Living in Community Part 2

As I said in my last post, I truly believe that we are all born with a desire to know and to be known. We don't want to go through this life alone, but instead we want people alongside us to cheer us on when we're doing well, and to be our shoulder to cry on when things go wrong.

But, what about a virtual shoulder?

We live in a technically charged world where Facebook, Twitter and Instagram are the norm, and behind all that are dozens of other ways to connect with people online - chat rooms and forums still exist, as do blogging communities and YouTube Channel subscriptions. These days, it's nearly impossible to feel lonely. All you need to do is put up a status or throw out a tweet, and you're likely to get some response. That's the point, right? To connect with other people? I mean, if the purpose of tweeting were to keep your thoughts to yourself and not hear from anyone else... well you probably wouldn't even bother. That's what diaries and journals are for.

Living in Community Part 1

I think we all have a deep desire in us to know and be known. There is something so unique about a relationship in which you don't have to fully explain yourself with every conversation and every decision, because the other person knows you. They know what makes you tick- your past hurts and triumphs and how those things have shaped you. They know your heart. I've written about this before in the context of marriage, but today I want to talk about friendships.

I have gone through many seasons in my life- seasons where I had a very active social life, where I would hang out with many people, usually in large group settings, and then seasons where I stepped away from that and tended to be more of a "homebody." Sadly, for me, this was often directly correlated to the person whom I was dating. If they were social, I was social. if they were not, I stayed home all weekend long in my pj pants watching reruns of Friends. I always insisted I was happy as a clam either way, and at the time I was, but looking back I have no idea how I lived so far from any kind of community. Often, after those relationships ended I would be left with feelings of regret for not engaging fully in friendships, but was always so thankful when the few that stood the test of time were still there when I turned back towards them. That being said, I realize I took these friendships for granted, and would not choose to that again. I certainly learned my lesson!

A Perfect Fight

We've been here before. Haven't we all? It's a good hour past the time we went to bed and here we lay, side by side in the dark arguing.

Oh, how I despise the anonymity that a dark bedroom brings. Courage comes out when you're not looking at each others faces, seeing the tears and expressions of hurt. Things are said that don't need to be said.

If I can't say it to your face, quite frankly I don't want to say it at all.

The subject matter matters little. The point is that we were both hurt and upset, both for valid reasons. Neither was wrong. Neither was right. And it may have been the late hour, but I was rocked to my core about this fight. I laid there trying to explain to him why the sobbing wouldn't stop, and I really had no idea. My best guess was that something he said triggered a deep hurt buried somewhere inside my heart.

Only The Lord Can Make Me Like Gardening

Remember when I wrote about planting my flower beds, and what a horrible experience that was? And how I actually hate gardening altogether? Well friends, I am shocked that I am typing this out, but it turns out that I don't actually hate the flower beds anymore. Actually, I have found myself enjoying taking care of them.

It's crazy, I know.

Fighting for Joy

It all went downhill at Wal-Mart

My intentions were to stop in quickly and buy the plants, and then get home and plant them. I figured the whole process from parking at Wal-Mart to cleaning the dirt under my nails would take an hour, maybe and hour and a half tops.

First of all, can I just remind you all of my extreme dislike for gardening? Well, an update from that post- we did indeed grass seed the entire garden. It made me quite happy. Unfortunately, I still have a few flower beds that needed attention. If I could get away with not touching them I would, but I learned last year that flower beds also grow weeds really well, and having that in front of your house is slightly embarrassing.