Just A Quick Little Morning Jot

There's a lot around here in my life that's movin' and groovin'. Thankfully travel season is pretty much over for anything farther than local cities! My last trip to Baltimore was wonderful. A good wrapping up of the season for sure. It seems as though with the change of the weather comes life with it's own changes and beginnings. This morning is was the coldest morning we have had here yet in the good ol' 757. A crisp 34 degrees. My housemate and I started a new morning routine which puts us up before the sun at 6 a.m. The great thing is that I feel so productive and alive! Let's hope I feel that way next week. Other exciting things are on the horizon as it comes to things that are movin' in life. From wedding coordinating, to justice creative initiative projects, to meetings with my beautiful mentee, to progressing in my rock climbing, to bridesmaid responsibilities for a wedding in the Midwest, to all my little creative side projects and future planning... More details in months to come. Oh!! And I get a bed this week!! Exciting adulting things. Guys, I just can't wait to sleep in it...or maybe jump on it. Ya know. Break it in.

This is a brief update on just general life things. It may not seem like much but it's all filling me up. I feel alive. I feel like myself which is a beautiful thing. I'm going to keep writing about Storyline but I gotta take care of a few things before I do. Especially since I'm still doing my own personal processing.

For now, I leave you with this. Morning's deserve a little inspiration & beauty.

- - Sweetly - -

Gabrielle

Storyline Reflections // Part 1

Last week I flew to Chicago to attend a conference called "Storyline." This conference has been held annually for the past 8 years. You may associate Storyline with the author Donald Miller who has written works such as Blue Like Jazz, A Million Miles in a Thousand Years and most recently Scary Close. Back in college we were required to read Blue Like Jazz for a film class I took. I didn't read it. I had this bad habit of not reading things that I was told I had to read. Of course, this wasn't true for all assigned readings, but if I could get by I would do the least reading I could. I wasn't a fan of reading until I graduated college. Now, I can't put some of my books down and have the problem of reading multiple books at once. You will almost always find one in my purse. If I'm out on the road and eating alone sitting at a table for one or at the bar with my headphones in, you will always find a book in front of me and a pen in my right hand.

A friend of mine passed along her copy of Scary Close to me before she moved to South Africa. I flipped open the front cover and devoured it. Shortly after I signed up to receive the Storyline Blog by email and that's when I heard about the conference. I watched a video about it. I read about it. Still a bit unsure of what it was about I decided that I wanted to go. If it had anything to do with storytelling, art, dreams, faith and if Don would be speaking, I was there. I didn't spend much time contemplating it, I prayed about the financial commitment and time off work and you know what...I came back from two weeks on the road from work and the Lord completely surprised me financially...I cried. Confirmation. I was confident and excited. I booked my ticket. Didn't look back.

I have quite a few friends in the Chicago area so I definitely had accommodations. It was a little exciting to feel like such an adult. I travel alone for work all the time but I had never done anything quite like this. I flew, picked up a rental from the airport, drove to my friends home, drove to the conference, and with empty journal in hand, confidently stepped onto the Willow Creek Campus. I had a friend tell me from prior attendance at Storyline to get up close on the action so I placed myself in third row toward center. Although I was traveling alone, me being me, I made connections and friends with those around me. Everyone had their own story to tell of how they ended up at Storyline. Mine was...I'm not entirely sure what this is or why I'm here but I'm expectant and excited.

For two days I had the privilege of hearing from people like Donald Miller, Bob Goff (Pepperdine Law Professor, Hon. Consul for the Republic of Uganda, author of Love Does) , Shauna Niequist (author: Bittersweet, Bread & Wine, Cold Tangerines), Miles Adcox (CEO Onsite Workshops) , and Jeremy Cowart (photographer). If you have yet to hear of any of these people I would highly recommend checking them out! Each person shared their life story, their passions, their dreams, their struggles and triumphs. I want to say that I appreciated their transparency. I valued their vulnerability. I cherish their wisdom. They did everything they could to make sure they showed their humanity.

