this year

there's a lot to talk about.
2010 was long- there was a lot of living squeezed into 12 short months.
spring semester barely even makes sense when i think about it, it feels like so long ago, but i know that it was about learning, about affirming, and about widening my soul. i moved into spaces that were wider and greener in relationships and in my spirit then i'd ever dreamed could exist.
we drove up the coast to san francisco and i prayed with a soul blown open with the glory of God and the majesty of His creation.
summer ate away at me. it was long and laborious. it was about building and tearing down ideas and conceptions.
and then africa. i don't know if i'll ever understand the extent of how my time in africa affected me, i just know that in my mind the condition of my heart will be gauged in two time spans- before and after africa.
africa deepened everything. everything that had been small, that had scratched the surface before i left was pulled away in the rushing undertow. and some of that was good, or at least, was recognizably good and obviously positive. and some of it ripped me up. africa tore away at my comfort box. there were times of incredible peace, but the scariest moments of my life were in africa and were facing things that were so much bigger then i'd imagined. but i was not crushed, i was not left there alone. i was pulled along by the grace of God. and it was harder then i'd dreamed, but i will understand the preciousness of it and i praise God for what He did and who He is.
and now i'm here. the new year has started and i'm looking toward starting another semester of school in LA. another 5 months of figuring out how to do this better.
here's to learning, loving, and getting older.
welcome 2011.