holy moly.

holy moly, it's november! i know this sounds incredibly cliche, but time seriously flies by faster the older i get. i can't believe it's november and we're heading into another holiday season! it's been almost a YEAR since i got done with my internship. that's insane. (and yet to find a job related to my field haha) i'm so excited for the holiday season. i could type out a thousand different things i LOVE about this time of the year... thanksgiving, family, friends, fires, sweatshirts, sweatpants, hot tea, pumpkin spice lattes, blankets, socks, boots, buying that PERFECT christmas present for someone special (and getting presents!), the first snow, listening to christmas music way too early and on and on!

one of my best friends sent me this quote from a book (cold tangerines) and it's really been on my heart lately....

"when you decide to go on a journey with God, everything is interim...everything is interim. Everything is a path or a preparation for the next thing, and we never know what the next thing is. Life is like that, of course, twisty and surprising. but life with God is like that exponentially. we can dig in, make plans, write in stone, pretend we're not listening, but the voice of God has a way of being heard. it seeps in like smoke or vapor even when we've barred the door against any last minute changes, and it moves us to different countries and different emotional territorIes and different ways of living. it keeps us moving and dancing and watching and never lets us drop down into a life set on cruise control or a life ruled by remote control. life with God is a daring dream, full of flashes and last minute exits and generally all the things we've said we'll never do. and with the surprises comes great HOPE."

i am not good with change. i am not good with things being in the interim. i like plans and i like to write in stone. i constantly feel like i am waiting for things in my life to be settled. but thanks to the loving God i serve and the incredible friends and family i have in my life, i am constantly being gently reminded and encouraged to not settle for the set-in-stone plans i tend to make for myself. i love how this quote talks about the voice of God being as smoke or vapor, seeping in even when we've barred a door against change (which i do often).

i have felt very hopeful this past weekend. hopeful for this season i am in. hopeful for what God is doing in my life. hopeful for the exciting changes that have happened and will be happening in the near future. i pray this hopefulness is something i can continue to cling to. and i continue to learn and be at peace with this constantly shifting, ever changing life we're living. it's a work in progress.