I have quite a bit to share from the conference but for now I will leave you with this little gem. I ran into Bob Goff just as he walked in the back of the end of the conference on Day 1. He gave me a hug and said "Hi, I'm Bob! I like your hat! Here let's take a selfie!" ‪ My admiration for these humans stretches a thousand miles and a million years.

The Road Doesn't End Here...

It's been a while dear friend. There have been many instances where I have wanted to sit down to blog but the time and place never suited such. Then I get to my hotel room and all I want to do is take a hot shower and curl up with the duvet. Life on the road has been a whirlwind. I definitely cannot believe that it's already mid October. Excuse me, when did that happen?

Let me set the scene for you. It's a sunny but chilly 45 degrees outside. I'm sitting in a cafe called Drip Cafe // Coffee & Brunch. It's a cozy place that will be closing in a mere 30 minutes...so I'm typing crazy quick. Also, partly because that cup of coffee was just so good. There's a beautiful painting on the wall a good 50 feet from me. I could probably stare at it for a good few hours. I guess that detail wasn't necessarily needed but there you have it. Describing rather than showing is an art form in itself. I hope by writing I am growing in that area. To build the connection between what I say and what you perceive.

In any case, all of this to say I have some unfinished business that I would like to attend to. Things such as finishing my documentary on my trip to Colorado, writing about that trip itself (long overdue), writing about my fall travels and sharing some stories of my own and others that have left an imprint on my heart along the way. I want to share the moments that made my heart come alive and the moments that broke it. All of these things and so many more. I've been learning so much and a great deal about myself. There's beauty in the head-space I have been able to acquire this fall. There's freedom in it. I'm definitely thankful for it especially knowing that when I get back to the office I will have to make time to break away and find that head-space. A challenge I am accepting.

Although my time on this road is coming to it's close, it doesn't end here. I'm super stoked about the possibilities of the future. This journey is only a preview.

Colorado Dreamin // Part I

• Scribed while sitting at my kitchen table, window open, peppers and onions on the stove •

It is time. Basically I have found a blissful moment to sit down and write. I have had so much on my brain and not enough time in the day to sit down and write about it all. I'm back logged on blogging. Even now I am getting up every so often to toss my food veggies and then sit down to resume writing. It's beautifully gloomy outside. A bit humid, but I can handle it. The house is quite because everyone's gone and I'm not playing any music. Sometimes my brain needs a break. I can hear crickets outside my window, I can hear my fingers hitting the keys, and I can hear the popping of extra virgin olive oil in the pan. Now that I have introduced the scene I can get to the rest of this happy post.

"How was your trip?!" -- "How was Colorado?!" -- I'm sure Kelsey and I heard these two questions about a hundred times after our arrival back home. Last I spoke of Colorado I told you that we quickly bought the tickets and didn't look back. I also said that if I didn't write while I was out there that I would have plenty to share upon my return. So let's start from the beginning...

The night before we left for Colorado Kelsey and I celebrated a friend's birthday at a restaurant in Norfolk. Come to find out as we were leaving we both had barely started packing. We had a long night ahead of us. The morning of a friend's mom (whom I consider to be a spiritual mother to me) picked me up and dropped me off at the airport. The excitement grew as I walked up to my gate only to find that a good friend of mine (whom I also used to rock climb with) was at my gate as a gate attendant. We chatted about my newest adventure and then before long I boarded the plane and was up in the air. I think I slept only a bit before I landed in New Jersey to connect flights and meet up with Kelsey who was on an earlier departing flight than I was. My heart skipped a beat when we reunited in the concourse of Newark. We both hadn't had breakfast and she had so patiently waited for me so it was the first thing we did. As we sat over our breakfast sandwiches and coffee I asked her about what she felt, if anything, that this trip would be for her. Originally I had bought my plane ticket and then soon after Kelsey hopped on board, which I wouldn't have changed for anything. It was a refreshing moment. Thinking now on the fact that we were at our half way point towards our destination kinda symbolizes where we both find ourselves. I can still remember how it felt to sit there and hear her heart. That is my first cherished moment of the trip. We are both in transition. I said nothing of the blog post I had written the night before but as she kept talking there was more and more connection and commonality for us than I had realized. I eventually shared about my wanting to be expectant and not expecting and she agreed that's where she was as well. What a beautiful start to the trip and a moment I will remember as a budding part of our beginning friendship. 

