Headphones and Bird Songs

I sit down, determined to get homework done. As usual, I open my computer and reach for my head phones.

But then I feel the breeze. It finally stopped raining, so this morning I opened up my window. From outside, I can feel the fresh, crisp morning air. Then I hear it - the bird song. Cheerful. Happy. Something I would not have heard if I had chosen to keep my window shut today or plugged in my headphones. 

I gaze out the window, watching the wind play with the pine trees and the way the sun keeps darting behind the clouds. And the bird song continues.

I still need to get that homework done, but today, I choose to listen to the sounds of creation and allow my eyes to wander every so often out the window, breathing in the scent of spring. Instead of filling my ears with other noise, I will listen to the bird song that heralds spring.

Knitting Pattern Giveaway - Goldberry Artisans

Hello, all! I know I have not been blogging very regularly in this little corner of the internet. I do plan to continue to post more personal things here, but I also have a new blog, Goldberry Artisans, which is more about knitting, crafting, and creativity. As some of you may know, I have a little Etsy shop called Goldberry Artisans, so my other blog is an off-shoot of that.

If you're a knitter, I am hosting a giveaway for a knitting pattern this week! I did an interview with a lovely knitwear designer and she offered one of my readers a free pattern, so you can read the interview and enter the giveaway here.

Thank you so much to all of you who follow this blog, even though everyone says that the golden days of blogging are behind us. That may be true, but I still love blogging and reading blogs. But, if you are more of an Instagram person, you can follow my personal account or my Goldberry Artisans account.

Leave a comment below with your blog or Instagram (or both!) if you have them! I would love to follow you.

They don't see

I watch them go by, all these people who are oblivious to the world.

They don't turn to see the bird who flew inside the train station.

They don't hear someone asking if anyone is sitting in that empty seat.

They don't see their friend waving at them from the other side of the street.

They don't hear the joyful bird songs that erupt on warm days.

They turn up the volume when babies cry and people talk.

They are afraid, these people. They are afraid of what thoughts and emotions will rush to the surface if they are quiet for long enough.

I understand. I am this person. I plug in my headphones, I scroll on my phone, I play games on my tablet. These things have a time and a place. Music can be calming, encouraging, invigorating. Podcasts and audiobooks can delight and inform. Games are fun. Talking to other people is good.

But at what cost? How much longer will we keep silencing the world around us and the world inside of us and just focus on that little glowing screen? Why do we feel this need to constantly surround ourselves with noise? What happened to face to face conversations; games played on a table; looking around us while taking a walk; creating something physical with our hands?

I have no answers, and I am as guilty of this as anyone. But maybe it would just take a few of us to decide to close everything down every once in a while and do something different.

Live a holy life

"It is quite true to say - 'I cannot live a holy life', but you can decide to let Jesus Christ make you holy."

-Oswald Chambers-

"The life of faith is lived one day at a time, and it has to be lived - not always looked forward to as though the 'real' living were around the next corner. It is today for which we are responsible. God still owns tomorrow."

-Elisabeth Elliot-

"I have a vision of people who embrace the significance of our small words, knowing that whether they're spoken into microphones or near microwaves, they are all sacred when said in the power of the Spirit."

-Emily Freeman-

We...I

We say we want to be more creative and original, but we copy the work of others out of laziness.

We want to blog, tweet, and generally tell the world about our picturesque adventures while staying home all day, afraid to step out of our comfort zones.

We comment with heart-eyed emojis while being jealous of someone else rather than simply being happy for them and living out our own dreams.

We complain about not having enough time to [insert activity] while we scroll through Pinterest as we watch Netflix.

We sit still for hours, not moving until that "low battery" warning appears for the second or third time.

I generalize my problems and frustrations with my own failings in order to make myself feel better, masking my hypocrisy under the guise of "sympathizing" or "connecting" with other people.

I need to set aside time to be creative.

I need to step out of my warm, safe little bubble in order to discover amazing things.

I need to put others before myself. I need to stop letting my fear of what people will think of me keep me from trying new things or chasing my dreams.

I need to be better at managing my time.

I need to shut down my electronic devices in order to live in the world that's right in front of me, the world that will not wait for me.

Thankful Thursday // 10

126. A house with good heating on cold Maine days.

127. Soup and tea together.

128. Buying sweaters at thrift shops.

129. Those people you can talk about absolutely anything with.

130. People who can make me laugh.

131. Refreshing rain.

132. The children at my Good News Club. They can definitely be rowdy, but I love it when they remember what they have learned.

