Random Thoughts

I am sitting in the education department lab at my school. I have a slew of homework at home that is waiting to be done. But it's not here. I came in early for a training session for the tutoring I do. However, due to some unforeseen circumstances, the woman who was to run the session couldn't make it. So, with three hours till my next class, here I sit. I printed some articles to read, but there's only so much reading of academic articles you can do in one day before the lines of the articles cross, and you are thoroughly confused as to what you are reading. I won't even claim to be comprehending. So I'll write. About what? I don't know. Whatever comes to mind I suppose.

I was reading my devotions this morning, and I came across this, "I need to be reminded frequently that my demerits do not compel God to withdraw His grace from me, but rather He treats me with no regard whatsoever to what I deserve. I'd much rather stake my hope of His blessing on His infinite goodness then on my good works." I feel like it is so easy to slump into feeling like we are incapable of doing any good. Everything we do is wrong. And, while we know the grace of God, we don't act in that knowledge. Instead of rejoicing in His grace, we wallow in self pity and self depreciation. How much better would it be to simply acknowledge or failings and and say "but I know the grace of my God."

Also, I loved the last part of the quote above, "I'd much rather stake my hope of His blessing on His infinite goodness then on my good works." Christians argue all the time on whether God chose or "elected" those who would be saved or if humans have free will and make the choice to follow God. While I won't go as far as to say that I think this is a stupid thing to be arguing over, I do believe that Christians spend too much time arguing over it. And for what? I believe in election. But even if I didn't, how hard would it be to accept that some people would rather rely on their salvation to be an act of God than to involve any action on their part. I know me. I like rules because I like structure. But I also don't always like rules that someone else is writing. If it was solely up to me in my sinful nature to choose salvation, I wouldn't have done it. My salvation is an act of grace not an act of my will. But, if you don't agree with me, I don't think that means you're going to burn in hell. So why fight?

Anyway, I'm not quite sure how I got here. But in other news, the last frames I need to finish my room are coming today!!! Oh, and my laptop is coming back from California!!! Yay! :D

Keep on singing,

A Letter to Pink

Dear Pink,

Normally, I love you. And although I've outgrown my need to decorate with you, I still love to accessorize with you. From my pink laptop, kindle case, and notebooks to my pink afghan, pretty pink tops, and the tiny hint of pink in my china pattern, you will always be my favorite. But I'm afraid that in this month, February, I find you more of a foe than friend. You and your compatriot red have come to symbolize all that is wrong with this world's view of love and the worst holiday ever invented - Valentine's Day. So I'm afraid that for the next month you and I will distance ourselves, especially on the 14th. I look forward to renewing our friendship in March.

Until then,
Sincerely,
Me.

Keep on singing,

Confession

Confession: I'm 19 and I still love children's books.

There's just nothing better. Last year my college class took a fieldtrip to the Scholastic store in SoHo. Can I just say, amazing!

It was there that I found my all-time favorite children's book, Harold and the Purple Crayon.



Who can resist this gem of a book! Seriously, if I ever get to have kids they're all getting a purple crayon with which they can draw magical worlds and purple moons.

Then in January, I purchased 3 more children's books. But, in my defense, I bought them with Christmas money and the knowledge that I got extra work hours the past two weeks!

One of those books was It's a Book by Lane Smith. It's a great little book about, you guessed it, books. In this digital age, I sometimes fear that children won't know what books are before long. This makes me sad. Maybe that's why I'm stocking up my children's library now :)


Keep on singing,

In Which I Question the Validity of Groundhog Day

My parent's are still away. But today I only had to wake up at 6:45. And as I sat on the couch around 7:00, with my cup of coffee in my hand, I thought three things. 1 - I thought about how just yesterday, I was thinking that the idea of being the Proverbs 31 woman who "rises while it is yet night" was seeming far less daunting then ever before. But now I realize that the 6:30 darkness of yesterday probably had more to do with the weather then I thought. I wasn't so dark this morning at 6:45, and I'll I wanted to do was crawl under the covers and go back to sleep. So much for my inspiring thoughts on Biblical womanhood. 2 - I thought about how much I still love casseroles. They just make life easier, especially when there's only two people eating it so it lasts for at least two days. 3 - I thought that being an adult doesn't mean no more sleepovers with your best friend. It just means that you and your best friend confess to each other a few days before said sleepover that you're going to have to take some hours out of your hang out time on Saturday to do homework.

