welcome back :)

I realize that a lot of people (and by that I mean the 6 that were reading it…hi mom:) have probably given up on our blog. There were those few weeks after our last post that you checked in to see if anything new had been posted…nope. And after about a month and a half you probably just stopped checking. A small part of me experiences a certain kind of freedom in that realization. I could probably write almost anything and chances are no ones gonna read it for a very long time. A lot has happened over the past 5 months since I have stopped posting. Nothing monumental…just some growing pains, some funny stories, and some special moments. As I reflect on the pictures that rush to my mind, these are some key memories that emerge:

Making a coffee table with dad.
Lots of time in airports.
Snow.
Skiing with my new favorite ski buddy Shmem.
Mid-day chats with mom.
Sitting on the couch reading for hours upon hours.
Bears football.
Watching my sister live in a world that I remember so well, and making it her own.
Class.
Forming new friendships w/ Whitney, Nicole, Brent, Jen and others.
Resurging old friendships.
Snow.
Make-your-own-pizza night.
Loving Dallas (the girl not the city) even more than I already did.
Facebook.
Midterms and Finals.
Snow.
Being forced to redefine “home”.
Doing life in a very beautiful place.
Saying hello and goodbye to my grandpa for what felt like the last time.
Kenya, Uganda and Sudan.
Discovering that Rocky is so much more than a boxer with a low IQ.
Snow.
Being played the fool and forced to dig into a part of me that was uncharted territory.
J. Crew.
A new found phone date with Monica.
Learning a little more about what community is and what it takes.
Becoming more and more ok with myself.
Mark never ceasing to amaze me with his patience, humility, and kindness.

They’re just snapshots but they represent a life. A life that, by the grace of God, is being lived. I look 5 years ahead and the uncertainty is so scary. I look 5 months behind and I see the growth, the friends, and the experiences that I deeply long for but don’t even know how to pray for. And for that, in this moment, at this second, I am very thankful. Period.

ok, back to studying…