133. My little sisters saying they're glad I'm doing "online college" so that we can do things together.

134. Small Bible studies.

135. The leaders of Delight & Be who pour so much into the ministry. 

136. Making time to just relax and rest.

Friday Favorites // 7

Another week over, another round up of what I've been loving recently.

1. Reading "Nerd Girl Problems" and "Book Confessions" pins on Pinterest. So many of them are so true and accurate, like this, and this, and this, and this.

2. The Sherlock Christmas special. So eerie but so good. Also the Doctor Who Christmas special. It broke my heart as always but I loved every minute.

3. I'm a big fan of nerdy knitting patterns and yarns, and I recently discovered this "Blue Box Exploding" yarn as well as this "221b Baker Street" yarn. I've decided that I need to save up for it. 

4. London Fog Tea Lattes. I recently discovered this recipe and I love it, since Earl Grey tea is my favorite kind of tea. I haven't made one with lavender yet, but I'm sure it's delicious.

5. And in case this post couldn't get any nerdier...what about this Doctor Who mug? Sadly, this shop is currently taking a break, but I can still look at it... And while we're on the subject, this shop has some perfect nerd mugs. This shop also has some great nerdy items.

6. This card would be perfect for any book lovers in your life, and if anyone you know needs some cheering up, this sweet "Courage, Deer Heart" card will do the trick.

7. My grandparents got a dog right before we visited them after Christmas, and she is so cute. She likes to growl while wagging her tail simultaneously, but we easily forgave that.

Are you a coffee or tea person?

What are your favorite nerdy products?

Thankful Thursday // 9

After Thanksgiving, it's so easy to stop purposely being thankful and focus on the new beginnings that are just around the corner, but the turn of the year is the perfect time to be thankful for what God has done over the past year rather than thinking about how you've failed.

It's been a while sine I've posted one of these, so I'll be catching up for the next few weeks.

111. My church's college and career group.

112. Childhood friends.

113. Sending people letters and care packages.

114. My church family.

115. The love my family shares.

116. Occasionally having the house to myself and enjoying the quiet.

117. The enthusiasm for life that my little sisters have.

118. The vast creative abilities God has given to us.

119. Having the opportunity to minister to children through Good News Club, an after school Bible club, since some of the children that come would not otherwise know about the gospel message.

120. The doors opened and walls broken down while sharing a meal.

121. Laughter around the dinner table.

122. Friends you know you can count on, even if you don't get to see them very often.

123. Local restaurants where everyone knows everyone else.

124. My parents who are constantly pouring out love on everyone around them.

125. New crafting supplies.

Delight and Be Intentional

I've never been good at New Year's posts. I love beginning a brand new year, but I struggle with how to articulate my thoughts about it. Other people have all these beautiful words and thoughts that they post, but I'm just here, enjoying the chance to set new goals and challenge myself.

In the past, I've done various things at the beginning of the year. I've written a list of 50 things I want to accomplish. I've set goals. I've cleaned out my belongings. But over the past few years, I've seen many people choose to focus on a word and all that it means instead of setting a list of resolutions. This year, after Kristin Wall over at Delight & Be challenged us who are in the Facebook group to pray and ask God to show us what word/character attribute He wanted us to grow this year.

After a lot of thought, I chose the word

intentional.

This means spending my time wisely. I must check my mindless social media scrolling and tv show watchng. I want to start my days by spending time with God, not on my phone. I want my relationships with my family and friends to be more intentional; instead of settling for shallow conversations I will purposely spend time cultivating the relationship and really getting to know people. I will cultivate my mind outside of required schoolwork by learning new skills and reading a wider variety of books.

I have already been convicted of not being intentional with my time this year. My hope and prayer this year is to grow as a person, not just check things off a list. That being said, I will be setting a list of goals every month to help me focus on areas of my life and then, at the end of the month, I can see where I have wasted time rather than intentionally working on my goals.

p.s. One of my goals for this month was to launch a knitting/fiber blog connected to my Etsy shop, and I finally did it! You can check it out here.

Thou Who Changest Not

Swift to its close ebbs out life's little day;
Earth's joys grow dim, it's shadows fade away.
Change and decay in all around I see.
Oh, Thou who changest not,
Abide with me.

The truth is, the world is constantly changing, and there is nothing any of us can do to stop that. There are times in my life when it feels as if everything is changing all at once, and it is in those times that my prayer follows along with the lyrics of the old hymn "Abide with me": "Oh, Thou who changest not, abide with me". God is the only One who does not, and will never, change. As this new year dawns and brings a whole new set of challenges, changes, and growth, remember to place your faith in God, not in your own resolutions or goals, as good as they may be.