State of the heart

I thought it only appropriate to post the entry I wrote the day we left for Europe before I write the post-trip entry. I didn’t have time to deal with a technical problem that kept me from posting then but I feel like its a good way for me to measure just how much 11 days away can mean and what God did in that time:

I feel like I am living outside myself these past few days. I am so thankful to be in this day though. For months I was just surviving school, my various jobs, commuting between two cities, and feeling like I couldn’t be with my PA family enough. Today I will get on a plane at 5PM and will fly across the big pond. I am not so pretentious to think that this trip will erase all the ups and downs of the past year or two, but it is a stepping stone to a happier and healthier me.

What are my goals for the trip? To reconnect with my husband after two crazy first years of marriage and just enjoy time together. To spend time with our friends and meet new friends. To discover more about God through two great cities—through their people, history, churches, museums, and beautiful sites of nature and man. To start eating healthier and to exercise more (yes, I am one of those weird people who actually eats less on vacation). To center myself and remember what is most important in life.

When I return I look forward to taking it a little easier this summer. I will only work a few hours a week babysitting and will devote most of my time to my family, the church, helping others plan their weddings, and yes, even to myself. I almost always shortchange myself and I want to learn how to get a decent amount of sleep, eat healthier, exercise, and most importantly, spend more time with God.

That said, here is to trusting that God can start working wonders in a few days…to finding peace and healing and experiencing joy in new ways.  More when I return…

Time is a gift

There is never enough time in a day, a month, a year, or it would seem, a life. Time is short and how we choose to spend it says a lot about who we are. I have been spending a lot of time thinking about how I have spent my time over the years and with whom. I do not believe in living with regrets but in choosing to learn from the past. I have been trying to make the choice to slow down to take life in, but it seems like something important always comes up. How do you choose what not to do? I have been trying to figure that out this week as I spend time with my family after the loss of my grandfather, celebrate my husbands graduation, and tie up the loose ends at my various jobs before a two week vacation to Europe. I am hoping to seek clarity in the midst during my hiatus from all of life’s demands. It couldn’t come at a more perfect time, a blessing in the midst of both a sad and a happy time.