A Little Catch Up.

Clearly, it's been far too long since I've updated on my blog. My fault. Life got busy and life get away from me. I guess that's okay because not being here to write about life means I was out there living it. And that's okay with me.

So, where do I start? The wedding was beautiful. It was beautiful day filled with beautiful people. My sister, Bethany, is one of those people who you can't help but love because she is just mush when it comes to emotions, and after living with her in the same room for 17 years you know something about each other. The day of the wedding, she was completely calm...totally unlike herself. Yes, B, I said that. But you know it's true. It was raining all morning and for an outdoor wedding that can prove to be problematic. But even when David called and said that we might have to move the wedding indoors she sighed and said, "okay, we'll just have to work with what we have." I almost shook her to wake her up, but soon realized this calmness would work in my favor. So I did a little internal freaking out about the weather and then kept helping her with her make-up. The day was filled with taking too many pictures (1,243 to be exact) and dancing until I couldn't feel my toes. Seriously, taking my shoes off was the problem because as soon as I did the feeling came back. So I just left them on. Don't worry, sensation came back yesterday (again...seriously). So all in all the wedding was a beautiful picture of what happens when two highschoolers fall in love and work to make it work. They're happily wedded now and I finally have the big brother I've always wanted. :)

That was Saturday. Monday I moved back to Chicago! It was a super fast turn-around, but I don't think I could have left home if I wasn't pressed by the rush of everything. Home was just so good over the summer; it was filled with sweet times and savory memories. I miss it every day. But Chicago and Moody and everything that comes in that combination is wonderful as well (except for the part where my car broke down five miles outside of the city...that part was not so wonderful). We went on RA retreat at this little retreat center called Camp Beachpoint in MI. It's this beautiful little place on a lake where we canoed and tubed and swam and played volleyball and bonded and learned about leadership and prepared for the coming year. I cherish my many memories at Beachopoint, since I've been privalaiged to go the last three years on leadership reatreat. We were given long periods of time for solitude and I took a canoe out every morning but one to watch the sun ruse over the lake with my Jesus. It was precious.

Now, I'm back on campus and yesterday my new students arrived on my floor! They're just great, to be honest. Though we don't know each other well yet I am confident about putting that "yet" in the sentence. There's a whole year in front of us to spend growing and changing and learning together. There's something about Moody community that is different, something unlike anything I've ever been a part of before. And I'm excited to embark on my last year here...it's gunna be a good one.

My theme for the floor this year is "Loved: knowing we are loved and finding all the ways He tells us". I chose that because every time I asked God what He wanted to communicate to Nine North this year the response I sensed in my spirit was, "Tell them that I love them and that I want to be with them." That was all well and good until I realized that I didn't know how to do that myself. So this was a summer of leaning that, of learning to find and read the hidden messages of His love for me that He sends to me throughout the day. I day "hidden" not because He sends them secretly or subtly, but because they often get lost in the other things I think are so important in my day...homework, relationships, keeping up an image, you know. So I prayed that He would help me see those messages and He honored that prayer. He's always communicating His love to me! His love notes are everywhere! Today He told me through a free cup of coffee at Starbucks and a significant purchase that went well and a stoned man on the street and a song played so gently it could have made me cry. His love notes are everywhere...

So that's the last two weeks of life. Crazy. Wonderful. Full. Thanks, Jesus. I love you, too.