Fall

Fall is absolutely my favorite season and over the years I have decided that October is my favorite month of the year. October is when we feel the first cool breeze. That first hint of fall is indescribably refreshing after a long hot summer. You can smell it in the air. The leaves begin changing colors and falling to the ground. It’s funny how the death of something can be so enchanting. Sunsets are one of my favorite things and they are most remarkable in the fall. They seem to be more vibrant and beautiful. Deep oranges, hot pinks and warm reds fill the evening October skies. Looking down my dirt road and seeing the gorgeous sunset up above my great-granddad’s old barn gives me a peace and comfort that is like no other. I just love to see the artwork God shares with us in the sky at the end of the day. I do not understand how anyone could experience such a magnificent thing and not believe that there is a Creator. Many people love spring because nature is coming alive and new growth is seen everywhere, but the colors of autumn and the sights, smells and feelings it brings, to me, are better than any other.

The activities and traditions that take place in the fall bring families together and make it an even more exciting time of the year. Football season is back and there is nothing like going to a college football game on a Saturday afternoon. With the weather getting cooler, being outside tailgating and cheering on your favorite team brings family and friends together for entertainment and competitive fun. And, of course, there is nothing more important in the south than Alabama and Auburn football!

The fair is another tradition that is enjoyed by many families, including mine. My family has always enjoyed going to the Alabama National Fair every year in October. My dad follows in my great-grandmother’s footsteps and enters different crafts and homemade items into the fair’s creative living center. My sister has grown to love entering drawings and paintings. I just enjoy the smell of the fair. As soon as I walk into the fair, I start to smell the many different scents and am reminded that fall is here. It just gives me a good feeling. I can smell the corn dogs, popcorn, cotton candy and funnel cakes. Lights from the different rides fill the midway as evening falls and the ferris wheel lights can be seen from miles around. I try and stay away from the livestock area because those smells aren’t quite as pleasant. Of course, seeing the swimming pigs is always a thrill and the circus never ceases to amaze me. My family and I always spend a good deal of time walking through the creative living center. We take our time as we look for the items we entered to see if any of us won a ribbon. The time spent at the fair with family and friends is carefree and rejuvenating.

Camping is another activity that is extremely enjoyable in the fall. My family loves to camp; however, as my parents have gotten older, they’ve learned that recovering from sleeping on the hard ground is not as easy as it once was. I do remember many hikes through the mountains in the fall with my family. The weather is perfect and the trees fill the forests with orange, brown and red hues. Sitting around a campfire at night roasting marshmallows for smores is one of my favorite parts of camping. It gets cool enough at night to be able to huddle around the campfire. Something about a group of people circled around a campfire somehow draws the group closer to one another.

The Holiday Market is an event that takes place in October every year in Montgomery. Venders from all around come and set up booths in the Montgomery civic center. There are novelty items, food, clothing, gifts, and Christmas decorations. My dad first took me to the Holiday Market when I was in Kindergarten. I remember him checking me out of class in the middle of nap time. I was so excited because I hated nap time and thought I was so cool to get to leave while everyone else had to sleep. My dad and I have been attending the Holiday Market for about fourteen years now. I love going to the Holiday Market with my dad because it’s really the only time out of the year that my dad and I ever go shopping together and we have a ball!

At the end of the month of October is an exciting and spooky holiday. Halloween has always been fun for me and my family. After summer coming to an end, we all need a holiday to bring some festivity back into the everyday routine. Of course, we do not celebrate Halloween as Satan’s holiday or take part in any form of devil worship. My family simply uses Halloween as a day to let go and have fun; and maybe pull a few pranks on each other. Many times we have a bonfire and a hayride. We usually go to our church’s fall festival and participate in the activities held there. For me, Halloween is a time for creativity, fun, celebrating the fall season and lots and lots of candy!

Also, October is a special month to me because thirteen years ago, on the fourteenth of this month my sister was born. My sister and I have grown closer over the past few years – closer than I’d ever really expected. I remember thinking what it would be like having a sister, but now I can’t imagine my life without her.