So how about I leave you with that for now. There may be 20 parts to this tale of adventures west but I'm down for sharing them if you're down for some reading. If you're not, well then, I'm sorry, too bad, because I am sharing them anyway. You're welcome. ;) 

I'll leave you with a photo and believe me there are plenty more to come. I gotta scarf some food and hit the rock gym! 

Freely,

Gabrielle

The Run Away Girl

"Can we just run away?" She asked so innocently. 

Her heart shone through her eyes; a look of desire for adventure and a hope for new horizons to embrace. 

"I'm alive and I want the earth to know it." 

Jo I Miss Her So

Dearest Jordan, I don't know how exactly our friendship came to be.

Fate. I suppose it was. Regardless, my dear, you are an inspiration.

(Just a little reminder from January 2015)

"This weekend I took a trip some with friends to Lynchburg. While many of my friends took to the snowy mountains peaks to board I spent time exploring the burg with Jordan, attended my first hockey game, decided I like hockey, drank lots of coffee, took lots of pictures and enjoyed just kinda going with the flow of the weekend. Time spent in Lynchburg was therapeutic in a lot of ways. Although my body may be exhausted from staying up till 3 am and getting up at 9 am a couple times (way past my bedtime) it was well worth it. My heart and spirit are well rested and encouraged by talks of dreams, passions, faith, insecurities, strengths, growth and the ever exciting unknown full of endless possibility. My heart sighed a lot this weekend and reminded me that releasing control should be more of a constant in life."

\\ A Post About Kyle \\

I made my way to the lobby of the Kimpton Monaco Hotel where I decided I would spend the rest of my time waiting for my room to be ready. There was a blazing fire behind glass that looked ever so inviting--of course this is where I elected to sit. A young 19 year old boy with braces, dressed in a button up shirt, dark blue jeans (most likely his best pairs) and some leather work boots sat in a lounge chair just there next to the fireplace. I asked him if he was waiting on someone to join him and he responded with saying that he was waiting for a manager for an interview but that I was welcome to sit with him while he waited. Being inquisitive as I am and seeing as he was clearly very nervous I decided to engage in conversation with him. Perhaps it will help to settle his nerves, I thought. He explained to me that he was in attendance at a local community college and doesn't know what he wants to do with his life but really needed this job. "I really need this job. I pray I get this job." Sounds like a line from a familiar Broadway musical A Chorus Line... "I really need this job. Please God, I need this job. I've got to get this job." As we sat there I asked him questions about what he thought his strengths were and he did his best to piece together the words to describe how he was cooperative, how he is a leader and very energetic. I told him these were all wonderful qualities encouraging him in each one and telling him how important all of these qualities were. Our conversation seemed to die a bit as I picked up my book and he picked up his phone, I made the leap. "Would you mind if I prayed for you?" I asked. He smiled and said, "That would be wonderful." I am so glad I got to have this conversation with Kyle and the opportunity to get to pray for him. Not soon after I finished praying with him my room was ready, he thanked me and I told him that I hoped and prayed he would get the job and if not that one that the perfect one would come along. I walked away from that lobby and Kyle has stuck with me. I wish I could have been a butterfly on the wall of the interview room, first off because who wants to be a fly on a wall, and secondly to find out just how the interview went. I wish I knew if he got the job or if another opportunity is coming along for him. It was only yesterday that all of this occurred so I'm sure it would be a few weeks till they let him know but even so...I will never know. But, he is on my mind and I'm entrusting that the Lord has amazing plans for him. It only takes 5 minutes to have a positive influence or impact on someones life. It only takes 5 minutes for someone else to impact your own.

Good Morning Baltimore // A Little Dose Of My Day

 None of these photos are edited. Raw baby! Eat it up. This is the real stuff. Pre-edit. I'm being so transparent right now. Enjoy a couple shots from my afternoon in Baltimore!

The outside or the Kimpton the old B&O Railway Headquarters

Gorgeous Interiors

Spent a good deal of time admiring details of the Kimpton

Yes, Puhleeze!

