Love actually IS all around

Love you.

Calvinism, Taking Chances, Jokes, and The Things We Say

So, Timmy is writing his PTRW paper about John Calvin which led me to begin listening to what Calvinism entails and the beliefs that Calvinists have. They use scripture to back up what they say and it makes a little bit of sense but Calvinism almost just sounds mean. Maybe I'm not understanding it correctly or maybe I'm looking up the wrong stuff but the "TULIP" model is what modern-day Calvinists believe and I don't agree with all of those things. Each letter stands for something so just look it up. I don't really know what I think about it yet. I've been talking to a dear friend about it and she is helping me see things I would not have thought of, which is really helpful and she is being so encouraging. I'm hoping to talk to another great friend who is very smart and knows a lot about a lot of different things. We'll see what her insights are. I know this is a little vague but because I don't really understand it very well, that's all I can give you right now.

As for taking chances, I think we should take chances in life. And when I say "we" I mean myself, as well. This is hard for me, no matter what the situation is. Taking chances gets us out of our comfort zones and what we are used to. Some people are OK with that and sometimes it's very exciting. Other times, it's the scariest thing we'll have to decide.

Jokes are funny. But not when taken the wrong way or when said to the wrong person. Just FYI.

The things we say are always being heard, even if we don't think so. Sometimes the things we say get taken the wrong way and we hurt someone or make them question our motives or morals, even if that wasn't the original intent. Be careful what your say and how you say it.

I know this is a really random post but these are just a few things going through my mind right now. Weird, whatever.

Love you

Sore throats, gelato, and love

So, this has been a weird week. Just weird. I woke up Sunday morning feeling bad and it has just progressively gotten worse over the course of the past 4 days. Today, I stayed home and did a whole lot of nothing. That may sound nice but when you are sick, it's no fun. As sweet as he is, Timmy came over and hung out with me from 3 until 10, Brett brought me gelato from downtown g'ville and we played MASH, and Lauren, Jenny, and Alicia called and offered to help me with anything I needed. My mom took my car to work today and people came and washed it and put new tires on it. My daddy took a 2nd grade class to Charleston today and he brought me back a stuffed turtle from the aquarium. Despite being sick and not feeling good, people around me have made me feel loved and helped bring back my sense of humor. Daddy and Timmy went to Chick-fil-A and brought dinner and everyone say around at ate together. It was fun and something we don't get to do a lot. I actually got to eat a little bit and that's a good thing.

Tomorrow morning, we are going to the lakehouse to see family and hang out with them for the weekend. I just hope I'm feeling better for everyone's sake. I don't want to be around everone feeling bad. It's no fun for anyone. Anyway, although this post is neither insightful or thought-provoking, I just wanted to write one. It's been a while. Just pray that I get better and it's nothing worse than a severe sinus/respiratory infection. Hope it's not meningitis. :(

Happy Easter. Remember, although the easter bunny is cute and fun and PEEPS are fun to blow up in the microwave, that is NOT what Easter is about. Jesus died and rose again. That is why we have the hope and peace that gets us through each day whether we realize it or not.

Love you.

Seeing things that have been there all along

So, a wonderful, dear friend of mine wrote about "fitting in" (I think) and I wanted to comment on her blog but figured I'd just go ahead and post one myself. 

I used to want to fit in so badly. Then, I got to the point where I thought I didn't care. I was wrong. I still wanted to fit in and it always seemed like the people I wanted to get the closest to were the ones that seemed so distant and far away from me. They seemed to show no interest in me, my life, or who I was. That's when God started to deal with me. He probably had been for a while but I guess I was just too caught up in what I wanted rather than what I already had. This became more and more evident to me as the people I wanted to "fit in" with started doing things I didn't want to do or didn't think was appropriate. They also seemed to become even more distant, which I thought was impossible. Then, it hit me. I had so many people that I had rejected spending time with that actually wanted to spend time with me and I was so caught up into fitting in with new and different people, that I didn't even see the blessing that was right in front of me for God only knows how long. 

