Tuesday, February 25

Setting Souls on Fire


Do you ever hear or read something that simply lights your soul on fire? That rekindles that spark that you just realize in that moment has went out without you ever even realizing it? That speaks to the heart of your spirit and you say quietly to yourself, "Ah! I remember now. That's why I was born, that's why I'm doing what I'm doing." And in nothing more than a second your being is awakened, and it's so strange because you were only vaguely aware that it was asleep. It happened for me. I watched this video while sitting alone in my apartment and began sobbing. I've felt these things before, but I haven't for a really long time. And listening to this beautiful woman speak about what music is for her rekindled my soul. I'm so excited to practice. I'm excited to go to my Music History class and my rehearsals. I am so infinitely blessed to have music in my life. 

Wednesday, February 19

Worry Less



Remember back in the day when I used to do "outfit posts"? Well you can all be grateful that I don't do those anymore because something like this is my basic daily outfit, just swapping out the shorts for leggings when I have to go out into the world. There's just something about wearing workout shorts that makes my soul really happy, maybe it's because of my recent obsession with running and I wear them daily for a few hours anyways. The running has been magnificent, and yesterday I ran my longest distance and quickest 10k time: 8 miles in 69 minutes. Not too shabby. The running thing has just been the best thing that I've been doing this semester. Last semester felt so stressful and I had no way to just release my stress, but running daily has really helped to keep me sane. Even though I detest running on a treadmill I'm so grateful to be in an environment that allows me run even on the coldest of days. When my day is too stressful for me to handle all I need are my running shoes and I'm ready to go. 

Monday, February 17

It's The Little Things...

... like being able to slow my day down so that I can have a good breakfast. 
Most days I don't do that. I have an 8 AM class M/W/F and usually wake up, get dressed, brew myself a cup of coffee and leave. But on Tuesday and Thursday I try to slow myself down and eat something nutritious and take some time to read The Good Book. 

Wednesday, February 12

Let's Talk About Love

And, I don't just mean the lovey-dovey kind of love. I mean, true, real, unconditional love. Love between friends. Romantic love. Love of family. 
I think I've learned more this school year about love than I have in all of my previous years combined. I've learned about what it means to love people for where they're at and for who they are, especially when you're not overjoyed about where they're at and who they are at a particular moment. I've learned that if you're romantically committed to someone it's completely necessary to be understanding and supportive, because that may just be the best way to show them that you love them. I've learned that sometimes showing love means doing dishes. Like, gross dishes. Love, the true stuff, means that sometimes you'll be inconvenienced so that life is easier for the person you're loving. Love means giving your roommate your last two eggs. I've learned that love is patient, and kind, and everything else that 1 Corinthians 13 says. I've learned that love does not equal physically being near the person you love, therefore love does not mean kissing and hugging and cuddling. I've learned that loving someone means being positive and nurturing in tough situations, even if the situation seems bleak in the moment. Love is boundless. Love, true love, isn't so much about having really happy feelings, but more about trying to bless someone else. Loving someone isn't about me. Loving someone is about them. Because, there will be days when the person you're investing in is in a bad mood and that certainly doesn't feel good. There are messy feelings when people are involved, and if loving people was about good feelings we'd all be out of luck. Loving someone is about trying to make their life better because you see them as someone who is totally worth the effort, because it will take effort. A lot of effort. 

We love because he first loved us. -1 John 4:19

Wednesday, February 5

Who Are You When I'm Not Looking?

 As I've mentioned probs a million times, I really enjoy getting to know bloggers. I like reading things that are facts about them because it makes me feel as if I know them as people a little bit more. Like more than just there thoughts and, you know, useless information about their daily lives and beliefs. I just like knowing random meaningless facts. So here are 25 meaningless facts about yours truly:


1. Do you have a middle name?
I do! If you've browsed through my very old blog posts you'll see that I actually used to go by my middle name on this little blog. If you haven't creeped on me like that, my middle name is Lauren. It's after my great (or is great-great?) grandfather: Laurence. 
2. What was your favorite subject in school?I'm one of those really annoying people who liked school a lot, and continue to like school. I would say growing up my favorite subject was probably Literature, unless we want to count my piano lessons. Now, I would definitely say my favorite "subject" is any of my Music Theory classes. It's so interesting to know why music works the way it does. 
 3. What's your favorite drink?I feel like I simply love drinks. I love a good cup of coffee. And Cherry Pepsi. And Coke. And Green Tea. And water. And Gatorade. 
4. What's your favorite song at the moment?
This is the hardest question anyone could ever ask me. I guess I would say that currently it's "Strong Enough" by Matthew West. But it's pretty much ever changing. 
5. What would you name your children?I pray that I never have a little girl, not only because I don't think I could handle a little girl but also because I can't think of any good names. But I know that my first son is going to be named Samuel David. It's been set for basically ever. I also really want to name a little boy Finnegan, but Hunter want's nothing of that. 
6. Do you participate in any sports?As a kid I did gymnastics for around 10 years, and I currently run a lot if that counts. 
7. What's your favorite book? Probably the Fault in Our Stars by John Green. Which sounds totally cliche, but in my defense, I've been in love with John Green for years and I liked it before it became popular. Which also makes me sound like a pathetic hipster, but whatever. 
8. What's your favorite color?Everyone I know is surprised when I say this, but my favorite color is definitely blue. It's only surprising because I have pink everything, and pink definitely is a close second, but I really love blue! It's such a pretty, calming color. 
9. What's your favorite animal?

A giraffe. Go figure, right? 
10. What's your favorite perfume?
I don't really experiment much with perfume, but I love the body spray "Love Spell" by Victoria's Secret. 
11. What's your favorite holiday?I honestly love Halloween. I mean, I love Christmas and Easter and all those holidays, but I just have such a good time with Halloween. I just think it's so important to have a holiday that's based around imagination and pretending. I don't know. 

12. Have you graduated from High School?
I graduated from high school two years ago, how crazy is that?
13. Have you been out of the country?I've been to Canada a few times, but no where else. BUT! In the spring of 2015 I'm hoping to go to Spain so that should be exciting. 
14. Do you speak any other languages?I learned French in high school, and I've even sung in French but I don't really know it.
 15. Do you have any siblings?I have two younger sisters. They're wonderful and crazy. 

16. What's your favorite store?
I'm not sure if I have a favorite store. I like going to Target, and I like going to most book stores. 17.What's your favorite restaurant?My favorite restaurant when I'm home is this place called The Depot. They have this delicious deep fried cauliflower that I'm absolutely in love with. 

18. Do you like school? 
I, for the most part, really enjoy school. I'm a big learner and I like having something to do and learn constantly. School sometimes annoys me, just because of homework and how long it takes for me to get the degree that I ultimately want, but for the most part I absolutely adore it.19. Who are some of your favorite Bloggers?This list could definitely go on forever and forever, but recently I've really loved Yuni. She's a really sweet girl who actually did my new blog design for me! I also really love keeping up with Abbi and am obsessed with Elaine's new hair and her absolutely perfect baby boy. 

20. What's your favorite movie? She's the Man is always at the top of my list, but I also love Mulan and The Help. 
21. What are some of your favorite TV shows?My ultimate favorite TV show ever is Parks & Recreation. Amy Poehler just gets me. I also am a huge Pretty Little Liars fan, and crappy television like Teen Mom.
22. PC or Mac?Mac all the way!  

23. What phone do you have?
I have a beautiful little iPhone. Typical, right? I just really cannot talk enough about how much I just genuinely love Apple products. I just feel like they're so easy for the common person to use, and I'm so happy to be able to use mine. Plus they're gorgeous. 
24. How tall are you?I'm a gigantic 4'10".
 25. Any pets? 
I have a dog, a collie, named Sophie and a cat named Mercy. I also have a horse, Sierra. 


P.S. This photo was taken by my wonderful roommate, Lauren of Lauren Anne Photography. If you're in the Columbus or Mishawaka area you should definitely give her a look! She takes beautiful photos of everything from Seniors to mini Easter Sessions and Engagement Sessions. Check her out!