’m asking the Lord for strength every ten minutes, I am overwhelmingly grateful that I can feel the Lord moving me, teaching me, growing me. I absolutely refuse to go through the hard stuff and come out on the other end looking, feeling, acting the same. I refuse to be the same person. Working through the difficult things will not be in vain! I am so blessed to have a God who gives me enough strength for each day…it reminds me of the story of the Israelites wandering through the desert in Exodus…they whined for food and the Lord provided…but only enough for each day. This way they had to rely on Him each morning when they woke up to provide again. When they tried to hoard food, He literally rotted and melted it away! He gave them exactly what they needed for that time period and made sure they had to rely on Him in the same way the very next day. I have seen this in my own life – every morning the first thought in my mind has to be surrender and relying on Him for my strength for the day. And He always provides! Each day concludes with me lying down to rest with the last bit of strength He has given me, and then it starts afresh in the morning. He has certainly taught me the very essence of needing Him and relying on Him.


So today, I encourage you…
If you are feeling growing pains, embrace them! It hurts, yes, but the end result will be a stronger more mature child of God.
If you are feeling stagnant, pray for growth! My aforementioned words may not make you jump at the chance to feel pain or challenges, but nobody wants to stay in the same place forever.
If you are enjoying a time in the clear when you have seen the fruits of the Lord’s work in your life and are able to experience some peace, relish it! And keep pursuing Him…just don’t let yourself revert back to who you were before…let the growth produce a lasting change!


2 Corinthians 12:9
But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me.

ensemble of stallions

thursday.
these boys are coming to visit me!!


one of nashville's most wonderful traditions is "live on the green"...perfect way to celebrate the emerging chilly weather and enjoy some great music.

(did i mention it's FREE??!!)

this week our ears will get to enjoy the loveliness that is band of horses. thank you nashville!


he looks like such a hillbilly when he sings, but it's oh so endearing.

I need a...

...vacation.
Feel like I've been going nonstop for this entire month and I just want to go somewhere that's not here (Portland, anyone??) and be a bum and explore and eat good food and drink good coffee
and not work and not do school.
Is that too much to ask? Probably....dangit.

In other news, I have been enlisted to help with the dessert bar for the wedding of two of my closest friends in May (!!) so I've been going crazy looking at things like this...

This blogger does many other precious things. Like these feather cookies...
grand.
(also a bridesmaid!! - check out the fantastic dress we get to wear!)

It's my goal to learn to compartmentalize my life so I can still do
fun and spontaneous things without worrying about work and school.
Let's hope it can work!


Happy Sunday.


p.s. I have a surprise for next time...and its name is Higgins...

randomness of mind

[source]

(To dare every day to be irreverent and bold. To dare to preserve the randomness of mind which in children produces strange and wonderful new thoughts and forms. To continually scramble the familiar and bring the old into new juxtaposition.) - Gordon Webber

+ i want to go to Colorado. how have i never been there?

+so much to do: move. throw engagement party. work. birthday parties. and yet i'd rather read this...all day long.

+ let's have a dance party. i need a dance party.

+ 4 veggie burgers in 2 days. is this a problem?

+ i'd give anything to be back at Chastain Park listening to Ray Lamontagne serenade me all night. please.

+flea market & farmer's market this weekend? yes please!

finally, the two above are precious and their save-the-date was equally so. check it out.

Save the date! 31 july 2010 from Kishi-Grover on Vimeo.