Wedding Season

(Insert instrumental music or 'Canon in D' here)

Yes, my friends.  It's that time of year... it's wedding season.

Ever since I graduated college, all I could see were engagement pictures here and big shiny rings there.  Last summer alone, I received six wedding invites.  This year, I already have seven weddings in my schedule. 

Last Friday was the launch of this wedding season - starting with my friend Ravi.  He is pretty much go big or go home, so naturally, he got married at a baseball stadium following an Omaha Stormchasers game.  This next weekend, one of my best friends, Lisa, gets married to another incredible friend, Jon.

As pricey as weddings are and as inconvenient the traveling can become, I must say that I LOVE WEDDINGS.  Especially right now... this year I get to witness three of my best friends say 'I Do' to the loves of their lives.  I am honored to be a part of their special days and to bear witness to their union. 

I love seeing the different personalities of the couple come out.
I love seeing the looks on both the Bride and Groom's faces when they see eachother.
I love hearing the vows and being reminded of the promises they are making.
I love how everyone wants to come around and support/love the couple.
I love the Father-Daughter dance.
I love hearing toasts.
I love dancing. Duh.

Yeah, there are a lot of things about weddings that I may not think are the best, but guess what? It's THEIR day.  So who cares?  And ultimately, although I love weddings, what I love even more comes AFTER the wedding... MARRIAGE. (Get your mind out of the gutter, sicko)

I cannot wait to see the ways God will work in these different marriages - the good, the bad, and the ugly.  But I am convinced there is not a more beautiful way to express God's love for us than by two whole people joining together and making that commitment to love each other and their Creator unconditionally.

Alright party people... let's go dance.

Back in the Game

So... I have only written one post in the year 2012. Pathetic.

I used to be pretty good at this, you know.  Writing, telling stories, giving updates, so on and so forth.

What happened?! Life. Life is what happened.  And forgetfulness. Not giving excuses - I am just telling the truth.

My first year of teaching is done and over and it was more challenging and pressing than I ever imagined.  Stressful? Absolutely.  Tons of work? Duh.  Fun and Exciting? Almost always.  Teaching is a hilarious job... I mean, I teach 700 kids how to do art... how can that NOT be fun?! Situating myself into this new "grown-up" position has definitely kept me occupied. That and always being the last one to leave school at night.  Yep, I have become that teacher.  Hopefully that will change over the new few years...

Well blogging world and followers... I am ready to get back in the game. The blogging game. Holler.

Blogging has a bad rep - it seems needy and little self-centered... 

"Look at how AWESOME my life is!" 

"Pay attention to my thoughts!"

"I have important ideas and have something great to contribute to this society."

I do not think that I have anything beneficial to contribute to the world that is particularly new or radical or "awesome" per-say.  I do not consider my life extraordinarily "AWESOME". When I write and when I blog, it is a means of just expressing and verbalizing experiences and ideas.  Do I expect responses? Nope.  Do I expect everyone to read?  Not at all.  Is it always about me? No... at least I HOPE not! But I do think there is beauty and validity in sharing life lessons and my heart with others - even through the means of technology.  Sharing is not a self-centered action.  Telling stories is not a self-centered action.  In all of my retelling and thoughts posted here on this blog, my aim is to ultimately turn it AWAY from me and onto the Lord. 

God has been doing some serious work on my heart over the past year and a half... ESPECIALLY since I have returned from New Zealand.  Most of it has been an internal process and adjustment - talking one-on-one with the Father and spending intimate time with Him.  However, I really have been feeling the weight of not processing my thoughts through writing and the importance of sharing that with others.

So... here we go. I'm BACK IN THE GAME. ('10 Things I Hate About You' anyone?)