And so with the sunshine and the great bursts of leaves growing on the trees, just as things grow in fast movies, I had that familiar conviction that life was beginning over again with the summer.” -F.Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby
Summer. I feel like Fitzgerald reached in my heart and grabbed the feelings I didn’t quite know how to put into words. Each year, summer stirs something in my heart. It reminds me of newness and brings a smile to my face. It offers a change of pace and unique opportunities.
The sun is shining, the flowers are blooming, and life is beautiful. I’m living fully, enjoying God’s presence, and learning along the way. My summer has been busy, but I have already made lots of memories. It hasn’t been perfect, but I’m constantly learning that mundane and imperfection have as much beauty and purpose as laughter. Not to mention, I have been so blessed with family and friends to love every step of the way.
I spent a week at Student Life Camp at the beach. It was an incredible week of bonding with my youth group, worship, and lots and lots of learning about God. When I got home I wrote six pages in my journal. Needless to say, that’s way too much to share in one post and I will disperse all the things God is working on in my heart through my next few posts.
I have spent a lot of time working. But who can complain when you get to spend summer days at the pool? As I said, sometimes mundane is beautiful. A perfect summer doesn’t have to be spent vacationing to islands and going on crazy adventures. So much joy and adventure is right in front of you if you just open your eyes.
I have been running, swimming, and seizing any opportunity I have to enjoy the beautiful scenery and sunshine. Running provides me with a chance to push my body and rest my mind. It gives me time to think and connect with God or enjoy the company of friends.
I’m so thankful for my family. I’ve realized how quickly time is moving and how precious these memories I’m making with them are. Whether it’s watching a movie, redneck camping in the middle of nowhere, or car rides together, we have already been having a great summer together.
My friends, my church, my youth group, my boyfriend…I’m so, so, so blessed. Life can be hard and God has placed some amazing people in my life to cry with, laugh with, eat ice cream with, and share life with. God is teaching me to share my life with others and how important it is to have friends who are always there to point you back to Jesus.
Of course, I haven’t neglected writing. I have been working on blogging and writing and I’m really excited to see where God leads me. He has placed some great opportunities in front of me and I can’t wait to share those with you in the next few months! I trust God will keep speaking, I will keep writing, and I hope you will keep reading.
This is just a glimpse of what my summer has looked like. I will be back on the blog soon with more posts and adventures I’m passionate about and excited to share with you, I hope you’ll join me.
If you haven’t noticed, I’ve updated my page with some ways to keep up-to-date with my journey of Becoming Emma. You can find links on the sidebar to follow me on Instagram or Twitter, and like my new page on Facebook. You can also follow my blog on Bloglovin’ or sign up to follow me through email (follow button on bottom right corner of page). I have created a GoodReads page if you are interested in what I am reading. As always, I would love to hear from you!