Anything Could Happen

Anything Could Happen is the title of one of Ellie Goulding's new songs. I am a fan. Today I have been talking a lot about decision making. Laura this morning during our coffee date asked me how I made decisions and I went through the process that my brain went through in making decisions- ultimately knowing that God is sovereign. I continued to talk about various upcoming decisions with Steven and Kim. In all reality...anything could happen. The two big(ish) decisions that are on my mind are Reslife for next year...and what to do this summer. I know both of those things seem far away.. but yet they need to be decided on somewhat soonish. Next year...really anything could happen. Amazing things or things that make me want to run away.. I dont know. But one thing that remains constant is Kimberly.

This pretty new blog is props to that wonderful lady. I am so thankful for her. I don't say it enough. When I think about next year there are a lot of potential changes...but I know I will have my sweet Kimbo Slice. We are in this college thing together. I know that next year we will go on bike rides, we will have weekly dates, we will talk about blogs, and she will know me better than most people. For that I am so thankful.

Restoration

There is something in me that has developed recently. I don't think I have always been like this. I love to look at old things and think about what they were like in their prime or what they could be if they were restored. I have always been into finding potential...potential in people, potential in activities, in plans etc. I think that it has to do a lot with my maximizer strength. Things might be good but I want to find a way to make them great. I do this in relationships and in plans that I make. However, now I find myself doing it more with old homes, places, pieces of furniture.

Last year I was invited into a secret. There is an abandoned house on campus and it had a huge open yard, a beautiful tree covered drive way, a garage and out building. It looked like it would have been absolutely incredible during its prime. It is off on a part of campus that most people do not even know the school owns. More recently I came to know that there were 3 houses all in that same area that were all abandoned and the university owned them all. That yard became and escape for me. I was a way for me to retreat from campus. I didn't have to drive, I could be outside, it was beautiful, it was my little piece of heaven. There were times when I would bring my quilt, my homework, and other times when Katie and I would just go sit on the porch and talk till the sun went down. I would dream about what it would be like to fix the house up and one day live there. My most recent dream was to fix it up and live in it with 6 other ladies for my senior year. Just this week Mary and I had a few minutes to spare and wanted to soak up the weather so to that lawn we went. I was laying in the sunshine thanking Jesus for such a beautiful spot.

Here is Mary doing homework on the lawn on a beautiful fall afternoon.

Tonight my world was rocked. Ben and I were having dinner and he asked if I wanted to stop by the abandoned house (I swear it is not as creepy as it sounds). I said of course! As we drove past my hand covered my mouth and I gasped. Gone. The two smaller houses were leveled and the main house was all torn up. Definitely dream crushing. The yard is now filled with tire tracks. Broken glass and gutters cover the yard around the house. Ben had seen it earlier in the week and knew I would want to know.

There use to be houses here

Thankfully Ben had the great idea and asked if I would want a brick or a piece of wood from the house. For sure I did. So I picked a brick and some wood that I want to paint inspirational things on. So look out for that. Change is hard.

On another note there was a place I visited this summer that I never blogged about. It was an old insane asylum and had been abandoned for years. However, recently someone had caught a vision. They were turning it in to a whole community. The were creating incredible apartments with stunning hardwood floors, crazy cool spaces, and exposed brick and stone. They are getting cute stores and restaurants to move in etc. It was like a college campus but no college part. Talk about a dream! How awesome would it be to move here with a bunch of friends and live in close community? You just have to get over the fact that crazies use to walk the halls.

Ultimately I think I am drawn to these things because Christ is drawn to these kinds of things. He takes us, old, worn down, gross, weird pasts included..and makes us new. He repurposes our lives. He makes beautiful things out of us (as some songs might say). I feel so lucky to have a God with a crazy creative mind who pursues us and never stops working on renewing us.

Fall Break Review

Well it happened. Fall break came and went. I guess thats how it happens. It seems like this distant idea and before you know it...bam..its already done and gone. Anyways. I drove to and from the Chicagoland area with my friend Josh. He is always a joy to be around. We sang, talked, laughed. It was very restful to be at home. Naps happened. Good food happened. Sweet runs with my Dad happened.

 Here are some recaps via iPhone pictures.

The new Taylor Swift album came out. Red. Big fan. So I got to jam to that on the way home.

I introduced my mom to Bien Trucha. What a gem they both are (my mom and Bien Trucha).

I spent a good amount of time with these things.. books and hot drinks. 

 We love our Egg Harbor. It was a beautiful day, so we did not mind waiting outside. 

Oh my sweet sweet brother. 

iPhone pics

How did I remember what happened in my life before I had pictures on my phone? I swear in just a few short years my brain will be mush. This weekend I told a few stories where I referenced my phone to show pictures to support the stories. Now, as I look to post in my blog I had to go get my phone to look back at picture to see what has been going on in this crazy adventure of mine.

It has been great. Adventures are often occurring here in this college life I am lucky to live. So let me tell you the recent story via iPhone photos.

Kim and I went to Panera this Sunday to get homework done. She went to an incredible conference this weekend so I got to hear all about it! We also stopped by Target and that is never a bad idea. 

This Saturday was Beckett Hall day away! What a blessing! We spend the day relaxing, talking, drinking coffee, roasting marshmallows (sneaking away to buy brats with Emily), taking pictures, etc. It is one of my favorite days of the year. 

This Friday we went to a corn maze and then pursued pumpkin carving like it was our job. I am so grateful. It fulfilled a lot of my fall desires. Not to mention we also got Starbucks that night where I was delighted by a carmel apple spice. So just to recap..friends..corn maze..crisp fall evening..fire.. Starbucks..pumpkin carving. What's not to love?

Ben and I took it as our mission to harvest the pumpkin seeds. "No seed left behind." This was a two day process. We baked them and created various flavors. They are a hit. 

I have adventures during the week as well. I just don't take pictures as often. This is the longest that I have ever gone without going home. This weekend that streak will end. It'll be weird. Hopefully I will blog. 

Jesus is teaching me a lot about control vs. surrender... control vs. wisdom...I am thankful.