Save $20 today

Come to Atlanta in March.....15,000 people and (hopefully) myself will run through my favorite parts of the city for the ING Atlanta-Marathon/Half Marathon. Granted, I was told a month ago by one of the country's greatest surgeons that bilateral knee surgery was in my near future but surely with enough drugs and endorphins 13+ miles will be like a walk in the park. I need some new goals and I think this along with the Country music half in Nashville will be the first two on the list. Look at me, New Years resolutions 4 months early! Who said I didn't like to plan in advance? Actually, yesterday my Strengths Finder results came back from these recent tests I had done and it told me that clearly spontaneity is my middle name and anything methodical makes me cringe. I defy authority and I am easily able to "woo" and engage even a wall in conversation. Really, I was hoping that I would have surprised myself and maybe had some strengths that I didnt know about. All in all, as all of these tests always say - my natural and adaptive style are the same. (This is rare)
My 3rd goal will be to change some of these strengths. The one word that is labeled me with is "Networker." This is nice and all but seriously, dont you think that is because of my current SALES position? I would hope that I could also contribute other qualities to a task or project aside from my ability to make friends with the postman and somehow walk away with his business.

Anywho, pay your $50 and come to Atlanta. The Terrace will host eggs and bagels the morning of and we'll celebrate in style after the trek through my favorite neighborhoods in Atlanta. You can do anything in 7 months. No excuses.

Delayed gratification

Do you ever delete people from your phone just so when they call you are surprised by who it is? I love surprises. I love anticipation too. It's called delayed gratification and it gets me going. Like in highschool when you would have to leave the parking lot immediatly on days I didnt have tennis practice and literally try to make every light on the 6 mile trek home so that I could be there when the phone rang. So maybe I was the perfect cliche of a young highschooler in the middle of a little puppy love? I'm okay being that girl at that time. It was fun. I dated the quarterback and I was a silly cheerleader. You can label me - that's fine. It was a sweet time. Needless, it was so exhilerating to have to rush home to see what plans might ensue for the evening. Of course, then caller ID came around but that too allowed for a little excitement as you scrolled through the list to see who mah have called. Anyway, now people try to act surprised when you call them but really they knew before they said hello that it was you calling. They probably new what you were calling about and they had a 3 second delay just to make you think that they were busy and not too anxious to answer your call. Im not good at games. I would rather just delete all of you callers and then truly be excited (or stuck in a bad situation) if I answer the phone when you call.
And I am one of those people who HATE it when you dont leave a message but you are probably one of those people that hates me leaving you a message if I have nothing more than a friendly hello. True, most people with caller ID these days will call you back whether you leave a message or not unless you are officially Shady McShadster of the month - me - and choose not to respond to any phonecalls. I am on the phone for a living. This past weekend in God's country, Charleston, my phone rang for business all Friday night and at 7:45 Saturday morning. Then, when the caller didnt get me they text messaged me. Dont text me unless you are telling me how invaluable I am and how you need me in your life. Text is only an acceptable form of communication in certain scenarios and should not replace normal conversation. Boys who pursue via text is even more dispicable if text becomes the main form of communication. So......you need to know this though....text misfires are quite dangerous.
2 scenarios - A few years ago when I was young and even more foolish I sat googly-eyed in a conference to a boy (I still cant call y'all 'men') who I happened to be dating and working with - yes, fishing in the company pond. No regrets either. Well, I leave the conference and text the object of my affection YOU LOOK HOT IN YOUR SUIT TODAY. I GET BUTTERFLYS SITTING NEXT TO YOU. Yes, I just wrote that on the WWW for all of you to laugh at. Again, no shame. SEND.
Aghhh.......SENT to _________ THE WRONG PERSON. And the wrong person happened to be a previous long-term boyfriend. Nice.
Scenario 2: Last year in the middle of one of my roommates long, drawn out, long distance drama with a boy she intends to forward an email of his to me for my review. Yes, girls do that. She comments about how fabulous this boy is.....he is winning her heart....yada yada. SEND.
Sent right back to the original sender. This mishap completely changed the dynamics of the relationship (ultimately, for the good because we realized that this boy should have rocks thrown at him). Nonetheless, her little mishap put an end to the relationship-build up because I guess until that point it had all been fun and games. So this was via email - same deal.