October is the precursor to the festive Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays. It is the last signs of summer and the faint whispers of winter. While the memories of summer are still fresh in our minds, the excitement and anticipation for the holidays keeps us from longing for summer to remain. The aspect I love about fall is how I can see and feel God through the marvelous natural world around me; but perhaps my most favorite feature of the fall season is seeing the harvest moon for the first time each year. It never ceases to amaze me. All of a sudden, without any notice, the moon will appear ten times the size it normally does. This enormous orange moon will suddenly fill the sky before me. It seems so close I almost want to reach out and touch it. But then, just as abruptly as it appeared, the moon returns to normal size as if it had been that way all along. This awesome sight reminds me that my God is more powerful and mighty than I often give Him credit for. I serve a God who made the earth I live in and the universe around the earth. Simply seeing the harvest moon helps me realize that my God is watching over me and has not forgotten about me. Just like He gives us the bright sunshine for the summer, He gives us the harvest moon for the fall. My God will never leave or forsake us and His perfectly aligned seasons are just one way that show His meticulous and abounding love for us.

stressed

So, I need to vent! I have had the busiest last week or so! I have just been so stressed out with school, work, I'm starting a college group at my church, my mom, dad and brother all have birthdays in the month of september and my sister has a birthday in october and I'm planning a cruise with my friends in January(but that's not so bad lol). There's just been a lot on my mind lately and it seems like I ask but I get no clear direction from the Lord! I don't know if it's that I'm not listening hard enough or looking in the right place or if maybe I am just too dumb to see it! But I just want to make sure I'm doing the right thing. I want to to be in the Lord's will because I know I will never experience true happiness unless I am doing what God has planned for me. I guess I'll just have to let God slap me in the face with it when He thinks it's best ;)

Blessings

God's blessings can come in very unusual ways sometimes. They seem so far from being a blessing that we miss what God is trying to do. Obviously, when good things happen it's really easy to say, "Wow! That was such a blessing!" God's blessings can come in other forms too. God might take something or someone away from us and at the time it seems like He is punishing us or has just forgotten about us. God can see what we can't. He knows what is waiting for us down the road, and He knows what is best. God wants only the very best for us. His plan is full of blessings if we will only trust His perfect will.

I went for a very long time ignoring God's still small voice and put off when I would start listening and obeying. I knew some of the choices I had made were wrong, but sometimes love for a person can make you forget how much greater God's love is. I cared more about having this person in my life than I cared about doing what the Lord wanted me to do. God's plan is ALWAYS best, but I couldn't accept that at the time. I let someone else control all my thoughts, feelings, and emotions. I thought I knew exactly how my life was going to turn out. I liked it that way, but God knew that I would be missing so many wonderful things if I continued down that road. So God allowed that person to be taken out of my life. At the time, I literally thought that I would not be able to go on living. The sadness and loneliness I felt at that time in my life was the worst feeling I have ever felt. Before, I was able to look 4 or 5 years down the road and imagine what my life would be like. Then, all of the sudden, I couldn't even imagine my future. It was like my dreams and hopes for the future were just erased and a blank slate was all that was left. I was devastated. I kept wondering, "Why would a loving God bring someone into my life for such a long time just to take them away?" But God doesn't control who our friends and companions are. I didn't have to be with this person for all those years. In fact, if I had listened to God more and my heart less, then I would have saved myself a lot of heartache and pain. Even though I was hurting, I knew that God allowing this person to be taken out of my life was a blessing. I knew that God had just saved me from continuing to go down the wrong road--a road full of struggles and conflict. I am so excited to see what is on this new road I'm on now! Of course I will have my share of struggles and conflict, but going through them with God while I'm following His will is so much easier than facing them alone. I'm not worried about the past, the bad choices and mistakes I've made. God has great things in store for me down this road. I know this because He says in His word, "Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland."(Isaiah 43:18-19) What a comfort and a blessing from God! I know God has a plan for my life and He can even use my mistakes for His glory. No one is too far gone for God to use. I went down the wrong road for a while, but I can get right back on the straight and narrow path and take the Lord's hand and start following after Him once again.

