{transition}

Fall is in the air. The trees are beginning to change color, the birds are gathering and the pumpkins are setting on. Whoopee! I love Fall! This has definitely been a month of transition. Not just the seasons, but life itself. My birthday was earlier this month and I feel more like an adult than I ever have before. I don't know what it is about 22 because 21 didn't quite have this vibe. Maybe it's that I've been really considering what am I going to do. Looking at how I want my future to be and making the decisions now that will set me on that road. More transitions have been finishing the painting and putting in the flooring in my room. That allowed me to set up my bookcase and finally get my books out of their boxes. The poor things have been in the dark for four years. It was wonderful seeing my trusty companions once again. Except for the fact that with the books I've accumulated over the last few years, all my books did not fit on the shelves. Ahh! There was only one thing to do...eliminate. After that comes the creative stacking. Over the weekend I did some decorating on the shelves. Here are a few pics of some of the results.

This is on top. The white rose pitcher was found at a thrift store and I absolutely love it!

This is on a lower shelf. As you can see I haven't decided on a picture to put in the frame.

One of the upper shelves, not quite finished with this arrangement, but I like how the colors and textures mix. I really like the square frame, it's magnetic! Found it and the frame in the above pic on clearance at Target the other day. Can't find the picture I want to put in this frame. Argh. And in the frame on the right is my fantastic parents.

Have a great day!

{american girl}

I grew up watching Mr. Rogers and reading the American Girl series. So this afternoon when my mother and I went to see the lastest American Girl movie I was quite pleased. I may be 21 now and considered too "old" for such fair in the modern public opinion but I believe that you should never outgrow the wonder of childhood. And if you read very much of my writing you will be able to tell that I don't give two whits what everyone else thinks. What I liked most about "Kit Kittredge" was its Dickens-esque qualities. The Kittredge family are kind, generous people that help out those in need even though they themselves have fallen on hard times. And the reminder that when life hands you lemons, make lemonade. Such a refreshing perspective in our self-centered society. Where is America's can do spirit in these troubling times? It seems to me that everyone is looking to the government to bail them out when the best thing they could do is look to the past for an example on how to manage with what you've got. Sure, I'd love to have a new house, car and fashionable wardrobe but that would be wrong of me to burden my family like that. Instead, my family drives two cars that are paid for (I don't have my own car), shops at thrift stores or the clearance rack (you just have to do a little digging at Goodwill to find designer clothing gems for a fraction of the cost) and we're very happy because we have each other. Anyway, if you haven't seen "Kit" yet, take the family and go watch it before the theaters drop it like a hot potato! It may just be my imagination but it seems that the more moral and family friendly a film is the less time it spends in the silver screen. And if you need proof of just how great a film "Kit Kittredge" is, my mother cried. I did too for that matter, but in my family a film isn't good unless Mama has cried. Tears of joy or sadness, it doesn't matter. I'll leave you with this parting thought - life is too short to miss out on family. Just being together and enjoying each others' company will provide for a lifetime of happy memories. Oh, and if your husband doesn't want to see "Kit" because he thinks it's just a movie for girls, you just tell him there's lots of awesome cars to watch, too.

{just believe}

as far as the eye can see...
Originally uploaded by satis verborum

I love that sentiment, "just believe." I find this story in Mark so sweet and amazing. As we can see from the text, one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus, comes to Jesus to beg of Him to heal his daughter. On the way to do so they are interrupted by the woman with a flow of blood. While Jesus assures her of her faith and healing some members of Jairus' household come to give him the awful news of his daughter's death. They advise him to give up and leave Jesus alone. When Jesus hears this He tells Jairus, "Do not be afraid, only believe." I can picture this moment in my mind, Christ looks Jairus square in the face, maybe even with a hand on his shoulder, and with an earnest gaze tells him it's going to be okay. And isn't that what our Lord does when we despair? Looks us square in the eye and calms our fears with His gentle touch as He asks us to continue trusting Him. Believe in Him, that He cares and is in control. It may not turn out how we want but in the end everything will be alright. Just believe...

