la familia

Choosing Ole Miss was by far one of the best decisions I have made and will ever make in my life, but as far as family time is concerned, it had some disadvantages.  All of our family on Dad's side is in New Jersey, and Mom's family is in Kentucky, North Carolina, and Chicago, with random second cousins and great aunts on both sides scattered through Ohio.  It's hard for us to see each other as much as we would like, and with me spending the last 4 years in Oxford, I missed out on some family reunions here and there.  To be honest, it was getting a little out of control - I hadn't seen my cousins on Mom's side for YEARS.  But we made up for it this weekend when Aunt Laura, Uncle Eric, Kayla and Corbin all came to visit Wilmore.

Kayla just finished her freshman year at UNC Charlotte, and Corbin will be a high school sophomore this fall.  They are awesome, and we soaked up the time together with late night chats, spontaneous drives, storytelling, and YouTube video watching. 

No matter that I was at Ole Miss and Kayla's at UNCC.  Laura's at the Bury now and Corbin still has a couple years to decide.  Whether we are personally Asburians or not, we gotta pay tribute to the family heritage.

So thankful for time with these two.

The only problem with the quality bonding time is that now it will make me miss them even more than before!  But we're working on another reunion as quickly as possible - maybe at Passion this winter, or time in Maine, or a random meet-halfway-road-trip.  We'll figure it out somehow.  In the meantime, I am thankful for the time we had together to catch up, encourage each other spiritually, laugh hysterically, and simply be.

video clip of the day

Longer update on what's been going on in good old Wilmore, Kentucky later, but meantime, this is sure to make you smile.  Scott Avett singing, much to the dismay of his precious little girl:

One day she will realize how lucky she is to hear him serenade her in the living room whenever she likes.  But for now, to her, he is just like any other dad and she is just like any other daughter.  And that is enough.

Happy Tuesday to you, until next time.

summertime and the living is easy

The nice thing about summer Saturdays - at least for me, now that I'm back at home and my main job is to "rest" before law school starts - is that they are essentially a free for all.  The morning does have a bit of rhythm - wake up, hot tea, porch swing, Bible, rescue the kitten from a tree (true story, did that today), write letters to brothers and sisters, etc.  But then?  I am blessed and get to essentially do whatever for the rest of the day. 

So for this summer Saturday?  I spent the last hour or so making homemade strawberry jam.  Currently it is thickening; I'm crossing my fingers it turned out well, because there is a lot of it, and I would love it if this afternoon took care of my entire next year's worth of PB&Js.  If this worked out, next stop = blueberry jam.  Or peach maybe.  While I am not that into canning (I'm still too young for that, right?), I am determined to take advantage of this good summer fruit while I can.

And speaking of fruit...

via

Good call, Twain.  Just a bit of Saturday afternoon brain food for you.  Enjoy the weekend while you can, because it's summertime and the living is easy.

summer spontaneity

What could be better than a summer trip to Birmingham to celebrate Katherine's off-night from DeSoto?  Complete with shopping at the Summit, Target, Whole Foods, coffee shops, a lot of hilarious/serious talk, and a spontaneous trip to this place - Steel City Pops.  A shop that sells only popsicles, and some really cool flavors at that:

[Lacey - Avocado, Anna - Sweet Tea, me - Mango, and Kat - Hibiscus]

Getting to spend time with these girls was the perfect mid-summer adventure.  It is potentially going to be a long time before we get to be together again, but it was such a huge blessing to get the little bit of time that we did.  I just love these people, and I think I speak for everyone when I say we left feeling incredibly refreshed and excited for what the future holds, even if it means we'll be apart for a while.  Shout out to Birmingham for being an awesome place, too.  I could definitely see myself liking living there.

But looks like I have my own city to figure out - I'm headed to Kentucky on Monday where I will hopefully finally really and truly learn my way around Lexington.  Until then, just packing up and saying final goodbyes in Oxford.  It doesn't feel real, but I think I am ready.  Regardless, this overnight summer reunion was the perfect way to wrap up June.

the new men

I can't get this passage out of my head lately.  I am continually struck by the simple fact that in a room full of people, even a room full of believers, some are different.  Some stand out more than all the rest, but not because of anything they do.  Simply because of who (or whose, maybe) they are.  I've thought about this a lot this semester - how Enoch walked with God, so much so that he didn't even die, the Lord just took him up to Himself (Genesis 5:21-24).  Something about Enoch was different.

Leave it to C.S. Lewis to put into words perfectly that which I can never seem to:

        Already the new men are dotted here and there all over the earth.  Every now and then one meets them.  Their very voices and faces are different from ours; stronger, quieter, happier, more radiant.  They begin where most of us leave off.  They are, I say, recognizable; but you must know what to look for.  They will not be very like the idea of “religious people” which you have formed from your general reading.  They do not draw attention to themselves.  You tend to think that you are being kind to them when they are really being kind to you.  They love you more than other men do, but they need you less... 

        They will usually seem to have a lot of time: you will wonder where it comes from.  When you have recognized one of them, you will recognize the next one much more easily.  And I strongly suspect (but how should I know?) that they recognize one another immediately and infallibly, across every barrier or colour, sex, class, age, and even of creeds.  In that way, to become holy is rather like joining a secret society.  To put it at the very lowest, it must be great fun…  [C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity, "The New Men"]

Read the rest here.

Thankful for the "new men" I have been blessed to encounter - several this weekend during my time in Jackson - and hoping to continually live a life that looks more and more like Mr. Lewis's description.  More and more like Enoch.  

More and more like Christ.