Dear World,

 

Why do I do what I am not supposed to do when I am not supposed to do it? That is where I am right now. 

 

I really should be packing for the GREATLY anticipated family trip to Florida. However, part of me is extremely glad that I came here and read Brittany's blog about raw chocolate pudding first. I am only human, after all. 

Today:

A long Saturday of working when I felt deep in my soul that no one should be working

Making mistake after mistake at work, which has been quite humbling to say the least

Having to listen to my supervisor point out each mistake, whilst silently chastising myself, "Really, Natasha? Really?" 

Having very little luck with resolving or correcting said mistakes

Yearning to go last-minute shopping for non-essentials to be enjoyed on the beach or on the road

Surreptitiously eating Dove's chocolates between visits with Credit Union members 

Reading superfluous sayings on said Dove's chocolate wrappers and finding very little meaning in these sayings

Wishing I had not woken up thirty minutes late, and thus missed out on reading Luke 6

Tomorrow, 5 a.m. Central Time: 

Driving to Florida, meeting up with Mom, Dad, Bo, Candice in Lafayette. 

Immediately: Beginning to be rather thrilled about this trip. :) 

 

Love,

Natasha W. 

 

Dear World,

I am suddenly shocked and troubled by the plethora of times I run into porn while signing into xanga. Shouldn't we have the right to refrain from viewing pornography? Or is it a requirement by the managers of xanga that all must incidentally, accidentally, and regularly view it in order to maintain a blog here? "Disgust" hardly describes the feelings I'm experiencing. I feel like spitting. And I am not a lady to go around spitting.

"Why?", I ask. Why would a blogging community promote this so? Perhaps this message should be directed, "Dear Xanga..." but then the remainder of such a letter would truly test my ability to respond tactfully to things that disgust me. Enough said.


The morning began beautifully with Cafe Verona straight from the percolator... a brewing method strongly encouraged to me by my mother who generously gave us one, months ago. I highly recommend it.

After getting ready for church and faithfully finishing my bowl of Special K (vanilla and almonds this month), I had the first of many long conversations with Micah. :) Those are unspeakably special to me. We are reading "Muslims, Christians, and Jesus" by Carl Medearis, and loving it. I practiced Fur Elise and Clair de Lune, and we walked across the street to church.

The pastor served up a thick and meaty message this morning. Ananias and Sapphira... the gravity of sin... the role of discipline in the church. Talk about hard to swallow. We left the service as a congregation "well-fed" and starving for lunch.

Back at home, we took a greatly needed and much longer than intended nap. Praise God. Micah agreed to tackle the mountain of dishes while I made us Mocha Milk Shakes with vanilla ice cream, Starbucks mocha powder, and VIA instant coffee. Fantastic.

Micah read through Medearis' book while I perused the daunting and challenging Seafood section of my ol' faithful Better Homes Cook Book. Planned out a few seafood dishes to try before lining up a menu for our week in Florida, in May. I am so anticipating that week with Mom, Dad, Bo, and Candice. Looking forward to long walks on the beach (seriously), crab hunting, snorkeling, sand-castle building, seashell collecting, and cooking for family. I imagine that fresh seafood will not be hard to come by. And I admit, that I am more than a little thrilled about attempting to tackle the ever-elusive, ever-glorious sensation of the Brick Oven Roasted Manila Clams with Spicy Rosemary Butter, Grilled Crostini dish we had at Palomino's in Dallas. It may not be that exactly, but clams are definitely on my "Must-Try" list for cooking seafood. Micah insists that I am allowed to buy lobster, and that he is eager to conquer the terrifying creatures so that I can cook them.


This evening, the pastor talked about the role of pastors as seen in Paul's example, Acts 20:17-24. Fantastic, thought-provoking, convicting.

Finished the evening with White Wine and Cheese Soup, and more long conversations about God, the Word, our goals, our failings, and our convictions.

This week: Focusing on being faithful in prayer, as seen in 2 Thess 5:16-18, Phil 4:6-7, and James 5:13-15. Continuing in 2 Corinthians, and Breaking Free Bible Study Homework. Listening to two sermons by John Piper, reading up on Frontiers Missions info, per Micah. And reading two chapters daily by Medearis.

Wow. I need a lot of prayer for this week. :) If you have any to spare.

Thank you.

Love,
Natasha W.

A recap of the week.


I was given the exciting privilege of teaching Sunday School yesterday. I didn't receive the lesson plan until Friday night, so I threw myself into the task after work on Saturday. This meant studying for 6 hours, only taking a break to advise Micah on how to hang up our new spice cabinet, and to pick up a mouth-watering pizza from Roger's, our new favorite local pizzeria.

Micah and I walked into the nearly empty shop and met Roger, slightly doused in flour, who had hand-tossed the dough himself. He greeted us, disappeared, and returned with a box, white, with true Italian colors, of course. Micah commented that the pizza smelled very good. Roger looked up from the register, and said very solemnly, "Open the box and look at it." Micah obeyed. Lo, and behold, the Hawaiian pizza, complete with pineapple, ham, bacon, and maraschino cherries. Needless to say, it was phenomenal. I just love it when you gather with other people to eat a meal, and the entire conversation over the meal is consumed with comments on how amazing the food is, including all of the imaginable adjectives you can summon to describe the majesty of such food. Roger provided that experience for us.

