The Laughter Penetrates My Silence

I dont have much to write about today, so I thought I would just post some street fashion photos. I miss how inspiring fahion was in Italy.

"The best thing about dreams is that fleeting moment, when you are between asleep and awake, when you don't know the difference between reality and fantasy, when for just that one moment you feel with your entire soul that the dream is reality, and it really happened."

I'll Whisper Your Name into the Sky

Rain always has an effect on people. Especially when it begins to become fall and the temperature is dropping. I know if I wake up in the morning and it gloomy outside, I just want to wrap up in a blanket and watch movies all day. I need to force myself out of bed and remember each day awaits with adventure and joy(even if it is just another school day). God wants to be proactive. In Proverbs 12:24 it states, "Work hard and become a leader; be lazy and never succeed." This semester I have learned to stay active in school and learn to succeed through being organized and happy about school. I honestly can't even believe that it is my junior year. College has flown by and I have been worrying about missing things. Live each day as if were your last and make each moment count.

" Life is full of beauty. Notice it. Notice the bumble bee, the small child, and the smiling faces. Smell the rain, and feel the wind. Live your life to the fullest potential, and fight for your dreams."

-Ashley Smith

Killed It With Kisses

I was thinking today why college students usually say they follow Christ but don't exactly fit the standards. Then I cam across this website who has a "word of the day." The word for today was Torrid, which means intensely hot, burning, and full of passion. I believe that this word should describe how our relationship with Christ should be. He doesn't want us to be luke warm, he wants our love for him to be on fire, boiling. His love is unconditional and for that we should give thanks everyday. Its hard to not have a luke warm relationship with Christ, because college life is full of temptation. But everyone makes mistakes, I know I do all the time, and that is what makes gods grace so wonderful. So just as we are passionate about living life to the fullest, do the same with living your life as a Christian. Set the world on fire.

"The most important thing in life is to learn how to give out love, and to let it come in."

Morrie Schwartz

Love You From the Inside Out

I haven't posted in a few days because I had very full and very stressful last week. I couldn't wait until the weekend. I went to the Tennessee Valley Fair and served pancakes on the strip for Second Pres Church on Friday night...pretty epic night full of corndogs and chocolate chip pancakes. Football Saturday was very hott, got burned, UT lost, just another day in Knoxville.

I learned a new word Sunday, Missio, a Latin Christian theological term that can be translated as the "sending of God." Mission is understood as being derived from the very nature of God. The missionary initiative comes from God alone. I believe it is important for people volunteer in his or her community. Love unconditionally, and be someone who others can count on.

Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment.

-Buddha

Something Precious in Us is Lost

I am reading "Captivating" by John and Stasi Eldridge for a bible study. I read the book in the fifth grade but I don't think I fully appreciated the text until now, when I have lived and experienced more. In the third chapter Stasi discusses the beauty a women possesses that she needs to unveil...

"We did not say that a women is prized for her good looks. We did not say a women is here merely to complete a man, and therefore a single woman is somehow missing her destiny. What we said was, first, that Eve is the crown of creation. There is something uniquely magnificent and powerful about a woman. We tried to reveal the immeasurable dignity, the holiness of your feminine heart by showing that it is God who longs for romance; it is God who longs to be our ezer; it is God who reveals beauty as essential to life. You are the image bearer of this God. That is why you long for those things too. There is a radiance hidden in your heart that the world desperately needs." pg 42

I suppose this text really stuck out to because I am surrounded by women in Laurel everyday, they spend hours on end making themselves beautiful. These women are the crown of creation and are radiant beyond imagination. College drains a women of her unveiled beauty, lets change that and reveal our feminine beauty God created us for.

She Killed it With Kisses

Through continuous faith, I grow each week. This past weekend I had a full schedule. I had my ADPi Barn Party, pretty epic. And then Saturday I went to the UT football game, left due to weather, and then returned and watched the end of the game on the field...no big deal. That made us losing just a bit better.

This week is going to be busy but people need to remember to stop for a moment and take it all in. Learn and live.

"The depth and strength of a human character are defined by its moral reserves. People reveal themselves completely only when they are thrown out of the customary conditions of their life, for only then do they have to fall back on their reserves."

-Leonardo da Vinci

Play a Song for Me

Fall has officially begun with an epic weekend. My brother came back in town from NYC, perfect weather for Saturday's football game, and awesome, chill Boomsday(including the best seats in town to watch the firworks). Three day weekends always allow well-needed rest and extra study and relax time. And I say with a heavy heart, that people should probably no longer wear white. I recently stumbled upon IKEA's new ad campaign...awesome

"I am your friend and my love for you goes deep. There is nothing I can give you which you have not got, But there is much, very much, that, while I cannot give it, you can take. No heaven can come to us unless our hearts find rest in today. Take heaven! No peace lies in the future which is not hidden in this present little instant. Take peace! The gloom of the world is but a shadow. Behind it, yet within our reach, is joy.”

-Fra Giovanni Giocondo

Simplicity is the Ultimate Sophistication

Finally Friday....the day filled with relief and freedom. I recently discovered the band Mumford and Sons and now I am obsessed. This is one of the well known songs and I literally listen to it 5 times a day. Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lLJf9qJHR3E

"All truths are easy to understand once they are discovered; the point is to discover tem."
-Galileo Galilei

I was a Heavy Heart to Carry My Beloved was Weighed Down

Not too much to say today...great weather and successful classes! School work is beginning to become a routine and not a hassel. I am looking forward to this weekend, full of football, family(my brother is coming in town from New York), and fun!

"I have been impressed with the urgency of doing. Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Being willing is not enough; we must do.”

-Leonardo Da Vinci

The Lord is blessing my life, and I am truly thankful for all that I have. Right decisions are the corner stone for a righteous life. Be true to ones self and live each day to the fullest.

We Can Dance Until We Die

Wednesdays are always a slow day...exactly in between Mondays and Fridays. Days like these make it hard to stay proactive and love life. I have been dealing with the culture shock of coming back from Italy for a few weeks now, and through faith I have been becoming more and more satisfied with my life here in Knoxville.

"Desire is the key to motivation, but its determination and commitment to unrelenting pursuit of your goal - a commitment to excellence - that will enable you to attain the success you seek."

-Mario Andretti

Great friends and great family allow a person to grow spiritually and emotionally.