The world could use some more men like John Wayne

My dad’s all-time favorite actor has always been the famous rugged, western actor John Wayne. Growing up watching his films and many other westerns, I have grown to love these big, tough, strong cowboys. John Wayne doesn’t put up with any nonsense. He’s blunt, forward and, at times, tactless but you know where he stands and can’t help but respect his honesty and love the 6 foot 4 inch man of a man. These fearless cowboys were known for fighting for what was theirs, standing up for what was right and protecting their women and their land. They respected women and were willing to fight for them. If there was a lady that they wanted, there wasn’t any messing around. They simple went up to the woman and asked her to be his wife. They might not have been the most sensitive men or the smartest scholars, but they were not afraid of hard work. So my question is where are all the men like this today? It seems like today men wait on the woman to make the move. Men have gotten accustomed to the women coming after them and most of them don’t seem to have a problem with it. What happened to the man being the leader and going after what he wanted? Are guys intimidated to go up to a girl and ask her out now? Is rejection such a scary thing that it’s worth risking your chance to take a pretty girl out? Maybe it’s the way children have been raised the past twenty years or so. Parents should raise their boys to treat women like a treasure and with the utmost respect but also learn to take the lead and not be afraid to talk to a girl. Parents should raise their girls to act like little ladies that deserve respect and not to call boys or ask them out but to wait and let the boy be the one to make his move.

I wish I lived in the days when cowboys would tip their hat to a woman and stand up when a woman entered the room; the days when it was “unfit” for a woman to drive her own carriage or to go somewhere unaccompanied by a man. I wish all women still acted like ladies and men still acted gentlemen. I would have loved for a man wearing cowboy boots and a cowboy hat to pull me up onto his horse and ride me off into the sunset. John Wayne once said, “I’m the stuff men are made of!” and I couldn’t agree more. I only wish there were more men like him living today. It’s sad but I am starting to believe the introductory lines to Gone with the Wind which say, “There was a land of Cavaliers and Cotton Fields called the Old South. Here in this pretty world, Gallantry took its last bow. Here was the last ever to be seen of Knights and their Ladies Fair, of Master and of Slave. Look for it only in books, for it is no more than a dream remembered, a Civilization gone with the wind…”

You learn a lot by listening

You can really learn a lot about a person if you'd just take the time to listen. Unfortunately, these days it seems like people care more about talking about themselves than they do about actually getting to know and understand other people. I am a naturally shy person. Of course, when I'm around my close friends I come out of my shell, but in a group of people I don't know, I am most comfortable sitting by myself. I don't mind sitting alone and just not talking to anyone; It doesn't bother me one bit. Many people find it strange that someone would be comfortable sitting alone in a room full of people without talking to anyone, but I have found that you can learn a lot by just watching and listening to other people. It also works well when there are just two people together. For instance, a guy and a girl. Why in the world would you ever want to go on a date with a person and only talk about yourself? It seems utterly insane to me, to go on a date with someone, where the whole point is to get to know that person, and only talk about yourself and never stop to ask a question about the other person. It seems to me that many people don't even care. They would rather hear them self talk rather than inquire about your life. And if they do ask, well, they probably don't really care about your answer. They just want you to say something every once in a while. Maybe I'm not a super exciting person to be around, but when I ask a question about your life or what's going on with you, I genuinely care about the answer. I will be there to listen to you, but what is the point in having friends, if they never take the time to listen to and learn about what's happening in your life? Many people have that one thing they look for in their "significant other" and I can tell you right now that my "one thing" that my future husband will HAVE to possess is the quality of listening to me and really caring about what I have to say. I want him to actually enjoy listening to me! I want him to ask questions and genuinely be concerned about what I'm saying! Whether it be about my day, the fight I had with my mom, the outfit I saw at the store or what I had for lunch! I will know for sure when "the one" comes along and won't even have to second guess myself because he will do all those things. I believe every person could be a little less selfish and a little more caring about other people. If you really care about someone...listen to them. Just take to time to SHUT UP and maybe, just maybe, they'll open up their heart and share with you like friends should do.