This is my reality. Yesterday was snow day number three. And when I got the official cancellation email from my professor, I suddenly wished we just had class. So. Much. Homework.

So, while I still can't believe it's February 2011, I really wish it was February 2013 . . .

In other news, Staten Island Chuck did not see his shadow so supposedly spring will come six weeks early. My question is, how accurate can this system be when the groundhog doesn't see his shadow because the sky is all cloudy with an ice storm!!!

Keep on singing,

February . . . Say What?

My parent's are away this week. That means I woke up at 6:15 this morning to make my brother breakfast. And as I sat on the couch around 6:30, with the breakfast casserole in the oven, I thought three things. 1 - I thought about how when I was little, I cringed at the thought of the Proverbs 31 woman who "rises while it is yet night." Who would want to wake up when it's still dark?? But now I realize that 6:30 really isn't so very early. And it was really dark at 6:30 this morning. 2 - I thought about how much I love casseroles. They just make life easier. 3 - I thought, goodness gracious, it's February!!!!!!

I can' believe it. It seems just yesterday I was anxiously awaiting Thanksgiving! I mean, I had a wonderful winter break. Yes, it was busy, but I loved it! But I still can't believe it's over. I'm a junior in college. When did that happen??? Though I shouldn't complain because today may very well be my third snow day of the semester.

And, while I can't believe it's February 2011, I kind of wish it was February 2013 . . .

Keep on singing,

New Year . . . Or Is It?

There is a part of me that embraces January as the start of the new year. That part is the slightly obsessively organized part. There’s something comforting about the start of a new 12 month cycle. It’s set, definite. Every month has a set number of days and when we reach the end we cycle back through again. Organized, neat.

But the truth of the matter is we rarely approach life in such a neat little cycle. For me, there is very little difference between December 31st and January 1st. But there’s a great difference between say January 18th and January 19th (the start of my spring semester and junior year of college). And there was an even greater difference between September 8th and 9th 2010 (the start of my fall semester and the end of the most challenging summer of my life). And stuck in the middle of all those dates are other small dates that “changed” my life and created fresh starts of different aspects of my life. While most of the changes have been embraced, the fact remains that they didn’t wait till January 1st, 2011 to make there appearance. My life doesn’t restart on the first of January like the calendar does. I don’t think I would want it too.

If everything of note happened on the first of the new calendar year it would be overwhelming. So I don’t really celebrate the new year overmuch. I try to remember the dates of important events in my life and celebrate them. However, the celebration of the new year exists and so on the 31st of December I stay up till midnight and drink sparkling cider with the rest of them. And on the 1st of January we have a celebratory dinner. But other than that? I have a room that needs to be painted and books to be read, laundry to be done and bags to be packed. So life goes on and so do I. And it’s not at all depressing as it seems to be. There’s something comforting in the changes of the calendar, even if they don’t affect my daily life. There is a reason God created seasons even if I can’t tell you what it is. But I rejoice that I can trust in His sovereignty in this and every year (no matter when you think the new year starts).

Psalm 104

Bless the Lord, O my soul!

O Lord my God, you are very great!
You are clothed with splendor and majesty,
covering yourself with light as with a garment,
stretching out the heavens like a tent.

He lays the beams of his chambers on the waters;
he makes the clouds his chariot;
he rides on the wings of the wind; he makes his messengers winds,
his ministers a flaming fire.