Okay, back in Oz now. Where was I going with all that? Bottom line, yes, when I act surprised that you called it is because I am because I am taking your name out of my phone. Isnt a little weird that I create my own excitement? Life is too short not to.

New RAY!!!

For atleast the next 10 hours, Kat and I are the coolest thing since sliced bread and chocolate milk combined. I was about to head to my chamber for a much-needed slumber when I realized that it was Tuesday. Back in highschool aka my glory days, when I really was genuinely cool, I loved Tuesdays because new music is released on this 3rd and lonely day of the week. I remember going into school late in my under classmen years only to get the newest Dave Matthews or 311 (Seriously) cd. I had all but forgotten that the music industry thrives off of Tuesdays and I had all but pushed Tuesdays into my least favorite of the 7 - with no other day even close to 6th place. Tuesdays are just a suvival day. No longer. I remembered just in the brink of time that Ray Lamontagne's newest cd, Til The Sun Turns Black, was released today! Kat and I did not even stop to collect $200, we headed straight for Borders and searched up and down the aisles for the long awaited release of our soulmate's newest album. I am really not one to do anything right away. I never have understood why people dress up and wait in line for Harrry Potter or Star Trek. More so, I have always been fairly lucky for things like concert tickets and such. This is different. I am admittedly infatuated with Ray and his soothing and sultry voice. After walking out the door in the knick of time with our prized possession we popped the cd in my car and were taken far far away. Even the instrumental piece that leads into the first song is tantalizing. As one of my roommates says, I'd jump his bones just because he opened his mouth and that sound came out. She said it. Not me!
But I agree whole heartedly. I am about to do the dorkiest thing in America and fall asleep to my Ray on my ipod. I can't think of anything better lying next to me.

I love Tuesdays!

And they lived happily ever after. The End.

I want to start with the end of my weekend.
1:00am and we cross over the new Cooper River Bridge. In years past the Bohemians would only cross over this bridge in our 'unmentionables' because that is what Bohemian women do. We would roll daown the windows and sing to our latest fling, Jack Johnson. I can't give you anymore details or else I'd have to kill you. It's sacred charleston-bohemian ritual. Needless, this night we skipped an adventure on the bridge for something greater. Fran mentions that we should go to the beach. We make the 5 mile trek across the low country in between Mt. Pleasant and Sullivans Only a few tall lights are shining and you can feel the reflection of the moon off the water. There are no condos on Sullivans. No Taco Bells. Just houses. The houses are pretty far off the shore too so really there is nothing but beach. We dont hesitate a second at the sound of Fran's proposal. Well, until we stepped foot onto the powdery sand. A fairly remote beach like Sullivans is dark at night. The light house is 100 yards to our right and about every 40 seconds the light passes over us. It seems to come quickly until you are walking onto the beach and it is dark and you want to believe no one else is there. I was scared - I wont lie. We each walked arm and arm until we were out of our comfort zone and far away from any man-made light. The breeze, were I with a boy of interest was perfect.....just enough to give you reason to move closer. For the three of us we were trying to hold back the shivers.
We stood for a good while just breathing in the stillness of the beach. And then we prayed. We stood and prayed arm and arm. We thanked God for the gift of friendship and for the bonds that He created years ago. If I could wrap up some moments in life and put them in a jar with a lid this would be one of them. Everything about the setting seemed to be put out just for us right before we made the long, slow, chilly trek to the water.

