words of wisdom.

Don't follow please
Cause I wander aimlessly toward the lights of the city
the heat of the buildings, the sound of the sea

And the seabirds see me
And they can see three hundred thousand surrounding me
Making an island of my tongue and my bare feet

The hummingbird hides in the orange tree
While the raven is shouting his plea
And we watch from our window for someone to lead
But they're never quite what we need

The night makes it clear
That I won't fool anyone here full of my foreign fear
In the dusk light hiding I won't disappear

Love drives out fear
But fear steals from love and my scared heart has taken so much
That my arms can't hold up the weight

So there are tired dark trees that surround me
And they're growing the loneliest things
I lay in between them and try and find sleep
But the roots come up from underneath

I hide in the black earth
I hide in the seed
I hide in my sunburn
I hid incomplete

Our dreams dig deep in a rainbow
But we clothe ourselves in blue and gray
They say it's shame that is keeping us safe
But it's shame that keeps us locked away.

Joel Preston West.

why did i come home again?

I believe in the sun when it is not shining.


I believe in Love even when I feel it not.


I believe in God even when He is silent.


written on a wall in a concentration camp

written on a bookmark made by a friend.

dear schoolwork, you suck.
i don't appreciate you.
you are not welcome.

rust and weeds and vintage things

I would like you to meet my new friend.

This is my new friend.
She is a Nikon, I haven't named her yet.

She will be my companion on many adventures in the coming months. We have a lot to learn about one another before our big adventure overseas, however.
Say hello, everyone.

i have been home exactly one week.

Dinner with charlie: check
Renaissance masquerade party: check
Blueberry pancakes: check
Major procrastination: check
Homework: one down, one to go.
Walk around the lake: check
Run into friends at starbucks: check
Finish into the wild: check

coming up:
blackberry picking
family bbq
krista is coming home :)

and we're back.

home, that is.

to a new home, once again. time to relearn all of the drawers and cabinets in the kitchen

everything has been packed up, carefully placed in that back of my bright yellow traveling companion, carried home. and the unpacking is slowly beginning.

there is new ink on my skin.
hopefully there are new eyes to see as well.

and now begins the countdown...37 days until i fly away.
and the to-do list?

1. write a paper
2. write a research paper
3. read 7-9 books
4. make $500
5. find wool socks and a rain jacket
6. buy a camera?
7. write some letters
8. spend some qt with the fam
9. spend some qt with the friends
10. pick blackberries
11. bake things.

sidenote: if number six does happen...this is about to get a lot more colorful.

now, time for that paper.
peace.

i don't really feel like i have much more left to give. my brain is a bit numb.

everything has been unpacked, and it's about time to start packing up again.
to make the journey back home.

and i'm afraid i have way more baggage than when i started this summer.

so much for simplifying.

the fourth day of the month of july

may God be with the women exploited in maquiladoras, who breathe in the toxic refuse of our cheap commodities.

may we always look to God for patience, grace, mercy, and love.
may we never respond with anger, judgment, impatience, or despair.

may we remember that care for humans is fundamental to care for creation.
and that care for creation is fundamental to care for humans.
may we remember that we are unceasingly dependent upon one another. upon this earth. upon the God who gives us breath.

may we bless God with the love we have for one another.
may we be blessed by one another's love.