ummm...can you keep singing....like, for forever?!

i love music. i love listening to people that can sing their little hiney's off. and i especially love listening to powerhouse women that sing their little hiney's off. and tonight, glee indulged one of my very favorite things by providing an INCREDIBLE duet by these two women above: lea michele and the wonderfully talented idina menzel.

you may recognize idina from the original cast of 'rent' as well as the movie cast. she also originated the role of elphaba in 'wicked', winning a tony award for best female actress in a musical. told you. talented. plus, the woman is married to taye diggs. come on.

often when listening to songs like this one, i find myself wanting to somehow crawl into the song and let the melodies swirl all around me. i love the harmonies, the deep vocal tones that come from a woman in complete control of her voice, and the ownership a woman displays when she is rockin' it...and she knows it. absolutely love it and could sit and watch someone like one of these two women sing all the live-long day.

so thank you, glee. you just keep letting idina and lea sing like that. i'll keep watching as long as you put that on television.

give it a listen...

the change continued...

continued from the post below...

I had gone to Texas A&M with every intention of participating in a very popular idea: the typical college experience. I had always been a rule-follower and I saw this as my chance to “live a little”, or so they say. It was never in my plan to join a Christian sorority, and yet in that moment during that first meeting, I began to understand that my college experience was not going to look at all like I’d thought and there was nothing I could do about it. 

As the evening and weeks progressed, I began to grow familiar with ASC, but it all still felt very foreign to me. The language these girls used sounded strange, the fact that they were always so sweet and loving threw me off, and I couldn’t figure out why they cared about getting to know me at all. But one thing I was sure of: there was a passion and quality about their lives that was unlike anything I had ever been around, and I wanted my life to be the same.  

I know now, as I learned then, that what I was seeing in their lives that I was so attracted to was the transformative power that comes from knowing Jesus. These girls were confident and loving not because of some innate ability to be that way, but rather because the Gospel had moved in their lives and allowed their minds to be transformed. The book of Romans commands this of us, instructing us to not be conformed to the world, but to be transformed by the renewing of our minds. As I walked with and observed the lives of these women that had been placed around me, I grew more and more encouraged and began to feel safe for the first time in my life. 

In the Lord’s gracious providence, He placed me in a small group that year made up of entirely juniors and seniors. My sweet friend, Emily, and I were the only freshmen in the group and over the course of that first year those women taught me what it looked like to walk daily in pursuit of knowing Christ better. He went from being someone I believed in but didn’t really know to being the song that I was singing in life. Through study of Scripture, times of prayer, serving together, and a great amount of encouragement, I began to understand what it meant to know Jesus and it changed my life.

The Lord continued to move in my heart and mind for four years and minister to me through the organization of Aggie Sisters for Christ in numerous ways, but one of the sweetest nights and memories is that first night. It was the night of changed assumptions. It was the night of a path being set. It was the night of the change.

and so it begins...

For those who know me well, and maybe those who know me well on Facebook, it is common knowledge that I'm a fan of Shauna Niequist's work. She's a writer who makes you feel like you're having a conversation with her as you read. Basically, she's brilliant.

I have always wanted to write a book and her style of writing has been an inspiration in helping me to find my voice. The way she writes is similar to how I write and I feel like her books have given me permission to write the way I want.

So I've started. It will be a while and even then I'll have to see if anyone will even publish it, but it's worth a shot. Here's a little glimpse...

-The Change-

I had no intention of joining. I was just attending the meeting because the girl at the booth seemed nice. It was my first week of college and I found myself at the first informational meeting for Aggie Sisters for Christ, feeling extremely out of place as I walked toward the meeting. In my experience, girls weren’t nice, couldn’t be trusted, and would rather talk bad about you than encourage you, so needless to say I was a bit nervous. My preconceived notions were about to be turned upside down.

As I approached the meeting, a sweet girl named Brynne Bryant walked up with a beaming smile on her face and said, “Are you here for the meeting? Great! Just stick with me tonight. I’ll take care of you.” Immediately, thoughts of panic and confusion hit. What?! Why is she being so nice to me? What’s in it for her? Is there something wrong with me that I need someone with me all night? I followed Brynne into a large conference room that was filled with HUNDREDS of girls, many looking just like me. Nervous. 

I sat with Brynne as the meeting started, listening to the president of the organization, Kimberly McNutt, talking about ASC, the purpose behind the fellowship of women, and the goal to glorify Jesus Christ in their time together. And as I listened to Kim talk, something very strange started to happen. I began to hear this whisper, not audibly, but a whisper in my soul that I had felt very few times in my life at this point. It was this kind of confirmation that I was exactly where I was supposed to be, that these women would be my friends, and that there was something important for me to learn in my days with them. It was a strange feeling at the time, but one that I’ve grown more and more accustomed to the more I’ve learned to listen for it. It was the sweet whisper of the Lord, and He was saving my life that night. 

change

Over the last year, my life has been mostly characterized by one thing: change. And usually not just one thing changing at a time, but rather several areas of my life shifting beneath my feet like sand. Just when I thought I found an area that was going to remain consistent, it or something related to it would shift. I found myself constantly trying to "create a new normal", to quote my friend, Ann Carolyn. And it was exhausting.

