Can I have it?

Found this while browsing Tattoologist. I don't know what it says, but I love it. One of these days, I'm getting a tattoo... just got to decide where... and what... and save up 50ish dollars. Hmmm....

SDG

Trainstation Photoshoot

Sunday after church, some friends and I decided to do a little photoshoot at the trainstation. Not only are my friends super photogenic, but they are also talented. Naaman and Carissa made some awesome shots, then Naaman Photoshopped them into even more awesomeness. Here are a few of the results. Enjoy. :)

* I Photoshopped this one.

 

 

SDG

Meanwhile, back at the blog...

It's been a while since my last post. Things picked up momentum quite quickly. I worked everyday last week: good for my checking account, not good for sleep, school work, and play time. But, since Saturday, time with friends has taken precedent, with little stops for assignments, two classes, a workout, and a good five hours at the office.

Reflecting on this, it makes me want to reiterate how much God has blessed me. I love seeing how He works in my life when I trust in His provision. These past few weeks have made me realize how a whole bunch of circumstances led me to Hattiesburg where I've become part of the most awesome church family ever, secured a decent, fun, and relevant-to-my-career part-time job, and where I am studying a field I find fascinating and challenging.

God, thank You so much for these blessings I recognize and even those I don't. Help me to remember this when times get tough, as they most certainly will in the future. You are the Almighty, God of the universe, and You chose to love me in spite of my disobedience, stubbornness, and lack of faith. I love you, Lord. Keep me close to You so I can grow more and more like You every day.

SDG

Say What You Mean

So, in an effort to get into super-focus mode to tackle seven articles in order to write a two-page summary of them, I headed straight to the coffee shop near my apartment after I got off work.

While devouring and unabashedly critiquing articles, I overheard a woman conversing with the barista. I don't know how their conversation ended up here, but the woman was saying that she had asked her husband whether he liked her spaghetti or his mom's spaghetti the best. He said his mom's. The woman told the barista that she didn't make her husband spaghetti for two years after that. The barista (male) empathized by saying that the woman's husband should have recognized that her inquiry was just a probe to get her husband to confirm that her spaghetti was indeed the best.

I thought that was the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard. How is that logical? If I ask someone a question, I want the truth; otherwise, how will I be able to trust any feedback he or she gives me in the future? I will automatically think, "Are they saying this because they think it's what I want to hear or because it really is the truth?" Now, I know I'm in no place to make inferences on marriages, but I don't think that kind of communication is conducive to maintaining a good relationship. Besides, I want my future husband to be comfortable enough with me and with the security of our relationship that he can tell me anything, even if it is upsetting and I pout for a few days. That goes both ways.

In conclusion, say what you mean. Also, James 5:12
SDG

P.S. Finished my readings, and about to demolish a summary. :)

I love this picture.

While, procrastinating doing my article summaries for my newest research project (mostly because I'm certain I will find nothing already published relating to my topic), I came across this photo on A CUP OF JO. I'm not sure why, but I couldn't stop staring at it. Perhaps it's because it reminds me of those first stages in a new or budding romance when all the little brushes of skin send electricity through your body. Something so sweet and innocent as letting your forearms rest against each other feels so absolutely amazing, and the moment he acknowledges it, with a stroke of the thumb or fingertips just sends you reeling.
Mmmm... :)

SDG

Creative Outlet Part 3

Part 1 & Part 2

It was only a short while longer when the girl called out for the boy again. Her soul hadn't healed completely, but it had become tough in the places he'd touched. It was now safe to try and fix him.

He answered her call willingly. They talked for hours. All too soon, though, he had to go, but he left her with the promise to never be far away. On and off the boy and girl would talk, and this was good for the girl. It let her know that he still cared. With this assurance, eventually she began to notice other boys. One day, a new boy distinguished himself amongst the others. He was quiet where the first had been loquacious. He was available where the other had turned and run.

While she liked these differences and the attention the new boy gave her, the girl wasn't ready to open her soul to him as she had so eagerly done with the boy before, until unexpectedly, the first boy called out at the same time as the new boy. This greatly distressed the girl, for she could only answer one.

The girl considered the possibilities in answering the first. He had claimed her soul first. That space would always fit him best and she knew it; however, he had hurt her more than any other. She had been prepared to let him stay forever, and he had abandoned her.

The new boy, though, had all the potential to succeed where the first boy failed. Was it fair for her to deny him the chance to make a claim on her soul? She realized, though, that choosing the new boy would cause the first to drift away once again, and this made her cry.

She cried for a day.

Finally, she answered the new boy. He made her happier than she had been for a long, long time. He serenaded her, and she soaked him in, though never fully letting him enter her soul, like she had so readily done in the past. She was content with him on the outskirts, and he seemed content to be there.

One night, though, as they sat lost in each others' eyes, the girl decided she would let the boy in. She beckoned him. He came a bit closer, just lightly touching her soul. She welcomed the warmth where it had been cool for too long. But the boy didn't enter, and she didn't press him. This was enough for now. He would make a space in her soul soon enough in his own time.

However, the next day, the boy called out for the girl. She recognized the tone and began to worry. The boy said that he could not make a space for her inside his soul. It had been badly scarred by another girl, and the scab left was only just beginning to heal. Fighting back tears, the girl said she understood, and grateful that this would only be a minor wound in comparison to the gash left previously, she let the new boy go. He had his own soul to mend, and there was nothing she could do to help.

Yes, she let him go, but not entirely. She would wait, but not forever. She would wait with a tempered hope that his soul would heal in time for her to have a real chance.

I'm 23

When my mom was 23, she had been married for five years, had one kid and another on the way.

I, on the other hand, was on skate/long board/RipStik at 2 a.m. last night.

...

I don't know if this is a good or bad thing.

...

It sure was fun, though.
SDG