Godly Love

One of my very best friends, Lauren Horne, got married yesterday. Lauren and I have been close friends since the eighth grade. I love her like a sister and was thrilled when she called and told me that she was engaged. That was about six months ago and she and all her close friends could not wait until the day she would walk down the aisle. Finally, the day arrived and before we knew it we were all standing up on the stage with Lauren and Patrick as they said their vows. I was the maid of honor and this gave me a great view of Lauren and Patrick during the ceremony, but as they turned and faced one another, I could only see Patrick's eyes. As I watched Patrick say his vows to Lauren, it was all I could do to keep from crying, because I saw a deep love and passion in his eyes as he looked at Lauren. It wasn't a lustful or infatuated love, but a truly godly love that filled his eyes and I know filled his heart as well. Both Lauren and Patrick got emotional as they pledged their lives to one another and it touched me how seriously they took the words they said to each other. Just watching the two of them this past weekend shows me not only how much they care about one another and their relationship, but that their priority in their relationship is God. I don't know Patrick that well but each time I am around him, I see what an outstanding man of God and true gentleman he is.

I saved a letter that Lauren wrote me back when we first started college. In fact, it was the first month we were in college. I was at the University of Mobile and she was at Mississippi State University, of course. The first letter described how she first was introduced to Patrick the first week she was at college and and how this "cute guy" (being Patrick) sat by her at Zaxby's. Well, the second letter kind of scared me a little. She told me that she knows people say this a lot but "he really could be the one" talking about Patrick and went on to reassure me that she was "serious as a heart attack and you know I wouldn't just say that about anyone." My first thought was " Oh gosh Lauren...You're going to go to college and fall for the first guy you meet and then get your heart broken." I was honestly worried about her because at this point I had never met Patrick and didn't know what kind of guy he was or anything about him. Looking back on that now, I realize that God brought Lauren and Patrick together and He had and still has a special plan for them. I know for a fact that Lauren and Patrick put God first throughout their dating relationship and their engagement and He has blessed them and I know He will continue to bless them for being faithful to Him. I have learned a lot from talking with Lauren about her relationship with Patrick and with God and I will continue to look to her for advice. I will also compare my future boyfriends to Patrick because I know he loves the Lord and will be a great leader in his and Lauren's marriage and family.
I wish Lauren and Patrick the very best in their marriage. If they put God first in their marriage like they have done in their relationship, I know God will continue to bless them beyond their imagination. I just can't wait to see what God will do next!

Life is Short

Yesterday was July 4th. Around 1 pm I was cleaning and getting ready for some friends to come over to hang out and do fireworks. I was texting all my friends to let them know what time to come over and it was then that one of my very best friends told me that her 21 year old cousin, John, had died in a car accident at 6 o'clock that very morning. I did not even hardly know John. I had maybe met him once or twice in passing and even Mandy was not extremely close to him, but I felt a deep sadness for his family and those close to him. I have an older brother who is 22 and cannot imagine what I would do if something happened to him all of a sudden like that. I hear on the news about people dying in car accidents every single day but this time, actually knowing who the person was, made it a lot more real. It just made me realize how little we think about life and death. We are not guaranteed tomorrow or even the next hour! I am sure as John was driving home yesterday morning he was thinking about what he would be doing that day to celebrate the Fourth of July, not IF he would live to see it. I assume way to much in my life. I assume that I will live for at least sixty or seventy more years. I assume that I will get married and have children and I assume that my parents will live long enough to be grandparents to my children. I also assume that I will have plenty of time to straighten out my life a couple years down the road. I tell myself that I will start living the way God wants me to live after I graduate from college. Before college I told myself that I would do what God wanted me to do when I graduated from high school or when I got to college. God will still be there for me when I graduate college just like He was when I graduated from high school but there is no guarantee that I will still be here. Life is too short to put off the things that are important. If feel that there is something God wants me to do, then I should feel more of an urgency to live for Him and follow His will and His plan for my life. I may die when I am an old lady. Or I could die tomorrow, but either way, I will be ready and leave no regrets if I am doing the Lord's will and following His plan for my life. God never wants bad things to happen to people but I believe He can always bring something good out of every situation. I hope that this accident was a wake-up call to many people because it definitely was to me.

First Blog Post

This is my first blog post ever! I love to write and journal so I thought maybe I should try this blog thing out. Whenever I am depressed, excited, happy or sad, I go to my journal and put my feelings on paper. It is such a release for me and a great way to relax. Although I don't normally share what I write with others, this will be something different for me and a great way to brush up on my writing skills. I tend to be quite opinionated so this will serve as a way to get my thoughts and ideas out there. I hope you enjoy!