My office space this evening

No better way to get some work done 

How refreshing & the lighting was simply beautiful (lemon water)

This is Frank he was really helpful since it was my first time at Nalley Fresh!

This delectable bowl includes: Herbed Salmon, Spinach, Quinoa, Crasins, Feta, and a Cilantro Lime Vinagarette

This may be a bit much but...I'm a Giraffe!! Complimentary Kimpton robes!

Nuh-night,

Gabrielle

A Beautiful Farewell

I feel as though my brain has been reeling with so many thoughts as this year is coming to it's close, and the next is only two hours away (1 hour for my friends on the east coast). A year ago today I was in Missouri packing up my bags in preparation to fly out New Years day to Virginia. I finished packing and spent the rest of the night watching the ball drop with a couple family members. Below is the photo that I posted on New Years day a year ago...a bit of foreshadowing you think? ;)

So I have decided to talk a little bit about the highlights of 2014 and some of the things that I learned as well as some things I am reflecting on. This may be a really honest post...but honestly what have I written in the past year that wasn't? 

Learned Lesson # 1 :: Be Honest With Myself

Oosh. So spending a year at home which would have been about 1/2 of 2014 definitely gave me the opportunity to reflect on life. I had a lot of time to be in the now because there wasn't a next step to look to. I'm realizing how beautiful that time was and how therapeutic it was to just be in the present, not planning too far ahead and taking life as it came, daily. It gave me ample opportunity to get to know myself a little better and to be really honest with myself. I mean, think about it, life gets busy, and if you all know me, I am filling every minute of every day with something. When life gets busy we tend to neglect ourselves. I guess I hadn't really noticed how much I need "me" time until I recognized its importance in my life. I did a lot of writing this past year, a lot more than I had in a very long time. I hope to do even more writing and reflecting in the coming year. I want to be honest with myself because that's how I learn and grow.

Lesson Learned # 2 :: I Am A Verbal Processor & I Need To Learn To Love It

Accept it. Love it. Well....at least I have one of those things locked down. :] Girls talk a lot...and then there's Gabe and others like her who tend to run the same topic into the ground or what I have otherwise come to call it, word-vomit. I exhaust myself with talking. It happens. It's a real thing. I'm not just someone to talk because I like to hear myself talk or to talk about non-sense. When I verbally process it most always is about something that important to me. Well if I think back on a post from last January I talked about how I had coffee and lunch in VA with a bajillion people and they all just about asked the same questions...so...I processed, and I learned A LOT. I went back to Texas with new thoughts in my head and new songs in my heart. & I quote from me a year ago: "The really cool thing is that when I was processing life with people I was learning and realizing the realities of what life has been like over the months and how I have grown as an individual." Well, past me, we are still on the same page there. Over the past year I have processed deserts and flowing streams, I have processed love and heart break, I have processed beginnings and endings, I have processed acceptance and letting go, and so so much more. I'm actually sitting here laughing to myself over the mixed memories that are flooding my mind right now. I'm still working on the loving the fact that I verbally process but accepting it is the first part and seeing what positives lie in the fact that it's a part of me. If you have lent an ear to me over the past year I am so thankful not only for someone to listen but for those who shared parts of my heart because those words. that's exactly what they are. 

        

 

 

To those who lent an ear

To those who heard my heart

To those who echoed back

I can't encompass enough words to say

 I'm thankful.

How ironic.

 

Lesson Learned # 3 :: Give Room For Growth

I learned quite a bit in this area. I realized how important it is in relationships to give room for the other person to grow. I have a whole blog post on the topic called Re-potting plants. People grow and change. I am not who I was yesterday and I don't plan to be the same tomorrow. I think not only did I learn about allowing others room to grow within my relationships now but a lot about how important it is for a healthy marriage. Along with giving others room to grow I also am learning to give myself room to grow. I am my own worst enemy when it comes to becoming stagnant or falling into falsehoods of who I have been in my past. Gotta make room for a new foundation. Gotta give way for new roots to take to fresh soil. 