He set the earth on its foundations,
so that it should never be moved.
You covered it with the deep as with a garment;
the waters stood above the mountains.
At your rebuke they fled;
at the sound of your thunder they took to flight.
The mountains rose, the valleys sank down
to the place that you appointed for them.
You set a boundary that they may not pass,
so that they might not again cover the earth.

You make springs gush forth in the valleys;
they flow between the hills;
they give drink to every beast of the field;
the wild donkeys quench their thirst.
Beside them the birds of the heavens dwell;
they sing among the branches.

From your lofty abode you water the mountains;
the earth is satisfied with the fruit of your work.

You cause the grass to grow for the livestock
and plants for man to cultivate,
that he may bring forth food from the earth
and wine to gladden the heart of man,
oil to make his face shine
and bread to strengthen man's heart.

The trees of the Lord are watered abundantly,
the cedars of Lebanon that he planted.
In them the birds build their nests;
the stork has her home in the fir trees.
The high mountains are for the wild goats;
the rocks are a refuge for the rock badgers.

He made the moon to mark the seasons;
the sun knows its time for setting.
You make darkness, and it is night,
when all the beasts of the forest creep about.

The young lions roar for their prey,
seeking their food from God.
When the sun rises, they steal away
and lie down in their dens.
Man goes out to his work
and to his labor until the evening.

O Lord, how manifold are your works!
In wisdom have you made them all;
the earth is full of your creatures.
Here is the sea, great and wide,
which teems with creatures innumerable,
living things both small and great.
There go the ships,
and Leviathan, which you formed to play in it.

These all look to you,
to give them their food in due season.

When you give it to them, they gather it up;
when you open your hand, they are filled with good things.
When you hide your face, they are dismayed;
when you take away their breath, they die
and return to their dust.
When you send forth your Spirit, they are created,
and you renew the face of the ground.

May the glory of the Lord endure forever;
may the Lord rejoice in his works,
who looks on the earth and it trembles,
who touches the mountains and they smoke!

I will sing to the Lord as long as I live;
I will sing praise to my God while I have being.
May my meditation be pleasing to him,
for I rejoice in the Lord.
Let sinners be consumed from the earth,
and let the wicked be no more!
Bless the Lord, O my soul!
Praise the Lord!

The Blizzard and the Gathering

It has snowed. A lot. Like tons. Like my dog can’t walk outside for fear of being lost in the snow. This snow arrived on Sunday night into Monday and my dear city has been crippled ever since. There’s great uproar over the poor management of the snow removal and according to my dad after things cool down “heads will roll.”
Normally, I love when it snows! And while I still couldn’t resist the magic that is a white, snow-covered world, I wasn’t exactly thrilled that the blizzard chose this of all weekends to make it’s appearance. I mean surely it could have waited till it resulted in a snow day from school, right?? Alas, such was not the case. But more than the snow day, I wanted to be able to head over to Hatfield, PA for the Ziegler Family Gathering. My mom’s side of the family (and her mom’s beyond her) gather at this time every year for food, fun, and fellowship. I can’t remember I time that we missed this gathering and the Christmas season wouldn’t be the same without it.
So, about a day after the snow dropped on our city like a bomb, my brother and I began the task of digging out our vehicle hoping (at least I was) that when we finally did free the car from the snow’s icy grip that it would be able to handle the snow that was left on the road. We had yet to test out this van’s snow driving capabilities. We successfully freed our car and began our trek to PA. With only a couple struggles (we had to dig out at one point) and after seeing some astounding sights (we passed a bus that had been stuck since Sunday night), we managed to make it to the highway for what we figured would be free sailing, or, you know, driving.
Well it wasn’t quite free and clear from then out. The NJ Turnpike bogged us down quite a bit and our 2 hour trip took 4 hours instead. Good thing we left extra time!
We finally made it and it was well worth the stress. My family is quite a group when we all gather together. I think the total number reached about 75 this year. We even make a pretty decent choir. I’d show you the video but it’s only on Facebook and that link doesn’t work. But you can take my word for it that it was a good night. Especially, because I got to introduce this young man to my family!