Every part of our beloved city has significance. I admit - when I go back I feel as though the city comes alive just for us. I know my love for Charleston has alot to do with the charm and demeanor of the port city. It has alot more to do with the confidence that God gave me that summer. It was a genuine confidence routed in that which Pererveres. God truly provided that summer in ways we couldn't have fathomed. I learned that summer that I would be different and that these friends would be different than any others. I learned that I was going to be used even if I messed up or turned a wrong way - He wanted to use us beyond our imagination. And the comforting thing is we are still being used and our story has really just begun.

If this is reality then I can't imagine heaven

Driving into the city lights amid light Sunday night traffic tonight may have been the first time in more than 3 years now that I didn't roll down the windows and the sunroof and soak in everything I love about this city. This is a little nerve-wracking but this is the first trip home since I graduated where I can sense that Atlanta has started to wear on me. But I want to tell you about the phenomenal weekend that lead to my lack of zeal for my return home. But I dont want to tell you tonight.Tomorrow when I really feel like sharing. Tonight I am being selfish and just savoring every last drop of the weekend.g

Nonetheless, if this weekend was reality then I really can't begin to wrap my little imagination around even a glimpse of heaven. This weekend was magical and so fitting.

I have to go to bed so I can get up and workout super early in order to get everything done tomorrow. I am exhausted and I cant wait to go to bed but more so I cant wait to continue my praise for my heaven-on-earth weekend.
I miss you Charleston, the Battery, Cooper River Bridge, Bohemian women, Michael, shrimp and grits and Sullivan's....even after hours. I knew this would happen. Sweet dreams.
To be continued....

Cha'ston bound, honey

I'm going back to Charleston, back where I belong.
-Rhett Butler

I leave tomorrow on the first flight to bliss! It's the land of shrimp and grits, she-crab soup with Sherry, lemonades, Rainbow Row, Clydesdale horses, impeccable seafood, rickshaws, front porches but most importantly - its the home of my favorite summer memories and my most beloved place to reunite with my favorite girls! Just driving the long, straight trek from Columbia to the Coast relaxes you in a way that no other city I know does. This weekend my 5 college "Bohemians" and I are reuniting for a wedding of one of the Ghetto-Fabulous roommmates. Yes, we lived in the Ghetto in Charleston. Sure we lived in a typical Charleston row home and sure we had a phenomenal view of the city but we also had neighbors named "Toothy" and "Willy" who greeted us at the gate evertime we pulled into our summer haven. Needless, I still drive by our perfect abode and don't notice it's exact location - all I knew at the time and all that matters now is that I lived a glorious summer in Charleston and I have cherished every single detail that made that summer complete.

I may return. I may seriously not. Seriously. I forget everytime I go how much this town adores me! The feelings are mutual.

She's a celebrity-to-be. She can go places normal people cant go. Yay for Kat: Terrace's Idol....soon to be America's Idol. 

Kat, with the perfect red hair among her loyal fans.  

TERRACE IDOL

I know. I am not working diligently today. It's okay. I deserve the down time. Plus, this is a monumental day. Kat Coleman aka Terrace Superstar/Model Citizen/Teacher-to-be/Cat Lady is in Birmingham, Alabama as we speak or type sitting in an auditorium where Sweet Home Alabama is playing contunously over the loud speakers. You might ask what b'ness she has in B'ham at 1pm on a Monday??? Good question - she is awaiting her 20 seconds of fame in front of the first group of American Idol judges. No lie folks. Catie and I listen to her when she serenades the shower and she is smokin! I don't know that she knows that so dont't spill our secret. I am supposed to be getting live updates as the news happens throughout the day. Keep you posted. Remember - you heard it first here!

Good luck Katherine! You are the Terrace Idol everyday.

I am listening to Christmas music right now. It is August 21st. It is 89 degrees. For some reason this is eerily comforting.

