yeeeaayyuuhhh!

Tonight i saw fireflies. Granted, it wasn't in a field or a forest but it was in a beautiful back-street neighborhood and they were dancing their beautiful bodies of light across the front yards in that always and forever magical way. I was so happy.

Today was lovely. I got up and went to the laundromat and ran errands with lacy. Then i went for a bike ride by myself along the lake shore. It was glorious. 76 and sunny and hundreds of sailboats out of the harbor bouncing on open water. The sun was so bright i had to close my eyes as i sat there on the edge looking out. I soaked up sun today. no rain; no grey; just sun. Yes, i know: glorious. It felt so good to ride. I wanted to ride and ride and leave the city behind--find some open road and big wide fields. Anyway, it calmed me. And recharged me. I thought of dad (because i always do when i bike) and of the time he quoted Eric Liddell, saying that when he (dad) bikes he "feels God's pleasure."

I went home and showered and then had a lovely phone chat with Mel. It was so good to hear her voice and talk life-stuff. I'm grateful for good friends :)

THEN, I got to see Wendy! She leaves for Nepal in three weeks and will be gone for the year. I'm so excited for her--she'll be teaching. I'm so glad I got to see her before she leaves. I went over to where she's staying for the weekend and we had tacos together and then walked to an ice cream shop in Wicker Park that makes the ice cream in front of you with mixers and dry ice. Crazy. We went back to the house and watched Mexico vs. US (Gold Cup). Mexico won, 4-2. I hardly knew who to cheer for. I get kind of patriotic for Mexico. It was super fun. Soccer is way more fun to watch than football, can I just say it? Seriously. The game isn't stopped every two seconds, for one thing. And I feel like the athletes are more...athletic? Am I allowed to say that?

Today was a good day. It reminded me of things I love and things that make me feel alive. Do the things that make you feel alive, k? I've been thinking about the idea of "taking charge of life." Not in a cavalier, cocky sort of way. And not in a way that strips us of faith or the difficult and freeing task of trusting to God each new day. No, I mean taking charge in the sense of choosing and pursuing things that make us alive; that make us healthier, freer people. Sometimes we get confused about what is good and right and most healthy/freeing. But we really ought not ever give up because finding life in that way is what makes life so beautiful and it's journey so rewarding.

There's a lot on my heart these days. Full and almost bursting. Wish I could share all of it with you :)

You might get bored.