Home

Over the weekend my family and some friends went to see Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian. I won't bore you with my laundry list of complaints. Suffice it to say I think they could've done a lot better. For me they lost the magic of Narnia that they captured in Lion, Witch and the Wardrobe. Anyway, one of the things I could definately relate to in the film is the longing for home. It isn't that England wasn't home for Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy, but not like Narnia was. Three years ago my family went through an extremely trying time where we didn't have our own place to call home. During that time we were living with my grandparents until we could find another place. A word to the wise - don't sell your home until you have money down on another one. My dad had been laid off and my mom, who had quit her job a few years earlier to homeschool me was the first one to win the job hunt race. So basically we, as a family, were between a rock and a hard place. No home, nowhere to go and regret. It's a wonder we didn't go insane. And the most intense longing for a place to call home again. It was also a reminder to me that this world is not my home. I'm just here for a time in this body of flesh. C.S. Lewis once said, "If I find in myself desires which nothing in this world can satisfy, the only logical explanation is that I was made for another world." So true. Home is one of the basic comforts of life and when that is gone, you struggle to survive. You cling to the hope that one day everything will work out and until then you cling to the thought of Heaven. I'm sure you've already noticed that I've added a couple of new songs to the player. They are both from the Prince Caspian soundtrack and I cried when I first heard them. It didn't help that I was reminiscing about when my Daddy and I were reading through the Narnia series outloud and we cried through the last two or three chapters of "The Last Battle." If you get a chance read the story behind Switchfoot's "This Is Home." Really neat. Well I have held you captive long enough. For those of you wondering, yes my family found a place to live, but no, I'm not Home yet.

War of the Worldviews

Thank you Ben Stein! It's about time a thought provoking film made it to the main stream. My family went and saw this documentary yesterday afternoon and we were thrilled. It's not everyday that you get to see a balanced, well made film that doesn't cram the Humanistic worldview down your throat. Yes, this film is based on the raging war between the Theory of Evolution and the Theory of Intelligent Design. But what I really appreciated about this movie was the fact that it touched on the root cause of this struggle. A war of worldviews. In one corner Humanism, in the other Christianity. Why though in our schools do we not allow two differing view points concerning science? An honest discussion of all sides of the issue. I thought that we wanted to give our children a well rounded education. Well it can't be well rounded and complete if they only hear one side of the story. Are we saying that we are not smart enough to weigh the evidence and decide for ourselves? Do we have to be told what to do? And if Intelligent Design didn't have a valid point, why then do evolutionists play pop goes the weasle everytime they smell a hint of it? If you haven't seen this film go see it. Here's the website where they have more great stuff - http://www.expelledthemovie.com

P.S. - I believe in the "big bang theory," God spoke and BANG!, it happened.

"Thus Will Shine The Dawn"

Morning Blossoms
Originally uploaded by satis verborum

I love mornings. The promise of a fresh start is a beautiful reminder that life goes on. A new day to grow, learn and do. Some days fall to pieces and nothing seems to go right. But then the dawn comes and we are given the chance to pick up the broken bits and move on. In the thick of WWII, Sir Winston Churchill, in an effort to fortify the hope of the Allies said this, "Good night, then: sleep to gather strength for the morning. For the morning will come. Brightly it will shine on the brave and true, kindly upon all who suffer for the cause, glorious upon the tombs of heroes. Thus will shine the dawn." I think that what a sunrise truly means is never give up. Even when the storms of life are raging, don't lose heart. Just because you can't see the sun through the clouds doesn't mean it's not there.

Ordinary?

Sweet Simplicity
Originally uploaded by satis verborum

Have you ever noticed the beautiful simplicity of a flower? A while back I came to the realization that everyday things are really quite extraordinary. The simple is beautiful, the plain is unique and the ordinary is amazing. We live in a spectacular world of golden sunrises, fluffy clouds and twinkling stars. And what's even better is that each day presents something new! We can have gentle rains one day and another perfect picnic weather. Fog in the morning and the Milky Way stretched across the sky at night. Ordinary? I think not.