Tiffany's box green or sea-blue

The only thing put together to my liking these days is my room. Well, it was until yesterday. Mid afternoon I decide to create some change. I go to Home Depot and meddle through the aisles looking for a project. 6 cans of spray paint later and a few unnecessary wholes in the wall and I have a partially transformed room. The bed is now caddy corner and much more inviting. The color scheme is perfect. Classic black and white. Clean, stoic, timeless, comfortable and understood. Then I decided I would accent whatever statement my room was making with a little subtle blue maybe green. I walked out the door with $8 worth of a disaster basically. Did you know that paint colors on a piece of paper arent always as they seem in person. Needless, the way I work when I get a project in my mind is a little dangerous. It's like getting my hair cut - I have to stop everything and do it right then or else it'll be another 12 weeks. So at a quarter til 6 and a whole hour and 15 minutes to be where I needed to be I start slapping paint anywhere that could be painted. I dont believe much in lining things or drop cloths or any of the usual preliminary steps to painting a room/furniture - it's for the birds.
The black and white looks phenomenal. My compliments to the chef. The blue/green/sea/sky color isnt working and it makes my head spin. My mom comes today to help me try to fix the mess I created lastnight. I love her help. She sees a project and she attacks it and you dont want in her way. Really, though, I was not a good person to be helped today. I think the mess in the room paralleled to the other messes I am feeling right now and I just didnt want to do it anymore. I was done. And we lived happily ever after. No really, though, this is how the story ends for me. I get real excited for a project or task and put all I have in to it but I am really just a starter. Most of these past whims are now burried in a box with an ETA TBD. So, somebody tell me......where should I use this 'gift'??? I am talking about careers now. I know in the past when I have taken career tests they ask questions about the role I like to play in projects. I like the beginning and that is it. I think really I dont even need to see the end. I like to plant the seed. Is this terrible? Am I doomed?
So hold me accountable. If you see me ask me about the green room. Tell me you want to see it. Lie to me - whatever. I just have to see to it that I finish this project of all projects. Really, my crisp, clean, put-together room is a heaven in the midst of the other question marks that seem to be lurking right now.
This one needs to be complete for all of our sanity.

Needs repeating

Faithful, from Enter the Worship Circle

If you are wanting a Betsy-thermometer, this is accurate. This is how I feel.
I can't contain it!

I want to sing you a love song
You are the thief of my heart
Rhythm and rhyme try to describe it
No matter how hard I try
I can't hide
I can't hide

Faithful, you are faithful
I have found nothing but good in your heart
Loving you are loving
I am in love with the way that you are
Thankful I am thankful
I had been running away on my own

And then you found me
Oh how you loved me
I know you'll never leave me alone

I want to sing you a love song
You are the love of my life
Rhythm and rhyme try to explain it
No matter how hard I try
I CAN'T CONTAIN IT
I CAN'T CONTAIN IT>

Google trouble

Conversation overheard yesterday between my manager and some of my beloved coworkers regarding a former coworker who happened to have some shady material floating on the internet...

Me: How did y'all know about that. I mean, I knew about it but I didnt know this was office news?
Favorite manager: All you have to do it type someone's name in google. She couldnt have thought it wouldnt be seen??? Weall saw it.

All of a sudden I start perspiring profusely and my legs are shaking from within my cozy, dim office (that's how I work best - lights low.) Only kidding about the perspiring thing. I know that google has perfected it's search when you type in my name so that you are no longer taken to the Broadway Stage Manager, Betsy - you are now directed within .26 seconds to this site. I am fully aware of this. Yes, it is scary but I try not to think about it. Let's be honest - half of you vitual friends discovered this written-nonsense via google. Trust me - I know. But I guess I didnt really think that people in my office were as irresponsible with their down time at the office as to google any topic that comes to mind or search any coworker that passes by. Do people do that?

Isn't it funny how really we are all the same though? We are curious just like the next person. We all walk by the "Sample lady" at the grocery store and act like we are not interested in her FREE sample and then we circle back around and look at the tasty bite of Nabisco's latest product as if we are so confused about what it is...It is food and it is free and we are all the same! Even the people that are clever and skilled enough to make us think they are uninterested in anything the world has to offer - they are hungry and love free food too and are secretly excited by the same office gossip. Donald Miller, a recent favorite author says it best (I think this was in one of the first blog entries too) - Everybody wants to be fancy and new. Nobody wants to be themselves. If there was a guy who just liked being himself and didnt want to be anyone else, than that guy would be the most different guy in the world and everybody would want to be him.