Lesson Learned # 4 :: The Most Magical Adventures Arise When You Aren't Looking For Them

So a good friend of mine got engaged and was planning a wedding for January 4th 2014 (Happy Almost Anni Kack & Tay!) & I was invited to attend the wedding but also asked to be the weekend coordinator/director....so logically, off to Virginia I flew Jan 1st 2014. As you read above in my instagram post "Hopefully this is a foreshadowing of the rest of 2014." In this year I have flown to Virginia Beach for a wedding, drove to Oklahoma City for a wedding, worked and volunteered in Guatemala at a children's orphanage, drove to Tennessee for a much needed friendcation, flew to FL for family vacation, moved 1/2 way across the country to Virginia (again), traveled all over Maryland, Delaware, Virginia and New Jersey for my job and most recently got back from a trip to Iceland. Most all of these travels weren't planned far in advanced but the opportunities presented themselves and I chose to take advantage of them. It's kinda neat how each one of these adventures came to be. I would go in detail about them all but that would take quite a bit of time. This year has been full of travels and cultural experiences. I have loved life on the road and in the air. My thirst for exploring the world around me has turned into wanderlust. If 2014 held all of this I cannot wait to see what 2015 has in store. I'm realizing how important it is to experience this earth before I'm not here to see the majesties God has created. My heart longs to be outdoors amongst pathless forests, overgrown gardens and standing on the edge of mountaintops. So here's to dreaming and waiting to see what opportunities come my way.

Lesson Learned # 5 :: Desire Is Not Longing & It's Not Wrong

This is something I wrote about most recently called "Let's Do Life Together". There's something to be said about the differences between desire and longing. So if you haven't read that post from November it's all about doing life with someone. I feel as though "desire" is a more appropriate word to use when talking about having a significant other to experience and do life with than longing. Longing implies that one is discontent and wishing for something they do not possess. I would say that desire is an underlying feeling that doesn't always reflect feelings of discontent. If that doesn't make sense, I'm sorry, it's about 2am eastern time and I am just about wiped but pushing through to finish this! I have questioned myself and found that I am desire-full but not longing for someone to share life with. I went aboooout...I'd say 21 years of my life, not really thinking much about sharing life with someone. Then desire set in and I questioned myself. Am I discontent with where I am? Am I going to become a girl who consumed by longing to be dating someone and longing to just get married? Bleh! No! I actually love where I am right now. I love the added freedoms that come with being single and the things I get to do because I have those freedoms. But this doesn't mean that I don't desire to share day to day life with someone. I am not a dater. I don't date. I've been out on a couple coffee dates here and there, a couple lunch dates, and even a dinner date was proposed, to which I said "let's just stick to lunch." Dinner is a whole different ball game people. haha. I'm not a fan of dating. I am a fan of best friends and falling in love. I am a fan of getting to know someone through sharing life with them. I want to take a walk together, read together, explore together, just be. I want to share so many things that I love and that are important to me with someone. I want to share the important people in my life with that person. I want to share in their life, their hopes, their dreams and greet challenges with them. All of these things and more I believe I mention in that blog, so I won't take any longer to get descriptive here. Anywho, I have come to learn that just because I desire to do life with someone doesn't mean I'm longing for it and just because I desire to share life with someone doesn't make it wrong. I am still waking up and doing life every day. I am still embracing the freedoms that come with being single. I am taking in every moment this Christmas with my family realizing that one day they won't JUST be mine but that I will share them and while that will be the best ever, I only get my family to myself, just like this, right now. This Christmas will never repeat itself. I get to sit on my grandpas lap and share beds with my sister and just enjoy my family as it is now, right now. Who knows what next year will bring. I will say I am more excited and anxious than ever to share my family with someone. I am so thankful for my family and extended family. This New Year I'm taking it all in because time flies and I want to take it all in and have the chance to appreciate and take hold of every moment I can.

So many lessons were learned but there you have just a few. I got a bit length on that last one but I'm pretty passionate about them all. In closing, it's been an exciting and unforgettable year full of so many surprises and blessings. Farewell my dear 2014 and the beauties that you were, hello 2015 and the beauties that you'll bring!

 

xoxo, gabrielle