Hang on little tomato

Holidays are hard, but they don't make the rest of the year. I will acknowledge the pain of my heart in losing the most important thing tha  has ever happened to me and I will look forward to a better tomorrow. Mine are normal emotions for many people because of the poor decisions of others, but I am not excused from drawing closer to God because of access to cheap antidotes. Like many of these strong individuals I will not accept the role of the victim; my thirst is too great to remain in the desert.

Waiting for the rain.

Alexandria Revisited and learning Italian

I haven't been in this city for years, since I dated an amazing and quite accomplished woman named Angela. Its charm rivals that of Charlottesville, and its coffee shops are almost as inviting. Christmas for me is a time for road trips, and I know that the year I no longer travel will be the year that I'm officially old. So bring on the gas prices and espresso. Today I am continuing my quest to learn how to speak Italian so that, as a nurse anesthetist, I will be able to say "Ha! I told you he would live" in an operating room. Italy may or may not be in the future, but being able to walk into a cafe and ask for a proper glass of orange juice in Italian is a straight shot to the confidence maker. For anyone interested in being versed in the tongue of Leonardo - check out the BBC at . And if you are getting a copy of the Rosetta Stone for Christmas which you don't plan on using, trade it with me for a kilo of loose leaf tea. I hope you like rooibos.

Good morning is my favorite love song, And I will wait to see you again so that I can sing it in your ear, and know that your day won't get any better until you see me again. I love you.

I realize, that any time I'm angry, there's something wrong with me. I need to start performing a daily spot check to see if I've been a crappy human being. I also need to be able to tell people that I'm sorry when I've done them wrong, And I need to be willing to forgive, a whole lot faster than I have been. It would also benefit me to start inviting more people to church. Perhaps, my enemies.

In Virginia...

Being planted in a single place has been very hard to do over the past 6 months. The process of actually finding a place to root for a while couldn't have been possible without the help of several, beautiful, people. Especially the Ewings, the McNeals and the Enfingers. There's nothing trite about saying that we wouldn't have been able to make it to where we are without the help of those around us. It is by the grace of God through you that we are able to continue here in Virginia and I am finally coming to peace with how, even as I've tried to see it otherwise, we are without control over what happens next.

So what's happened? We're currently living with my mother and step-father in Virginia. While we've been happily adjusting to the community lifestyle that they've graciously extended to us, I'm in awe over how little they expect. The offer that they made was as simple as could be expected, but the implications that society provides us for accepting are even more perplexing. We're in need, but we are given a second chance to establish ourselves in America, and we will pursue this opportunity in as much as God will allow us to remain.

Kristen has been blessed with a job as a private nanny for a very kind family near home, I have resumed my studies at a local community college for pre-nursing. Her relationships are growing and my grades are remarkable. What's more is that we've become involved with a great Nazarene Church that's given us a wide-armed reception into the community. We're deeply involved with some of the ministries, including an outreach to the homeless known as Helping Hands. I'm so excited about the chance to become involved with missions as well! The pastor says that he will support our call into ministry, I pray that if our situation is related to coming closer to God, then that it will make itself more pressing. Today I'm happy with where we're at, which is not something I felt in December. I can already tell that it's going to be difficult removing ourselves from the area when the time comes, but hopefully no time soon.

I'll be better at keeping in touch than I ever have been.

I love you, thank you for believing in us. Thank you for not compromising yourselves.

Buckle up Religiously

Driving through the county there's a catholic church that has this sign posted on the side of the road. I guess the first thing that popped into my mind is, since when did driving cars ever get connected to religion? The yo-yo effect kept going until I made further connections of doing things religiously: watching TV, brushing teeth, maintaining the garden, drinking; activities when done religiously should happen all the time. Right?

I come back to religion, and I keep interpreting it as 'dedicated'. So what am I dedicated to? I guess I can be religious about buckling my seat belt. But that's just something I grew up learning to do so that I don't all-of-a-sudden die; there's nothing more important than keeping your body on one side of the windshield when a bear runs into the middle of the road.



Lots of people talk about having a relationship with Christ while not being a big fan of religion; Jesus was great, but the people that follow him kind of suck.

I don't want to be controlled by a group of people who say "if you want to be part of us, this is what you have to be".

or

There's nothing for me in a system that tells me I have to stop doing the things I like.

To do something religiously entails that you're dedicated to an activity. I'm religious to the computer; I'm not so religious about washing my hair or tithing.
I know that there are things that I should be more religious about; small things like not biting my nails and big things like serving my community. There's a lot of good things that come from being religious and the whole world will tell us which are the best to dedicate ourselves to: health, happiness, wealth, sex, so forth.

Anything and everything that you dedicate your time and energy to will grow. No exceptions.

The forethought comes from thinking about which kind of fruit you want to nurture. The things that you show the most dedication to will end up being the things that you are most associated with.

For myself, there are pitfalls everywhere that tell me that I'm the most important thing in the world. I'm still trying to unlearn this. I know that with certain pastors, certain people who have seen the light, there is another way. They tell me about Jesus, the guy who didn't dedicate himself to money or sleep; He's a guy I could really get behind and follow.

There are hundreds of people around you searching for that same vane of selflessness as they seek God. Be religious about Christ and if you want to find them, he'll bring them to you.

But also, seat belts help; Flossing is a good habit as well.

Making Centerpieces

With my wedding coming up in August, the hassles associated with getting the day done are ever mounting. One of the biggest that I should be ashamed about getting so excited about are the center pieces. Leave it to my fiance to come up with the idea, but put that project at my disposal. Since our colors are pink and brown, there was only one sensible things to do:
MAKE
ORCHID
TREES.

Ingredients include the following:
A faggot, obtainable from your nearest forest;

A bunch of plastic orchids;

Sultry glue;

and ~25 flower vases depending on the population at your reception;



So for the next 24 hours, yours truly is connecting A to B and C. Victory pictures t.b.p.