green and gracious

-Water reflecting bright green, shimmering trees.

-A lovely homemade Indian dinner with Ruata, Nutie and their children. They are always so gracious, and the food is amazing. I really love eating with my hands.

-I picked a large bright green clover outside, and was sad to see that it was already beginning to wilt last night. This morning, though, it woke up with me, and is full and open again.

i've got mail

An email special:

-Getting sent this picture of my adorable niece smiling.

-Hearing that my cousin Bonnie (I have awesome cousins) won 5 gold medals at her regional track meet--winning in all 5 of her events.

-Receiving a very encouraging email regarding future plans. God's moving.

pj's, open, success

-New pajamas. I've slept in a mismatched t-shirt/pants combo since I was probably 6, and decided that, at 26, it was finally time to own a matching set of pj's. I got some really simple soft white cotton pj's, and they feel like extra sheets when I'm sleeping. Needless to say, I've been sleeping great.

-My World Christianity prof telling us that our (notorious) final exam is now open book/notes. Talk about grace! You could literally feel weight being lifted off all of the shoulders in the room.

-Successfully eating with chopsticks. I love thai food, and I've tried to do this for a long time. For some reason, last night it worked.

done, ritual, brighter

-A really productive day.

-Going to lunch with Paula to her favorite pizza place, and having her explain the lunch special to me and what she normally gets. I just ordeded the exact same thing, and was happy to be joining in her little ritual.

-Last week, I picked white flowers off of the bushes outside to put in vases around my apartment, and didn't think they could get prettier. This week, bushes are blooming with coral-colored flowers, and they look even prettier brightening up my apartment.

amen, hello, play

-Listening to Ben Harper's song "Amen Omen." It's incredible. It lulled me into active daydreaming and deep thoughts.

-Having a friend yell hello to me as I was walking outside, and searching around for where the voice came from. It turned out it was Jessi, sitting under a tree reading on a blanket. I enjoyed a little chat sitting on her blanket.

-The same (I think) tiny squirrel I see every morning playing outside my window.

prize inside

-Reading my horoscope (I know, I know) and it telling me that I was going to have a wonderful day. It might be self-fulfilling prophecy, but I did.

-Craving popcorn and discovering an old care package with Cracker Jack in it. Yum!

-A relaxing evening at home.

one love

-Having Bob Marley smile at me with his "one love" message as I drove past.

-Being called to visit someone in the hospital and realizing just how valuable working as a hospital chaplain is to my ministry.

-How talking with a friend makes everything make more sense.

now and again

-Ending up next to a Welsh man in the pub and having a wonderful conversation about everything from the hospitality of Ireland to the crisis of poverty in Africa. My favorite part was halfway through our conversation when it came up that I was training to be a minister, and he said, "Really! You always think ministers are really different, but I guess they're just like everybody else."

-Being invited to go to Martinis & Imax with Lynn and Arch and Pat. We saw a beautiful film about India, and then as I was leaving, I heard from other friends that they were going to a late movie, so I had a double header! What a great Friday night.

-Weather warm enough for me to work on my sermon outside on a blanket under the trees.

eyes open

-Looking up from working on my sermon outside and suddenly noticing that all of the trees had burst into leaves. It's amazing what we miss that's right before our eyes.

-Having ladies from church over for breakfast because they were coming to campus for Come See Columbia Day. We enjoyed coffee, tea, peach croissants, blueberry muffins, fresh fruit, and of course, wonderful conversation. I told them all about the fair trade tea and coffee I served, and now they are going to look into serving and selling fair trade coffee at church. Woohoo!

-Working on a sermon and reaching the point where I'm flooded by ideas and thoughts. It feels almost like an adrenaline rush.

under my umbrella, ella, ella...

-Having Northern Ireland come up in both of my classes yesterday, without me bringing it up. It somehow related to both Old Testament theology and ethics. It was great to hear people talking about the place I love so much.

-Walking in the rain under my new clear umbrella. I love this umbrella--it's bell shaped and clear with a black pattern of birds and trees on it. It's a whimsical way to stay dry.

-Having my good friend Claire in town, and enjoying catching up over a glass of wine.

a backyard adventure

-A last morning at home before heading back to Atlanta. Lured by the light streaming in the french doors from the backyard, I took my coffee and walked around. I loved the light coming through the trees, and the cool morning breeze.

-The smell of honeysuckle. There's nothing like it. I'll never be too old to gingerly pull out the stamens to trap a delicious drop of honey to eat.

-This is Zulu. I know, he looks pretty mean, but he's actually quite friendly. Zulu is an African guinea that my parents own (mostly so he can eat all of the garden pests). I had a great time building trust with Zulu, and getting him to come closer and closer as I fed him. His face takes some getting used to, but his intricate grey and white spots are mesmerizing.

strength in numbers

-The delicious taste of fruit crumble topped with vanilla ice cream. The cinnamony crunch, warm fruit and cool ice cream was delicious.

-There's something powerful about hanging out with my mom, sister and niece. Having three generations of women in one place is just comforting and empowering.

-Sitting on the beach, feeling the warm breeze and reading a book (for fun, not school) and looking out on the grey-teal ocean stretching as far as the eye can see.

she's gorgeous!

happy birth day!

I'm an Aunt! Natalie Sofia Patranella was born today, and I can't wait to meet her very soon. I am so thankful to God for such a gift of grace. This day will always be a reminder of God's grace in her.

hi honey

-Sitting outside with Katy and Will on a blanket and enjoying the spring weather. We also enjoyed red wine and crackers topped with asiago cheese and acacia honey. It was a messy, delicious and refreshing time.

-Breakfast with Song, where we both gushed about our dream futures and plans, and discussed how great it would be to both meet up in Korea at some point in our lives.

-Wearing my grandmother's earrings, and feeling somehow more connected with my family.

stretch, strong, sky

-A good stretch after a great night's sleep.

-Feeling really empowered.

-A pink and purple evening sky.