how gorgeous our little Kashmir is.

"If you could soldier on, headstrong into the storm, I'll be there waiting on the other side for you. Don't look back - the road is long. The first days of the war are gone. Take back your former throne and turn the tide. 'Cause if you never leave home and never let go, you'll never make it to the great unknown. Keep your eyes open, my love. Tell me you're strong. Tell me you see. I need to hear it - can you promise me to keep your eyes open? Just past the circumstance - the first light, a second chance. No child could ever dance the way you do. Tear down the prison walls. Don't stop though the burden calls. Your chains will never fall until you do. Don't let the fear become the hate. Don't take the sadness to the grave. I know the fight is on the way, but the sides have been chosen. So, show me your fire. Show me your heart. You know I'll never let you fall apart, if you you keep your eyes open."

Lyrics by NeedtoBreathe

 Exploring Mississippi with great friends.

 Seeing this precious face every afternoon when I get home from work.

Remembering how romantic and perfect our first married Valentine's Day was.

Learning to fall in love with teaching, despite the stress and disorganized administration, and recognizing how wonderful my students are.


























Reading Night Circus non-stop when I get the chance, and spending time with God in the Word each morning.

I was manically adding beautiful shots to my Lenspiration board on Pinterest, and I saw these pictures on this board....




























along with some others like those, and I thought, wouldn't it be such a cool idea to do an all black-and-white, indie-magazine-style engagement shoot? Someone should make this happen.

I'm about to get real for a sec. When I look at these pictures, I often get this deep sadness and sense of dissatisfaction. In college, I felt SO sure that God's purpose for my life involved travel and/or living in another country. I knew that he had given me my hunger for travel for a reason. Now, living in Mississippi, I feel so thankful to have a job that allows me to influence lives every day, and I'm so incredibly blessed to have an amazing man to share a home and life with, but I still find myself asking God, "When? Is missions even still part of the plan? Did I misunderstand you? Have I been so wrapped up in my own desires that I just heard what I wanted to?"

Honestly, I don't have the answers to those questions. My heart still longs for travel and culture and missions, but I don't know how God is going to use that. What I can say is that I have learned so much about God through this area of confusion in my life. "Whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say, 'It is well. It is well with my soul.'" I now understand that my job is simply to do the best I can with the lot that I have been given in each moment, rather than constantly asking, "What next?" Because if I'm constantly questioning whether or not my vision for my life is going to happen, I'm not trusting that God's vision will be more fulfilling and more impactful than anything I could have ever imagined. And after all, this life is God's, not mine. The glory belongs to him, not me. I am exactly where I am for a purpose, and I am learning to be completely peaceful/content in that.