Livin' it up

I've been in Rome sweet Rome for roughly 1.5 weeks.
Excitement is an understatement.
The pictures are endlessly exciting (thank you THE incredible Madison Willoughby for such wonderful pictures)
Basically we've been visiting Cups and Mugs a lot...and taking pictures.

Decorated cups & mugs are the best. Quotes from the night. They're all quite hilarious. 

The epitome of my friendship with this girl. She is love.

Fouche Gap - coldest place in Rome, but gorgeous. We tried to stay for the sunset but the wind was killer.

  

Sometimes we get a little carried away with Apples to Apples..

okay we get carried away a lot.

Adore these girls!!

I know this is probably horrible, but this is one of the many reasons I love this girl SO much - she is hilarious and doesn't mind it - she's pretty comfortable in her skin. I cannot help but die laughing when I see this.

I do life with these girls so much and I enjoy them more than I can ever tell you. I'm hoping this is a small glimpse of how incredible my semester has been so far. The stress is there; I can't deny it. But I can't overlook these incredible women of God and their impact on my life. I so so adore our times together and can't wait for more. We are livin' it up Rome-style.

p.s. I may or may not have leap-frogged a big yellow pole. 

God FTW Thursday

Wow.
That basically describes my day.
My heart is overflowing.

3am was pretty rough last night, I can't lie. I did NOT want to get up this morning, but I'm so very glad I did.
I had a pretty uneventful morning working on computers in the Liberry. Those ladies just ask so much! Had lunch with the beautiful Abigail and we were joined by Suz & Cody. My boss brought his cherry sunburst Gibson Les Paul to work after lunch. I almost died from not breathing. It was gorgeous. We didn't get a chance to play, but we will tomorrow. I'm so excited.
We headed out to the Liberry to finish more computers, but I left around 330 for a playdate with Emily. Starbucks, TJ Maxx, and Ross ensued. After not finding leg warmers there, we ran to the mall & found some in Rue21. We left there with leg warmer twinsies and visited Connect Rome where we chillaxed with some cool kids there for a while. This guy came in because he was in the mall, I guess, and saw the CR stuff and just wanted to know about the church. He said he wanted to have somewhere to get plugged in at. He's been gone from Rome for about 3 years and is currently without a job here. God humbled me through this guy today. Wow. I pray..goodness I pray..that somehow, some way, CR can hook him up with a ride this week so he can come encounter God and just be loved on in that place. Because when you go to CR..you get loved on. A lot. Jeannene and I left there and went out for dinner to Panera. OH..there was a gorgeous sunset in the mix too. I missed half of it, but the other half was just mindblowing.
After a wonderful dinner & tons of chatting, JBean dropped me off at M/L for a little Disney time with Susan and Madison. Hello Lion King!! It reminded me so much of April and John Burnett because we roar a lot.
After finishing the movie and sitting for a bit, I ran over to the liberry (for the third time in one day, might I add..the most ALL semester..and I walked, but 'ran' sounded better) to see the one and only Sarahtaco. After extended conversations about everything under the sun because that's what happens when we're together, I walked home in the cold. I almost didn't notice though. I couldn't help thinking back over my day and all the ridiculously incredible people I'd seen.
THEN I saw Abs again...and upstairs..in ma room..low and behold..THERE WERE COOKIES! From Kurtis because she is love. =)

I feel like I talked all day about being in Rome and how God has such a purpose here right now in my life. It blows my mind to even think about thinking about it. It made me think of the song "count your blessings" (and by song I mean hymn) from back in the day...I felt like God was literally showing me my blessings in Rome today..over and over and over again. People, sunsets, places, memories. I don't know. It just absolutely made my heart melt. I am in awe of how God crosses our paths with other people.
I remembered sometime earlier this week how I sent Jeannene a text during Passion last year because we were both there and I wanted to meet up with her. I don't even remember how I had her number or why we were friends. Emily and I are just barely friends, but she has been such a ridiculous encouragement over the past few months. I honestly can't remember off the top of my head when I got her number.
Katie and I met because of Relay.
Susan and I randomly became friends in paint class. I don't even remember how. And Madison is her roommate so we became friends and Mads gave me JMM which is heaven in CD-R form!
And Sarah. Sweet Sarah who I've known as two different people for a while. Talk about scatter-brained. She works with my bffrussian, Bell, and has for 1.5 years, but I never really knew her. Then I saw her with Susan a lot, but I didn't know she was the same person as the girl at telecom. Then I put them together and it was crazy. Like a sushi roll. And now she, susan, & i are going to be summer roomies. WOAH crazy!
Abs and I have been friends for three whole years. Three. Since freshman year. She was legitimately the first person I met here. WOW.

God, You are mind-blowing. And I am unreasonably, extravagantly, ridiculously blessed.

Going Home

I am practically anti-go-home right now. It would be easy for someone on the outside looking in to say my reason lies in the drama of the past few months, but they'd be wrong. I know it could look that way. I know it could look as if my dissatisfaction with middle Georgia lies within drama of all sorts, from family to friends to work to life in general there...but it doesn't.

What constitutes "home" to us? Maybe "home is where the heart is." Merriam-Webster gives a hand full of definitions. one's place of residence. the social unit formed by a family living together. a familiar or usual setting. a place of origin, headquarters. an establishment providing residency and care for people with special needs.

Okay, I know the last one applies. =D
But that's not what I'm getting at.

A home to me is this: It IS where my heart is. A home is where you grow, where you are nurtured and fed. Home is the place where you feel most comfortable, but are most stretched outside of those comfort zones. Home is where you are challenged and loved.

Home. Home for me is here. Rome.

Yes, I'm most comfortable here. I own this place. I live here. I am here. My life is here.
Yes, I am most challenged here. I have no idea what I'm doing, but God still makes it happen. I am selfish and greedy, but God has called me to give nonetheless. And give abundantly. I am an outsider here...but I'm an outsider with other outsiders...and together we are family.
We are family.
They are my family.

I am stretched here to bring my heart, my brokenness, the frayed pieces of my string-of-a-life, and lay them down in order to do for God. In order to be all for Him. I'm called to open my hands and let go of all I've held on to in order to catch the righteousness He is raining down on me. I am inspired by so many people here - both in my church and outside of it. I am challenged by my Bible study girls. I am inspired by their love for God and desire to seek Him. I'm also inspired and comforted by their humanity and how they live for God, even when they're broken and a mess.

When you find a place where you connect to God...when you find a place where, even in your cluelessness, you KNOW what He's called you for.....you are where you should be.

God calls us out of places and to other places. My earthly home might change sometime in the future...but right now.
this...this is home.