But you know what - when you see the world through Christ's eyes you are different. I have repeated this theme so many times in this little life journal - I am fully alive when I am fully who I am supposed to be by God's good and perfect will. Fully alive. Lastnight I spent a perfect evening with a friend. Sure the company was great and the weather was impeccable and food - nice, concert - fun but what was so refreshing was the energy I felt running through my veins. After wrestling with God for hours the night prior I came to the place that I so covet - where I know and belive God's love for me and I in turn love His creation! I felt at ease with myself lastnight. I felt attractive and I felt confident that despite what anyone else thought - I was loved and I was bought for a heavy price. My value is in Christ alone. I am not my hair as Miss India Arie tells me. I am not my friends nor my job nor my successes nor my outgoingness. I am not my social skills nor my workouts. I am nothing apart from Christ. I really belive this y'all. Sometimes those words just sound comforting and nice but when you experience them - truly experience them - it is life changing. So as much as I too like to feel like I have my own musical artists that create music just for me and that I have my own Betsy boutique with my own personal clothing line that no one else in Atlanta owns and as much as I like to think that I am not tempted by the same things that the world throws all of our way...I don't. The only thing that can truly set me apart is Christ alive in me. Fully. Not partially. Not on the side. Not on Sundays and Wednesdays. Not when things are going well. Fully. When I am dissappointed. When I have been offended. When things dont go my way no matter how much work I did. Fully alive.


After overhearing my manager's converasation yesterday I came home late lastnight and within 2 keystrokes almost deleted this whole darn thing. Really. Gone. I dont know that that is not in the future but I did realize that I was okay if my name were googled. I can only hope that when people happen to stop by here in the middle of their chaotic days that they get a glimpse of a heart longing for Eden. I fall apart more often than not and at times analyze a little too much. My mom thinks I am crazy. Sometimes I even tell a little too much. Nonetheless, I pray my transparency is used in ways I may never see. You too can be truly different. God's love knows no boundaries or color nor does it place your past before you. The victory has already been won.

Pinch yourself

Seriously. Pinch yourself right now. This is your life. Ouch! I pinched a little harder since I have been so numb to things for awhile. Date check: it is mid-August and in my business that means it is pretty much September. 2006 is more than half way over and 25 - the year to thrive yet again is barely off the runway.

"Don't wake me - I plan on sleeping in..." seems to have been my attitude the past few months. I am really good at making myself numb to things. I always have been. Not that I am not expressive - I dont think we need to question that - just good at numbing myself from things that I don't want to be a part of....hurt, dissappointment, reality.
Often though, as we all experience, we turn around and literally, our tires are flat. And really, what can you do with 2 flat tires but face the facts and fix them. You can't really pretend they aren't flat or atleast not for too long.

Sometimes we really do have to be broken before we can be put together the right way. Sometimes, too, we have to be able to put our finger on the problem before we can feel any relief from it. I quote myself "Some things are like knots in your muscles. You know they are there and they hurt but you have to find them and really push on them until the hurt is excrutiating and until you can't stand it but then with time and a little hydration the muscle pain goes away and you feel like a new person!" Yep, I said it and I like it. I think I am still in the first stage which honestly is the hardest - just pinpointing those things that maybe for years have some way affected you. (English 101 - could someone please remind me the difference of (a)ffect and (e)ffect??)

