.simply complicated.

today i blogged here about peru... about my thoughts on simplicity... about how i'd like to live my life more like they do in developing countries.

.happy birthday to my best.

i am so grateful to have gotten to be with one of my best friends in peru on her birthday :) we celebrated well.

friday night was a "chicken & wine" dinner and birthday cake at the house with all the kiddos. turns out thyme doesn't quite translate literally & it was a little spicy for the birthday girl, but we loved the night anyhow.



someone was a little bit sad when her birthday cake was gone & the party was over :)

saturday night was girls night out - stephanie (a friend sarah met here in peru), sarah & i went out to an AMAZING restaurant that is set in these old ruins. we. loved. it. everything about it. the food, the lava cake, the sangria, the ambiance, the asking for ice 12 times, every bit of it :)

.spanglish debaucle.

i'm en route to Peru to see some of my faves. i did a little blog action from the costa rican airport over here.

.lessons from weeds.

our culture tends to categorize things: beautiful, ugly; worthy, worthless; significant, insignificant. i had a profound moment today... with the weeds in my backyard. no, i'm not kidding. we've had quite a bit of rain this spring and now that the sun's finally found its way to santa barbara again, my backyard is growing. growing with things that are "unwelcome" by anyone's standards. things that you look at and go, "man, i wish i had the time to get rid of that stuff because weeds are just useless and annoying." you've all been there... don't lie.

i walked outside and saw the weeds this morning. i walked past them once and made the above comment in my head. i walked past them a second time and stopped. i saw them differently. i saw significance and i saw beauty and i thought, "how awesome is our God that He even chose to make weeds beautiful. He could have made them brown and twig-like and spiky, but he didn't (unless your talking about the Texas type - tumble weeds, but disregard those for the value of this post, thanks). i thought about this as i went about my day today & was grateful for a Creator who loves his creation enough to make beauty out of something we so often deem useless. and then i was done with it. i was going to keep this picture in my mind and move on.
and then i was on the phone telling the story a little later and one of my favorite people said back to me - "i don't think God sees weeds as useless or insignificant. they are beautiful to Him." wow. so true. if all of creation was made to glorify him, then that includes weeds. he made those "annoying" little pests to glorify himself and you know what? they are beautiful. and because he made people and we're his favorite, we are to enjoy the creation he deems beautiful. so what did i do next? this...
i took that creation that we often label as ugly, annoying and insignificant and i brought it into my world and it brightened up my home. i am grateful to love and serve a God that values weeds and that values me when i see myself as a weed or even when i'm acting like a weed. i'm glad He knows how to make beauty out of ashes and continues to do that in my life, making me significant, worthy and beautiful only because of how good He is.

.fit.

I want to start.
I want to find.
I want to know
where you go to hide.
Cause I'm out of breath,
my wind is gone.
Running with fear
of being alone.

'Cause you really want
to settle the truth.
Let me be the one to
offer you proof

Oh how you fit me
Oh how you do
but know that you own me
ahead over you
and oh how it hit me
caught a bruise
despite all these cynical lies
I finally found a piece to fit
In my life

I was adrift
out on my own.
You came along
and carried me home.
Cause you are a star,
a distant headlight.
I can't stop my eyes
from keeping you insight.
I'm not looking for a broken excuse
but I need you now to comfort my wounds.

Oh how you fit me
Oh how you do
you know that you own me
ahead over you
and oh how it hit me
caught a bruise
despite all these cynical lies
I finally found a piece to fit

'Cause I've made it alone
a fading sun
look at what I've become
and my eyes were drunk
until you came along
in a world that's quite confused
you're the only absolute

Oh how you fit me
Oh how you do
you know that you own me
ahead over you
and oh how it hit me
caught a bruise
despite all these cynical lies

Oh how you fit me
Oh how you do
but know that you own me
ahead over you
and oh how it hit me
abound over you
despite all these cynical lies
I finally found a piece to fit
In my life

I finally found a piece to fit
In my life

i won't settle for anything less than this. i believe in being with someone i don't want to do life without. someone who just fits. my grandparents are proof that it's possible.

thanks, jeremy lister for writing this little ditty and for helping me believe. i just know God's got great things in store.

.vision of splendor - backdrop of squalor.

today i blogged here about haiti... i have a feeling this blogging about haiti thing is long from over :)

www.sendmeusemechangeme.blogspot.com/2011/04/vision-of-splendor-backdrop-of-squalor.html