I have finally found myself in a season of relative consistency. I have a wonderful job that I love which is structured and very organized. Check. I have determined new roommates and pretty much know where I'm going to live. Check. At this point, almost all of my close friends are married, so I'm pretty much done with the shifting of amounts of availability for friends. Check...I guess. Basically, things seem rather calm. And while I'm enjoying the calm, I've found myself getting sucked in to missing what was. Missing the old normal. Because while I like the new normal, there are so many things about the old that I liked, that felt safe, and that no one asked me about changing. 

And it is usually at this point that the Lord sweetly reminds me about the seasons of life, that change is necessary, and that He has me. God is so sweet in His grace because I constantly fight against this idea, trying to look back instead of looking forward. I continue to learn the importance of those words Jesus spoke in Matthew, instructing us to build our houses on the Rock and not on the sand. The sand shifts. Anything that is not Christ will shift, change, allow me to fall.

 My favorite author, Shauna Niequist, has a new book coming out in August that is specifically about change and I feel as though she was writing it just for me:

‘When life is sweet, say thank you and celebrate, and when life is bitter, say thank you and grow.‘ -Shauna Niequist, 'Bittersweet'

So here's to the new normal, accepting it, and beginning to learn to love it. Cheers.

And the picture is a hat-tip to the old that I miss...

Unexpected Seasons

There is something magical about snow, something magical in the unexpected and rare. As I've sat here all afternoon and watched it snow and snow, creating this pure and pristine canvas of glimmers, I just can't get over the calming effect it has. Slowly the snow continually drifts down, softly taking its place on the blanket and adding another sparkle to the beautiful picture forming.

As I looked out over the covered patches of grass, beautiful white perfection shone back at me and all I could do was worship the God whose idea it was, these white flurries from the sky.

He is the great Giver of seasons, both in weather and in life. Just as some are constant and predictable, others surprise you in the best way possible. They are brief but they are sweet. Others are long and extended, but oh so familiar. The short and unexpected may leave before you're ready, but you can trust that the Author of the seasons know their schedule well. It is these short and unexpected seasons, like this snow, that surprise us, stop us, and remind us to in fact worship their Author, our great God and Creator.

We Won't Forget

This is a day we won't forget.

The Favorites: Old School Edition

I want to preface this post by saying that this list is in no way exhaustive. As mentioned in previous posts, our playroom literally overflowed with movies when I was growing up. After a recent scavenger session in that very room and seeing all of the worn cases, I realized how many of those movies I actually watched over and over again. Those mentioned below are some of the standouts.

I would really love to know who else grew up watching this movie. It's a kid-classic as far as I'm concerned. Who can forget crazy mountain man who made Kid Colter drink skunkberry tea because he said it'd put hair on his legs?! Brilliant writing. This is the story of a nerdy boy from Boston who goes to visit his dad in the Pacific Northwest during a Boston teacher's strike. In the process of being there, he ends up being kidnapped and has to survive in the wild. Very gripping, I'm telling you. I would love to extend an invitation to anyone who hasn't seen this excellent example of filmmaking to come over and view it any time. It'll change your life.

I LOVED the Ewok adventures. I thought Wickit was the absolute most adorable thing ever...the stuffed animal every little girl wants. I do think it's kind of strange that I never saw any of the Star Wars movies but I loved the Ewok movies. Go figure. I really loved this one and another one...can't remember it's name...but do remember watching them over and over.

I recently bought the Faerie Tale Theater on DVD. I was absolutely thrilled when it came in the mail. There are 26 hour-long episodes of different fairy tales from childhood. What makes these stand out is that all of them include award-winning actors and actresses and were made for HBO, I believe. Very quality stuff here, people. My favorites were 'Hansel & Gretel,' 'Little Red Riding Hood,' and 'Rapunzel.' H&G had Joan Collins as the evil stepmother and the witch...she was absolutely horrifying. LRRH has Mary Steenburgen as RRH as she is great. Rapunzel has Gena Rowlands as the witch and let me tell you, I STILL have nightmares after I watch that one. Her voice is insanely creepy!!!!

Now, most everyone that is of our generation has seen ET (ET phone home!), but not everyone has witnessed the brilliant product placement alien film of 'Mac & Me.' The choreographed dance in the McDonald's is worth watching the entire film for. I will warn you that if you watch this movie, you will immediately begin craving Coca Cola, Skittles, and McDonald's. I told you...brilliant product placement. Gets me every time...

Oh, this movie. I love this movie. I think alot of that love is directly related to my love of Fred Savage, but regardless, I remember watching this movie over and over as a kid. Centered around playing the original Nintendo, which was all the rage back then, this is a crazy unbelievable story about a mute boy who is a wizard at Nintendo running away from some random social worker of something. Strange. For those of you who have seen this, please tell me you remember the power glove scene! Oh, how dramatic...

No list of mine would be complete without this movie. All of you who know me well are laughing right now because you know my love of this ridiculous film. This is the French cover of a movie called 'Here Comes Santa Claus.' Oh yes. I know that you're probably thinking, "Oh, there must be 2 versions that they made and she had the English one." No. Not really. They just overdubbed the French version with English so the moving mouths don't match the words. :) I love this movie. It is a musical Christmas tale that is completely irrational and 100% cheesy. And I. don't. care. I have watched this movie every single Christmas since I was 4. I promise. We have a home video of me as a 4-year-old sitting on the couch singing along to this movie, heard very prominently in the background. I believe I even took it to school for us to watch in 4th grade. Oh, the shame. But hey, it's just not Christmas without 'Here Comes Santa Claus.'

Were any of these your favorites? What would you have added to the list?