Our summer has passed by with a rather flat feel. Our small group had their regular events--a beach day, a camp-out, and a movie night--but many of the events we had to attend late or were unable to attend because of my Saturday job. And the group has changed in dynamic and feel. Our old group leaders' baby is nearly 7 months old now, and two other couples are now expecting. Another couple has found a different church to call home, and another couple we haven't seen much of at all this summer because of busy schedules.
Stephen has taken on the roll of leader again for the fall, but I won't be taking on the secondhand-man's responsibility of coordinating events or keeping the group up-to-date with e-mails as I did last time. I'm simply not gifted in those ways. I may be a writer, but it doesn't immediately make me a good coordinating communicator. :)
Our summer has even been slow photographically. We didn't get out on any hikes at all. Stephen took a few days to himself to take photographs, while I was at work or otherwise engaged, but I have only taken pictures of the arrangements I have done.
This next year is going to be full of a lot of change and transitioning, things I have never taken very well. But some of them I am excited about--I took a second floristry class this summer and did really well in it. I am also being blessed with opportunities to do more than just deliver flowers at my work. I made my best arrangement yet today, and my supervisor and manager seem to have been impressed, which is incredibly exciting. I sense that God's going to do something big in my life with flowers, and I haven't been so excited about something since I met Stephen! :D
Another exciting thing is that my relationship with God seems to be entering into a growth spurt. I have sensed reasons for things in my life that I would never have seen reasons for before. I have even started doing personal devotions, something I haven't been successful at since...let's see...ever! But I have asked others to keep me uplifted in prayer so that I can continue this pattern.
Stephen and I are coming up on our second anniversary, and I'm happy to say that we are much more solidified than we were in our first year. We act so much more like a unit, which I was really not sure was going to happen while we were in our first year together, LOL. God is good. :)
Some fun things we did this summer:
- Went camping at Beverly Beach together, just the two of us.
- I learned to sew and made myself a cloak.
- Found some clothes at a yard sale, and Battle of the Sexes.
- Cooked our own meals for 2.5 weeks! (A big step for us. Eating out is such a temptation!)
- Went to the beach several times.
- Used our Entertainment Book a lot (yessssss!).
- Had a lot of really good talks. :)
Overall, I'm glad the summer is ending. I wish it had had more high notes and less flat ones. But life's pendulum keeps swinging--it'll be up again soon. Guaranteed. It's like the seasons--no matter how terrible the winter, spring does follow with its new beginnings.