I have had several things pinch me lately. Thank God, really. Sometimes I think I become immune to reality. I am such a dreamer. Optimism is usually my drink of choice. Not even splashed with a dose of reality either - straight optimism. I know this sounds pleasant but really it can be debilitaing especially when you lose sight of reality. I would hate to miss out on any of the lessons God is trying to teach me right now or miss out on His careful molding of me because I allow myself only to exist in the peaches and cream spectrum. I dont even like peaches. I have a lot of very real decisions in front of me. A lot. Somehow I have been able to push them aside as if they dont exist but they do and the longer I push them aside the more weight they carry. I pray for my ability to be fully affected by circumstances around me. It is tragic for me to try to be strong enough to deal with everything on a business level and not be effected. It is tragic of me not to recognize my own struggle.... for it means gain in the long run. It is a fallacy not to acknowledge my own hummanness and need for God. I am only cheating myself for being strong enough to think I can take it all on. I pray boldly that God will continue to pinch me and continue to push on the places that may be a little sore. I know where there is pain there is gain and I know that even in facing reality I do not have to lose my rosy outlook on things.

Ouch. Something really did just bite me. Enough for one night. No more.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

On other more random notes, do you know that I literally wake up in the morning and nearly wet my pants thinking that I get to come home and go to bed? It is truly one of my greatest joys in the day to come home to my perfect queen sized heavenly bed. I spent the last dollar to my name on my new mattress sensation but it is worth every ramen noodle and canned soup I'll eat the next month. Oh, the little things in life......

What a treat....part of the perfect wedding and the perfect weekend was running in to some UGA friends. Perfect perfect perfect. 

Mac and cheese, a little bluegrass and love is in the air

One of my favorite people in America was married lastnight to one of my new favorite people. Their story is magical and comforting altogether. I know most people come away from weddings and they see the world a little rosier and even the coldest heart is reminded of the effects of young love. Lastnight was more than just the usual-wonderous-wedding feelings. The breeze alone in the middle of a usually sweltering summer evening reminded me of the beauty in a story that is written by God. Even myself, a self-proclaimed hopeless romantic and lover of all things surreal couldn't have authored a more suiting story for my favorite newlyweds. You may think that my infatuation with the new couple is due to the perfect wedding with the perfect Southern food ensemble including mac and cheese and the perfect music coupled with the perfect party in the middle of a perfect setting. All of the above is true but my affection comes from the perfect story. And, no, not that is was some fairy tale situation. It was just God's obvious hand at work through my friends patience and ability to engage fully in each stage of life he had encountered. I dont know too many people so at ease in any situation. He is one of those rare few that truly do find the beauty in all things or atleast find something to laugh at - even sometimes himself. Nonetheless, I am thankful to witness firsthand a relationship founded on that which sustains all storms - God's love. I can't wait to see how He uses my friends in unfathomable ways in the future.
I know God has a story of my own as well.....And, yes, admittedly, I can't wait to be in the middle of His love story.

I miss you

I've been gone way too long.
I'll be back this weekend.
Don't hate me because I am busy. Or popular.

Falling in love

Yeeessshhh.
If you haven't already navigated away because of the lovely topic at hand then you are in for a ride with lots of juicy inside gossip.



NEVER would I do that. As you have probably noticed I do not use this thing as a sounding board to voice my latest crush or boy interest. You know I dont kiss and tell.
Therefore, this is a different kind of falling in love which I do think can lead to the kind of falling that you all were thinking.

It's about falling in love with myself. It is about falling head over heels for the very person that God created me to be. It is about the overflow of praise that results when you are in love with the Creator and the creation. Somehow over the past year God has helped me slowly but surely let go of something. I really dont know exactly what the something is but I know I like it being gone. I like the person in the mirror in the morning - even at 5:30 - and I like the person that walks out the door with hopes each morning to glorify He who gave me the day. I am not tooting my own horn because really I am nothing apart from Christ alive in me. I feel like a new person when I truly let open my fingers and allow those things that I hold on to so dearly to slip from my control. It doesnt mean you have to let them fall to pieces. In the spirit of one of my favorite classic rock ballads - you gotta hold on loosely and dont let go. If you cling too tightly youre gonna lose control.

