first fridays

are the day that some friends & I have chosen to meet at a coffee shop for some spiritual food.  We take turns planning a topic or faith practice to share & to pray.  It is great. Even though it happens a 6:00am which is not a time great things usually happen for me.

Today we prayed with color.  I love it. I am committing myself to doing this for a week. I don't want to write about it because it's not so much a word thing. So here is mine from this morning where we all shared an intention:

For more words on this I encourage you to check out this website:

www.prayingincolor.com

another glimpse

into our marriage:

It starts with markerboard messages...

Rebs, one morning when I ask him to let me sleep in instead of waking me up to say goodbye:

"I love you, Honey,

so much more than a bunny." adds a sketch of a bunny.

I respond:

"Bunny!?? Yum!"

Later in the week while at a conference I steal his notebook to draw these:

I just want to keep him on his toes.

beauty

Once, in awhile, one of the teens in the ministry bowls me over with their insight & wisdom. 

Once, one of them said, "You know you've found beauty when you can see it in something ugly."

To me this is TRUTH & it is profound. I don't know if everyone would consider it so but it twang a chord with me because it articulated something that I have experienced & believed since working at the crisis center as a JV.  

I feel like I see beauty the most in suffering. I think hope is the most beautiful thing. I think that people are more able to experience & express love in situations of suffering. I think when horrible things happen we realize how fragile we all are & we our connections with each other more deeply.*

I think that's when we are most able to bring God's kingdom to earth.

Which, to me, means love.

I learned, when walking into crisis situations when I felt like I had nothing to offer someone who had just suffered a horrible assault, all I really had to do was to be present, to enter into the suffering with the other person & allow them to just BE, however they needed to be. That was where healing happened. 

Later, perhaps, they would want answers to questions, or a sounding board, or a hand to squeeze. But what was most important was to offer an open heart.

And when you are able to open your heart to other's suffering what you are left with is an open heart. A heart that is more open to experience the world, all of it: the joy, beauty, pain, challenges, everything.

Since my time at the crisis center my open heart has not shut & now I am much more open. Much more likely to cry at, well, ANYTHING, actually.  I'm more likely to see the beauty in the ugly & suffering.  

Sometimes it gets a bit soggy but I wouldn't trade it for anything.

And that is why I love FREEEEE-DAHHHHH (Frida Kahlo, for those who haven't been paying attention.)   Because she painted all the pain & suffering in her life & it is beautiful.  And she lived this bright, amazing life. So if you get a chance go see the exhibit.  I'll be going again.

* Of course, this does not make me glad that there is 

suffering in the world. I hate it & would eliminate all 

suffering if I could.

today

I am BraveHeart & my battlecry is  "FREEEE-DAHHHH!" I can't wait until Saturday.

Poor Rebs.

Now, I'm off to vote. Now, you go!

Word.

but on the bright side

SYNCHRONICITY!!!

Frida Kahlo's work is on display at the San Jose Museum of Art!!! Oh, wait as I was getting the link I realized that they don't actually have much of her work rather it is photographs of her. But that works too because I just watched the movie & read one of her biographies (including footnotes, I'm a dork.) & in general have been obsessed with Frida lately. YAY!!! I CANNOT WAIT to go check this out!

I do this. I get a bit crazy when I see a movie or read a book I like & them I want to find out EVERYTHING I can about that person (it's usually a person). Past bio-plunges have included: Truman Capote, Queen Elizabeth, Anne Boleyn, Evita, the Phantom of the Opera, Dr. Drew, Van Gough... & that's all that I can list off the top of my head.