After I started to invest my time into their lives and growing closer to them, my desire to "fit in" no longer consumed my thoughts through the day and my prayers at night. I now prayed that God would continue to grow these wonderful relationships that I was a part of and now. I have a select few people that I know love me and want to spend time with me and want to invest in my life as much as I want to in theirs, too. 

Each day, I thank God for these people. If they don't know who they are, I pray right now that I can somehow tell or show them that in the next week. People need to know that they are loved and appreciated and that's why I try so hard all the time to let people know that I love them and care about them and what's going on in their lives. If you truly love someone, no matter what kind of love it is, you'll want to spend time with them, hear their problems and struggles, and most importantly, see them grow closer to God each and every day. 

It's still hard sometimes knowing that people may not want to be your friend and may not want to invest their time in your life like you want to invest your time in theirs but just remind yourself of those that do and most importantly, The One that cares more about you than anything in this world.

Blank Screens and Blinking Cursors

I hate that feeling. The feeling when you're looking at a blank Word document screen with that little, black, blinking cursor. You know the one I'm talking about. It's comparable to trying to write a blog. You feel like you have so many things to say or talk about, yet you have no idea how to begin or further organize your thoughts. That's my problem. Finishing stuff I start and organization. Although I want to see others succeed and finish things they start, I can't do that for myself. And although I always want to organize other people's rooms and their belongings, I can't bring myself to organize my own stuff or even my own life. Ugh.

I'm also having a very hard time deciding what to do this summer. There are a lot of options but for the most part, I can only choose one. My problem is I can't seem to figure out what the right one is. Here are a few of the options: going back to the orphanage in Africa, working at a KOA campground, going to summer school, getting a job around here, or just chilling out at the lake. The weird thing is, want to do ALL of them but, at the same time, none of them.

Again, I don't want to sound like I'm complaining all the time. It's not good.

Today, Jenny and I took pictures of my friend Candace and her fiance. It was a lot of fun! I'm glad she asked me to do it. I need the practice, it's always fun to take pictures, and I love to edit and Photoshop stuff on the computer. I took about 350 and I'm not sure how many Jenny took but I'm thinking they turned out quite well and am excited for her to see them and excited to see Jenny's.

Yesterday, my dad and I went and looked at cars. I really would like to have something a little bigger than my bug. I've always felt very small driving that car but ever since that stupid wreck with Brett's car, my car freaks me out because it's so small and very hard to see out of. I love my car, don't get me wrong. It's so cute and the convertible is great! But I would like something a little bigger and more practical. We were looking at the KIA Sorentos and even talked to the finance people about how much they'd give us for my car and how much we could get a Sorento for. The numbers weren't quite right so I didn't drive away in a new car but oh well. Hopefully we'll get something worked out soon. They want me to get something that I can keep for a while and not have a lot of problems with. KIA got 5-stars on all of their safety ratings (which I was very happy to hear) and they have that 10-year, 100,000 mile warranty, which is also very great. Anyway, I guess we'll see.

I wish more people would comment when they read this blog. Sometimes, people will mention something to me about it and I'm like, "Whoa. I didn't even know you read that thing." So, yah...if you read, at least put a little comment. I left it open so everyone can comment. You don't have to have an account.

I thought I had better stuff to talk about. I guess not. That's usually the way my life goes. Eh.

Comment. Give me something to talk about. Whatever.

5 random things for today: (plus some)
*I bought a new camera charger that I can take to different countries! :)
*Me and Brett talked on the phone and watched "My Big Redneck Wedding" on CMT. Needless to say, I got a lot of good ideas.
*Why do people say, "needless to say" and then say something? If it's so needless, why say it?
*I really need to finish my paper. One of my "english-teacher friends" was so gracious enough to accept my request to proofread it. I'm so thankful for her and her willingness to do that.
*The AT&T commercial with the dad sending the little girls all those pictures with her stuffed animal makes me melt. Everytime. (The scooter store holiday commercial also makes me cry uncontrollably.)
*I'm going to see Andrew Peterson with said "english-teacher friend" tomorrow night! I'm super excited!
*I took a 20 minute power nap today. It was warm and glorious.

ok. love you