Spiritual Reflections
Today, I prayed (what I thought) was a really good prayer. It was about moving forward, about being open to learning, and accepting that even though I've been a practicing Christian for 19 of my 27 years (I count from the day I requested baptism) that there is still A LOT that is to be known. One can always go deeper. My main issue over the past 2 - 3 weeks has been to search for more light. And I've been praying that when I find it--because like I said before, "the seeker finds"--that I'll have the strength to walk in that light. It's hard to break away from old ideals and perspectives, but that's what's great about the Bible and about your walk with God: it's constantly being reinvented and made new. It's for the best. So...in that vein I was searching today for new church music to rock out to, and found this song that I felt PERFECTLY reflected my mood, and I wish to share it with you all! I wonder if anyone listens to the music? Anyway, this is off Marvin Sapp's new album "Here I Am." Marvin is making the "Here I Am" statement as one that denotes endurance and long-suffering, that despite LIFE he's still standing on the Word of God, and on the element of his faith. But, for me, "Here I Am" makes me think of Samuel when he answered the call of God. I've never really focused on that Samuel didn't ask God what He wanted with/from him, but rather made a simple statement of availability. I think this is important to note. Have I answered my call with questions? Probably. That's what I do: I question EVERYTHING. I need to have clear direction, purpose, ANSWERS!! However, God just wants you to be open and available, to answer the call with: Here I Am. Only then, when you stop questioning and start trusting, can you move forward. With that, I'll play you my new favorite song "Comfort Zone" by Pastor Marvin Sapp:
Cheese, Cheese, Cheese!!
I LOVE CHEESE!! No font, no caps, no exclamation point can relay how much I adore cheese. Tonight, I enjoyed a cheese and wine pairing class with some awesome friends, let's call them: "Olivier," "Claudette," and "Lucia" at Cheesetique in Alexandria. I feel like I should have taken a picture of our wine and cheese list (not to mention the cheese), but I didn't. I'll get back to you on what we had, as Claudette took the lists with her (what a smarty). All I know for sure is that I loved that aged Asiago, and they had some awesome stinky cheeses, I ate some rinds, and just overall died from an overdose of "cheese pleasure."
I came away from the event with this one thought: I want to be a sommelier. How INCREDIBLE is this job? You buy and sell wines for restaurants and shops. You travel to Germany, Italy, France, California, and the vineyards of Washington to observe the wine-making process and rub elbows with vineyard royalty. Why am I an accountant?! WHY? Clearly, somewhere along the way in my life...I made a horrible mistake. Is it too late to rectify it? Is it too late to go back and make Cabernet and Rieslings my field of study? Is it? IS IT?
Random Thought of the Day:
Today, while I was on my way to Cheesetique I noticed that the parking lot to my apartment complex was slightly overrun with Hispanics having a merry time. They had created a sort of impromptu picnic, and they were all paired up outside dancing (quite traditionally) to Latin music. The dance couples were pretty young. Some of them...teenagers. And it struck me as incredibly beautiful. I was witnessing a piece of legit culture. Now I'm not sure if they were Mexican, Salvadorian, or what..but it didn't matter. They took a gorgeous spring day and turned it into a cultural party and didn't care who would walk out of the apartment building and look at them sideways. There were kids running around, the Spanish was flowing, and they just danced without a care in the world. It kind of made my day.
I was going to say I know who Claudette is, because who else would take a list of cheese home with her? But then I realized that I really can't say, with 100% accuracy, that Lucia is not Claudette and Claudette is not Lucia. And then I thought about Olivier. A reference to Laurence Olivier? Surely not, because one is known for his strong and methodical acting and the other...is not. Olivier Mourgue? Too far-fetched. I guess what I'm trying to say is that I don't get your assignment of code names. And that I now regret not going, because my code name would have probably been something like Eponine, and it would have been awesome.
ReplyDeleteEPONINE!! Aww, so then Matt (Mikki's significant other) would've been "24601." I think that's cooler than "Jean."
ReplyDeleteYou know, I sometimes sing that number out to him, with the emphasis on the 1 (and the obligatory high voice crack), but he looks at me like I'm insane. Which, why? My voice is obviously a delight.
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