sometimes.

Sometimes I put on extremely uncoordinated outfits & go outside in the freezing cold & take pictures of myself because I am a strange human.  also, square photos are cool.

groovy gif.

My siblings are the grooviest.

ghostly.

I like this photo because it's creepy & weird & doesn't make any sense.

goodbye, autumn.

Fall has begun to fade, Christmas has already crept forward, and here I am caught in a daze between seasons.  Why does each year seem to slip through my fingers faster and faster?  I don't want to say goodbye to autumn quite yet, but I suppose there isn't anything I can do except welcome winter with a cheerful heart and a smile on my face.

ps. my lovely model is miss Kaitlyn Olivia

when I grow up

There are a few select people who I aspire to be when I grow up and @ipratt on instagram is one of those people.  Here's one of his captions:

      social media is important. it's a big deal. spend more time on your phone and computer. that way you can develop relationships with people who know about you only what you want them to. and they won’t walk into your room when you’re in the middle of a podcast or tv show and interrupt you. and they definitely won’t ask you to run to the grocery store for them on the way home. because they live somewhere else, and you never have to be bothered by them if you don’t want to. trust me, people who live other places are way cooler than people who live near you. way cooler. and… they just get you. you have so much in common with them. so you should really surround yourself with people who see things exactly like you do, so you never have to be challenged with what you think. here’s the important part: make your life look really fun. go on at least one hike a week, and then buffer those pictures out for as long as you can. people will think you’re really adventurous.  it doesn’t really matter if you usually spend your day cooped up in your room alone, if people think you live a good life, that’s what matters. impress people. 
or don’t. i mean… you COULD just live life like normal people. you know, actually live it. 

Essentially, my life goal is to be as cool as him.

pretty pictures + an entirely unrelated sentence

Murder is a sin because the bible says "You shall not murder." (Deuteronomy 5:17) so doesn't this mean that worry is a sin since the bible says "Do not be anxious about anything" (Phillipians 4:6)?

ps. my model in the photos above is my dear friend emily.

bonfires.

It's basically all I do this time of year.  & I'm okay with that.  

hoodies and things.

sporadically, I hide in my room and pretend to be a gangster.  what is it about black hoodies that make me feel so dominant?

resistance & invulnerability

Why are we so resistant to letting God fully take ownership of our lives? The God of the universe, the Good Shepherd, our Heavenly Father who created us is requesting to enter our everyday life and we hesitate in allowing him in!  He doesn't even demand that we let Him in; He asks permission.  What selfish beings we are to not entirely submit ourselves to Him.  Is it because we are afraid of vulnerability?  The bible says that God is love (1 John 4:16) and that love is patient and kind, does not envy or boast, is not arrogant or rude, irritable or resentful, does not rejoice at wrongdoing, it bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, and endures all things; Love never ends. (1 Corinthians 13:4-8)  
We do not have to be afraid of entrusting ourselves to Him because God is good--God is love.  He will not harm you and he will not abandon you.  

So let me ask again--Why are you so hesitant to fully allow God to take leadership of your life?

never have I ever:

seen mary poppins
been to new york
gotten a tattoo
gone skydiving
played monopoly
been surfing
eaten papaya
ridden a motorcycle
dyed my hair

but I sure would like to do all of these things in due course.

free hair.

sometimes, you just have to embrace your natural hair.  no matter how disheveled you may think it is, your hair is a part of who you are, so quit suffocating it with artificial products.  let it breathe every once in a while.  

lately.

sun flares | beat-up trucks | combat boots | starry skies | long hair

also, please check out this song that I just adore.

simplicity.

live simply / simply live

No man is an island,

//image source//

We weren't made to go through life on our own, so why are you pushing people away?  

[Proverbs 17:17]

Psalm 119:1-8

Psalm 119:1-8

I plan on having these verses memorized within the next three weeks.  Care to join me? 

just be kind.

// image via //

Judging other people by the way they look or what they wear is a big issue these days, and it seems to get addressed quite often, but appearance is not the only thing we judge in a person.  These past five weeks, i've been at a ballet intensive in North Carolina.  Naturally, after the first week, everyone makes friends with specific people and cliques begin to form.  Have you ever heard gossip about a stranger that made you not want to meet that person?  That happened a lot these past five weeks.  Most of the time, too, after having an actual conversation with that stranger, I would discover that they're an extremely cool person.  Eventually, I stopped listening to what other people would tell me and decided to discover for myself what someone is like.  
Well, apparently, other people judge me also.  I've never really been bullied before, but I feel like I just recently got a glimpse of what it's like.  
There's this "clique" here, who, for some unknown reason, did not like my friends and me at all.  They would whisper when we passed by and talk about us on social media without using our names.  The saddest part, though, is that i've never had an actual conversation with any of them.  I was terribly confused as to why they didn't like us, because, as far I know, I've done absolutely nothing to them.  Now I don't know, maybe this kind of stuff happens to you all the time, but this was total culture shock to me.  Why would you bad mouth someone you don't even know?  It doesn't make any sense.  
Today we had a heart-to-heart conversation with them and they apologized, but even so, it's hard to forgive.  I'm generally a likable person, so I'm really hurt and confused as to what they held against me.
I mainly wanted to share this with you because even though it's so easy to get caught up in the moment and start gossiping and pointing out other peoples flaws, just try to take a minute and remember that you're talking about a real person with real feelings.  You don't know everything about them and you don't know what all they've been through, so don't judge them; because whatever you say about them doesn't define who they are, it defines who you are.

"Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment." -John 7:24

Sunflower Blogger Tag

My dearest friend, Emily, tagged me to share eleven random facts and answer eleven random questions that she has come up with.  I'm technically supposed to tag eleven more people to do this, but I literally have zero blogger friends aside from Emily, so i'm not going to do that.  If you want to be my friend, hit me up!  Like, seriously though.

Random facts --

1.| If I could have any super power, I would want the ability to fly.  

2.| I used to be really into nail art, but now I never paint my nails.

3.| My favorite animal is a Fennec Fox:

I mean, how can you not love them?
4.| I don't like kids; I don't know how to talk to them without being awkward.
5.| I desperately want to be able to sing and play an instrument, but I don't have the patience to learn.

6.| I made a Twitter for approximately five minutes and then I deleted it because I felt intimidated.
7.| I'm actually a mermaid, but you probably knew that already.
8.| Coke > Pepsi
9.| I'm not a fan of roses.  If you give me any other flower, i'll absolutely love it, but just not roses.
10.| My favorite quote is "Open your mouth only if what you are going to say is more beautiful than silence."  I don't know who first said that, but I sure do like it.
11.| If fettucini alfredo is on the menu, that's what i'm ordering.

Emily's Questions --
1.| What is your favorite classic disney song?  Part of Your World, of course!
2.| Mermaids or Elves?  This should be obvious.
3.| Who is your favorite dead author?  C.S. Lewis and Jane Austen.
4.| Which country do you most want to visit?  Either France or somewhere in Africa.  Probably France.  But Africa would be really neat.  Actually, Belgium would be pretty cool.  Or Canada.  I don't know.  Let's just stick with France.
5.| Which state do you most want to visit?  Washington, because it seems so random and secluded.
6.| Dream Job?  I want to travel the world and photograph dancers!
7.| Any future names in store for your future children?  I only have one: Miriam.  My mom's middle name is Lynn, and since my middle name is Miriam, I want to name my child that.  
8.| Captain America or Bucky Barnes?  Who even is Bucky Barnes?
9.| Which is your preferred choice of weapon?  Sword fights all the way!
10.| Which non-published book are you looking forward to reading?  Sensible Nonsense.  Partly because that's one of the only non-published books I know of, but mostly because I completely and wholeheartedly ship Adam and Kitty.
11.| If you were forced to dye your hair a different color, what color would you choose?  Purple, no doubt about it.

Thanks for tagging me, Emily!  

ps. I finally turned on my comments! So leave me a comment because i'm lonely and pathetic.

two ears | one mouth

"We have two ears and one mouth so that we can listen twice as much as we speak."  -Epictetus

I used to be a great listener, mostly because I was shy and never knew what to talk about.  but now that I seem to be growing out of my shyness, i've found myself forgetting to listen.  listening is extremely important in conversations and in relationships.  yet, sometimes we're so caught up in what we have to say, that we forget about the other person.  so remember; two ears, one mouth.  

"A fool takes no pleasure in understanding, but only in expressing his opinion."  (Proverbs 18: 2)

tonight.

Let's just take a moment to recognize that it's Friday the 13th and a full moon.  can you say mermaid ?! 

ps. i took this photo yesterday...sorry to deceive you.

confessions.

1| during the summer especially, I struggle to do my quiet time everyday. the sad part, too, is that I just simply forget.

2| all i've ever wanted to do lately is watch movies or be on the computer, so I have to force myself to sit and read a book instead.

3| yard sales make me uncomfortable.

4| i'm really sad that my sister is leaving for college in the fall. yet at the same time, i'm excited to play the roll of an only child.

5| I over analyze almost all of my conversations.

I left my heart in Haiti.

I love these kids with all my heart.  Two weeks ago I was able to visit them for the third time in my life, and I know it will definitely not be my last time.  I seem to fall more in love with the people of Haiti each and every time I visit.  This time, I was able to bring my dear friend, Cara, with me.  It was incredible being able to relive my first experience going to Haiti through her.  She connected with these kids instantly; it was such a beautiful thing to see.  One of my highlights from the trip was, while putting on VBS for the kids, Cara and I got to perform our dance (see below.)

Although this video doesn't show it, after the dance, the kids started chanting "Again! Again!".  It was an overwhelming experience that I will definitely never forget.  Cara and I feel so blessed.  

Another highlight was going to the beach.  That was just plain fun.