Opened Windows, Opened Doors (Day 11/12)

I have a confession. I'm not good at this. I might put up the front that I'm great at finding God's blessings in my life but I know I miss so many along the way. I also feel like to keep people's attention I have to blow them away every time I post. Last night I remembered after I decided to not write that this isn't for others, this is for me. I don't need the world to hear me for this to be important. It's nice that there are people who care enough to listen but I'm doing this for me. I'm doing this to better my relationship with my Father. This is a way of thanking Him. I want to publicly say thank you. Well when I figured this out I had been laying in bed for two hours, from 11:30 to 1:30, and I couldn't muster the the energy to get up and write anything. So today and yesterday are going to be the same blessing because I don't think God gives you a blessing only once.

Think of the last time you wore shorts, the last time you sat outside and didn't go numb. If you live in my area of the country that was in November. The cold months set in and the joys of the breeze and the sun drifted away. But for some reason, in the last week of February, God brought warmth. Can a college senior who's suffering from a deadly illness of senoritis really be confined to her room where she has to slave away at what seems like pointless busy work? This one can't. :) I instead have found myself in Midnight Oil for the past two afternoons/evenings. Any break I could get I was there. And no, I was not doing homework. I was diving into The Word. Mmm, I loved it. I found my comfy chair with the big pillow I lay in my lap to rest my Bible on and read for hours. And the doors and windows of the old house were wide open so that the warm breeze could flow through airing out the stuffiness that winter had brought. The sun shown through those openings and brought warmth to the entire shop. The fire that is usually blazing toward my left was in no need to be lit even after the sun had gone down. The birds chirped during the day and the mosquitos buzzed during the night. Every so often you heard a Slap! or a Clap! from another lounger trying to ward off a pest that got too close. We all were brought together with the faint laughs of the other students watching a person try over and over to smash one between both hands. Even during the evenings it was cozy enough to still let the outside in, but a nice pumpkin chai tea latte was the right amount of warmth I needed to keep my toes and fingers from getting the least bit chilled. The shop was filled to the brim with people of all different ages, and conversation and laughter filled the rooms.

This is what life is all about to me. People all together, even if they don't know each other, sharing in moments of hope. We all hope the Winter doesn't decide to visit again until next November and during this time we won't let these hours we have of Spring pass us by. During the cold months you're confined to places where the temperature can be controlled but in Spring the outside is brought in. It is more inviting and for some reason friendships are made more easily. People are more joyous and in turn more willing to open up to people they've never met. It is such a wonderful time. The earth is being awoken and so are the spirits of the lives that live on it.