American Poets

For as long as I can remember, I've loved song, poetry, and the folk culture of real people speaking.

Two of my favorite poets are Langston Hughes and Henry Rollins. In some ways these men could not be more different from one another, but they are folk artists, true to form, so they both touch my soul.

Below are my favorite verses from each:

There were things I wanted to tell you

I couldn't get it together

I couldn't get past your eyes

After you were gone it hurt to have kept quiet

So easy not to say what you think

To not do what you want

Hard to take rejection

Easy to hurt someone and not know it

Easy to make it hard

Henry Rollins

To wander through this living world
And leave uncut the roses
Is to remember fragrance where
The flower no scent encloses
Langston Hughes

Rollins in these verses represents the angst of my youth, when I was struggling to define and in all ways vocalize the truths about life that I was discovering through growth.

Hughes' verses are a bit different for me. As a teenager, I felt that I would burst if I could not express my emotions. Later, I began to realize that, in many of the things I am not able to say, there is a true beauty in the unsaid. There are truths that take shape in the silences, only to become just as real as if they were spoken.

This is a simple revelation, but to live consciously in appreciation of both the silence and the speech is a humbling and challenging thing.

Boundaries

Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.

The verse above is my life verse for my current life stage in young adulthood. It is harder than I would have thought to be an adult - doing the small things like saving money, getting in to work each day - even when it's a job I love - and the topic of this post, setting boundaries for myself in life and keeping them.

I am learning to let go of what is not in my control, to let my emotions be what they are while ruthlessly examining where they might come from and what sorts of healthy changes I might make in order to be who God has created me to be. It is exciting but constant to live like this.

After nine days of a really great training, I'm off on a plane trip, during which I'll be reading the 12 Steps and thinking about what it means for my everyday day life to be an offering.

Our poor kitten...

...has fleas.

I learn something about being a cat momma every day it seems.

Last night I learned that quality time with a sick O the cat is not too different than quality time with a sick toddler - putting on a movie, making them take their medicine, and making them sit still while the meds take effect.

Our little boy is a trooper, and this vegetarian has never been more happy to imagine a bunch of animals (those pesky fleas!) dying all at once.

Your kitty prayers and best wishes for a speedy recovery are appreciated!

Sweet home

Here at long last is the real peak into our new home. To us, it couldn't feel more comfy or happy. We're grateful to have had an easy move, and we're excited to welcome visitors and make memories. Enjoy the tour!

New home sneak peek

As you know, we've recently moved, and what a journey it has been, and continues to be!

Now that we're starting to settle in, we're ready to give you just a peak into our new world.

The best part about this picture? O the cat loving our brand new chaise lounge.

The second best thing about this picture? The sum total expense to S and I for every single object in it is zero dollars. Cero dolares. Nada.

By comparison, that makes O the cat quite the luxury item.

More on our move later!

Open eyes, open ears

We've made the big move out west, to central Massachusetts!

Our first weekend in a new home, we ventured up north a bit to the New England Drag Way for a day of lemonade, sunshine, and racing Mustangs.

I am so glad S invited me to this event! I learned a lot about different kinds of car modifications, drag racing in general, and was very entertained by both the match ups and the car show, which featured all sorts of varieties of this American classic car. How neat for S to be part of a club like this, where he can find buddies to talk cars with and inspiration to keep the lovely Mustang Sally looking good.

I have so much fun trying out new things, especially when I get to learn something in the process or explore a different area of the world - in this case New England/New Hampshire.

Do you think I look ready for the races?!

Ever think about this?

A series of studies released this week found that even at the Olympics - where for the first time ever, every country has a female representative, and the U.S. has actually sent more women than men to compete  - the coverage of male athletes continues to outnumber that of females. (Despite the fact that more women are watching the events than men.) And, when women are being covered at the games this year, they are often sexualized or reduced to observations on their appearance. 

- MissRepresentation

Human progress is neither automatic nor inevitable... Every step toward the goal of justice requires sacrifice, suffering, and struggle; the tireless exertions and passionate concern of dedicated individuals. 

- Martin Luther King, Jr.

Never stop thinking.