every time i take a picture of my sister she tries to give me one of those ready-made smiles: eyes peeled wide and restraint in the corners of her mouth. good thing, though, that she’s the type that laughs readily and almost involuntarily. one offhand comment, a knee-jerk press of the camera button, and i’ve captured it. her young, impulsive happiness.
what i would give to sit on a dock and jam with friends.
I made up my mind when I was a young girl
I’ve been given this one world
I won’t worry it away
But now and again I lose sight of the good life
I get stuck in a low light
But then Love comes in
the approach
growing into the answer
“When a child is born, friends get marries, a parent dies, people revolt, or a nation starves, it is not enough just to know about these things and to celebrate, grieve, or respond as best we can. We have to keep asking ourselves, ‘What does it all mean? What is God trying to tell us? How are we called to live in the midst of all this?’ Without such questions our lives become numb and flat.
But are there any answers? There are, but we will never find them unless we are willing to live the questions first and trust that, as Rilke says, we will, without even noticing it, grow into the answer. When we keep the Bible and our spiritual books in one hand and the newspaper on the other, we will always discover new questions, but we will also discover a way to live them faithfully, trusting that gradually the answer will be revealed to us.”
- Henri Nouwen
my heart will sing, no other Name
This was another of our fears: that Life wouldn’t turn out to be like Literature.Julian Barnes, The Sense of an Ending (via awritersruminations)
love in her heart
“I believe a strong woman may be stronger than a man, particularly if she happens to have love in her heart. I guess a loving woman is indestructible.”
- John Steinbeck, East of Eden
the light at the edge of the dark
listening to this for the past two days on repeat - when i first wake up in the morning, when i walk to class, or ride the subway, or study.
you could say i have a bit of an obsessive personality.
also, here’s a great acapella rendition by BU’s Mustard Seed: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mkNBGnjzNqY
much that we have been given
“It occurred to me, as it sometimes does, that this day is over and will never be lived again, that we are only the sum of days, and when those are spent, we will not come back to this place, to this time, to these people and these colors, and I wonder whether to be sad about this or to be happy, to trust that these moments were meant for some kind of enjoyment, as a kind of blessing. And if feels, tonight, as if there is much to think about, there is much we have been given and much we have left behind. The smell of freedom is as brisk as the air through the windows. And there is a feeling that time itself has been curtained by darkness.”
- Through Painted Deserts, Donald Miller
uh….YES. though driving on bridges over water scares the crap out of me. i don’t know how many dreams i’ve had where my car suddenly veers off the side and everything goes into slow motion. and there suspended in the air, i would be dumbstruck, completely unable to process the fact that i was going to die.
strange paranoias aside, i absolutely love whenever this happens. i do happy little-girl squeals. did i mention just how much i want to go on a road trip? especially after reading “through painted deserts” by donald miller…
(Source: justlittlethings)
(Source: doyapinkypromise, via wowfunniestposts)