Thus, I walked back into the office at home, thankful and newly inspired to continue my journey through 2 Cor. 5.

My dear new friends: The Matthew Henry Commentary, The Strong's Concordance (along with a copy of KJV Bible), How to Read the Bible Book by Book (by Stuart and Fees), and Conflict and Community in Corinth (A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary on 1 and 2 Corinthians, by Witherington). Praise God for his provision through these resources! He knew that I needed such help from scholars who are so much more knowledgeable and wise than I am. Especially, since my class is made up of many women who are much wiser, older, and have been believers much longer than I have. God gave me the grace I needed to get through it. I was very satisfied with the outcome of the lesson and the class time, for which He deserves all of the credit. I reveled in the excitement of it all; for I discovered how enjoyable and exciting it is to prepare a lesson. After all, I was given the opportunity to research and study God's Word, to read books I'd never or barely opened before, to design and create and plan, and to share my heart with others.

On another note, I have some very good news. Micah and I have begun to play tennis together again for the first time in about a year. And, we are improving. I anticipate more tennis games this week, and new rackets in our fairly near future. We shall see.

On my heart this morning: The necessity and privilege of prayer, living a lifestyle that is "compelled by Christ's love", and the wonderful responsibility we have as ambassador's to the unbelieving world.

I have picked up Claire de Lune again, and refreshed my memory of Fur Elise, an old favorite. I love staying up late, pouring myself into the music, learning the notes and keys as instructed by Mozart and Debussy and Brahms, while Micah sits a few feet away, finishing up some imperative e-mail on the computer, writing something that is certain to be deep, true, and from his heart.

Something that has been my inspiration in music:

"If you want to build a boat, do not instruct the men to saw wood, stitch the sails, prepare the tools and organize the work, but make them long for setting sail and travel to distant lands." —Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, The Wisdom of the Sands

Love,
Natasha W.

Good evening, World.

I was just dropped off by one of my best friends (who happens also to be one of my very amazing sister-in-laws). I had been looking so forward all week to our "sisters night out" to a very girly chick flick. Not even the prestigious Yaya-Sisterhood type of chick-flick, but the very humbling new Miley Cyrus movie. It was a very refreshing experience after spending day after day with two wonderful, but manly men. Sign me up to see (almost) any movie with beautiful dresses, beaches, and moonlit romance after being surrounded by conversations about pipe tobacco, carpentry, and... well, beards.

I rest my case.

After having made what I believe to be a very good case for seeing The Last Song, I must further admit that I was not in the least bit disappointed. Admittedly, there were moments of pure, unadultered cheesiness... a lot of skimpily clad Miley... and the inevitably awkward long kiss. We must allow these minute concessions, however, in light of a great and many good qualities. We witnessed many elements of heroism, nobility, and strength of character. Solid examples of goodness were evident; qualities such as hope, joy, generosity, and grace were exalted, as they certainly ought to be. The issues of pain, death, and suffering were touched on quite beautifully without that twisted, hopeless worldview overshadowing it that seems to be very a common element in such movies. The brilliant Greg Kinnear seemed at moments to be playing the epitome of fatherhood; all the goodness we could hope to see, and perhaps do see in flashes of greatness in our own fathers. It was endearing, comforting, and inspiring in ways I can't quite put my finger on.

The beauty of music was, of course, a main theme, and served well the role of inspiration. It stirred and awakened some dormant parts of my soul... the parts that feel something beautiful when a piano key is touched... or feel that departure of breath when someone infinitely more gifted than I works their talented fingers over the keys... that luminous something. You know what it is. And if you've forgotten, I would suggest that you watch something to remind yourself. Even if it means watching something utterly, superfluously immature, or suffering through that long... interminably awkward kiss. Do it. Feed your soul what it needs.

Love,
Natasha W.

Dear World,

Today I am wondering silently, "Does the complexity of life ever soften? Ever simplify?" Mine seems to keep unfolding, unraveling, and yet, fastening itself with evermore folds, curls, wraps, and tangles until I feel as complicated as a rose bush growing against an old, wiry fence.

Thankfully, my brother-in-law recently introduced me to the wonderful world of Pandora Radio. The alternating performances of Doris Day, Frank Sinatra, and (may I present to you, the amazing) Sarah Vaughan have done a great deal to soothe my mind.

And I am overwhelmed with thankfulness these days. Today, the weather is breathtakingly beautiful, with subtle promises of rain, and a heavenly breeze.

Our garden is coming along splendidly. The eggplants are overcrowded, and we've had to catch up on picking out weeds and stones, but nonetheless, it looks beautiful. We've already tested the mint in a recipe for fresh lemonade, from an old friend at Starbucks (a beloved "regular").

Caroline's Freshly Squeezed Lemonade

Juice of 8 Lemons
3/4 Cup Sugar
Water
A Few Freshly Picked Peppermint Leaves

Hopefully, I will have some nice garden photos to post soon.

Love,
Natasha W.