Things are fitting these days. My jeans, yes. Nice. My roommates. My job. My compacency in the moment - not complacent to where I am stale but to where I know I am right where I am supposed to be. How often do I say this? Seems like there is some kind of eternal theme through all of this online exposure. Back to things fitting....even my bed. I sleep better when things fit. My head doesnt run trying to make things fit. Even the music that seems to run in and out of my ear thoughout the day - fitting. My friends. My red toes. My solitude that tends to come at just the right times. Even my laugh - altogether fitting. My freckles that become all the more noticeable the older I get. My singleness coupled with the perfect amount of interest in other people. It just fits right now. I am thankful for this. I think things are quiet in my heart as I have started to piece together some of the themes that God has been slowly opening my eyes to these past few years.

I am in love with the way He loves me. I am greatful all the way through my toes and the top of my head for my giddyness. I am enamored by His affection. I am captivated by His endless pursuit. He has won my heart and He had me at hello. This is the kind of love story every girl can normally only imagine. This is the story of me falling in love. And they lived happily ever after. The End.



He who binds to himself a joy
Does the winged life destroy;
But he who kisses the joy as it flies
Lives in eternity's sunrise. - William Blake

Needs to be noted

I am in love with my job.
This week.
I really am.
If you know me you know lately I have been trying to find the color of my parachute or see in which direction it wants to fly.....nothing concrete, no serious looking so any employee friends - no news. Promise.
I have just been in the middle with my head and my heart and everything tugging at me in all different directions. Isnt this always how are decisions look?

Well, what do you know but this week my job has been so fun. I have had fabulous referrals and somehow dealt with people that actually think that I am great at what I do. And I am great at what I do. Do you know how much you enjoy your job when you are valued? Anyway, this week was great. I love the people I work with. I mean love love love. Sometimes I think I could shine their shoes if I ever decided mortgages werent my thing and I'd still be happy. Do you know fabulous it is to love the peple you work with?

It has just been so long since I have felt this way and I needed to let you know that I have a crush on my job. This week.

I am going to dance now. You know things are good when I am going to dance class. Happy Friday kids!

Sweet reunion

Tomorrow my African-adventurers return to their motherland. After 5 months of roadside corn, unfathomable poverty, a few bumbs and bruises and countless changed hearts Holly and Beth come home!
The two first took a trip to Africa last November as a part of a Dream for Africa trip. At that time, they were opened to some longer term opportunities in Swaziland. So with a big party and lots of last minute miracle details working out - they headed south this past March. South Africa that is.
Oddly enoug, I have really somehow felt a little closer to both of them even though they have been on the other side of the world. God is so good. I am so thankful that we have been able to walk along side of them in prayer but also in communication. How cool is google talk? We were able to talk to Beth and Holly amlost daily in the morning and early afternoon (as they are 6 hours ahead). I loved hearing about the precious children that were touched lately by even their smiles. I loved getting to hear their voices everyonce in a while when we would call them on the internet.
I can't believe 5 months have gone by. We have been awaiting their return for nearly 10 weeks now and every Thursday I cross off another week that they are away and then before I know it it is Thursday again. Well, it is finally here and tomorrow Robin and Jenni and Sally and I and a few fellas are heading to the Jackson-Hartsfield-Ogunleye-International Airport to greet our favorite African-adventurers. I love airport greetings! No, I have never personally been greeted off an airplane but I have done some surprising of my own and the anticipation alone is priceless.

I cant imagine how exposed their hearts have been to such poverty and sickness and I can only begin to conceive how hard it will be to come back to the US. To Atlanta. To Buckhead and Dunwoody where we do not often go with out. I pray earnestly that their experiences would remain close to their hearts and that they will have the words to communicate way they saw God's habd move. I pray that we can all burn to live passionately for the Lord as Beth and Holly have these past 5 months. I pray that our eyes are open to those in need here in Atlanta just as they were opened as we watched Beth and Holly care for so many in need in Africa.

Thank You for allowing us to be a part of their adventure even with the comforts of America. I am changed because of these past 5 months and I don't even deserve it. I cant wait to eat peanut butter with these two and play with their hair and welcome them joyfully back to the states.

Welcome Home Bhutis!