Will you marry me?

Posted on October 27, 2012 by Joy

We have this adorable little girl in our lives named Aubrey. She is my close friend’s daughter. She is funny and precious, full of wonder and overflowing with character. I cannot imagine life without her.

Oh, and I should probably mention that when asking my youngest son about her, his response is, “She’s my girl.”Yesterday I asked if she could come with us to the Botanical Gardens so that Caden wouldn’t be so reluctant to go and so that I could practice photographing with a specific lens. As always, it was delightful and we had a fun time running through trails, looking at fall decor and smelling exotic flowers.

The time I will most remember is sitting around the table at lunch. The conversation that followed was priceless. I was snapping pictures as quickly as I could throughout the discussion.

“Caden, do you wanna marry me?”

(silence)

Caden continues to color. Never looking up.

Aubrey, finding this somewhat frustrating, asks a little louder and with more urgency.

“Caden! I said, do you wanna marry me?!”

Still looking at his artwork, he says, “Yeah.”
“When you’re married you can kiss whenever you want.” exclaims Aubrey.

Caden responds, “I’m gonna kiss you now.”

“Okay. Come kiss me then. The boy’s pose to ask the girl.”

Caden sends an air kiss and sits back down.Moments pass before Aubrey speaks up.

“Do you love me Caden?”

“I love you forever.” he replies. (Still coloring)

“Where do you wanna get married Caden?”

“At the Botanical Gardens.” he says.

“Do you wanna have a band?” she asks.

“Uh-huh.”

“My dress is gonna be made out of flowers!” she announces.

“That’ll be pretty.” he replies.

“Do we want to get married during the day or at night?” she asks.

He thinks for a minute…”At night. And we’ll have hotdogs, toasted cheese, brownies and pizza to eat.”

“Cake and ice cream later.” she adds.

“Okay! It’s settled!” she proclaims.

“Should I tell my mom?”
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Weekly Photo Challenge: Foreign

Posted on October 26, 2012 by Joy

For the photo challenge this week we headed out to one of my favorite places on earth this morning, Atlanta Botanical Gardens. It is a world of its own. One of the really cool things about the Gardens is that they receive endangered species, help them multiply and slowly release them back into their environment.

These frogs have always fascinated me. They are as beautiful as they are poisonous. There was a large piece of aquarium glass between them and me. Good thing as I’m certain I would have moved in too close.

The glass frog of the Nymphargus genus, which is potentially new to science, that was discovered in the mountains of the Darien region in Colombia.

Arrow poison frog. These frogs are highly prevalent in the forests of Central and South America. This is a newly discovered species, found at the Jatun Sacha Reserve in the Ecuadorian Amazon.

Asian Black Spiny Toads (Bufo (Duttaphrynus) melanostictus)

Green tree frog found in the Amazon rainforest of Brazil.
I’m not sure where this little guy is from. If you know, please leave the answer in the comments section.

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Five Minute Friday: Voice

Posted on October 26, 2012 by Joy

Listen closely
Do you hear that?
It’s the whisper of self
The voice inside you
Inside us all
Motivating your choices
Steering your future
Speaking up whenever there is a decision to be made
What is it saying?
Is it the voice of truth
Telling you to step outside your comfort zone
Telling you to walk by faith if you want to inherit eternal blessings
Nudging you to look up and around at all the beauty and life
Speaking the words of your Creator into your soul
Do you hear it?
What’s it saying?
This may be the most important voice you listen to
Why?
Because it’s your choice
Yours alone
No one can choose for you
Today
In this moment
I will choose
I will choose to listen and believe the voice of truth

Do you want to write with abandon? Come join us for #FMF by clicking here.

Watching the Orangutan

Posted on October 24, 2012 by Joy

We were at the zoo this past weekend and I had such a great time watching this orangutan do somersaults (while eating) to get where he wanted to go. He had so much character. It was a lot of fun. I hope you enjoy the slideshow.

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These moments were captured using a Canon 60D, 70-200mm f/2.8 L, in sports mode.

Travel Theme: Couples

Posted on October 21, 2012 by Joy

“Just because an animal is large, it doesn’t mean he doesn’t want kindness;
however big Tigger seems to be, remember that
he wants as much kindness as Roo.”
~ A.A. Milne

“A little boy is truth with dirt on its face,
sunshine with a cut on its finger
&
hope for the future with a frog in its pocket.”
~ Callen AudricI wonder if the giraffe, with her elegant neck,
has to stretch before getting up in the morning?
Do you think she knows the uniqueness of her proportions and her coat?
The way her eyelashes curl as if just coming from a make-over
and her long black tongue…
she isn’t something to be explained only marveled.
Each week Ailsa over at Where’s my backpack gives a challenge. If you would like to participate and/or see the many other takes on the theme “Couples”
visit her and stay a while.

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Looking back over a decade

Posted on October 20, 2012 by Joy

“What you think about God is the most important thing about you.” A.W. Tozer

Over the last week I have been thinking about October 19, 2012.
I have pondered different scriptures, meditations and writings.
I dug deep into my being in attempts to come up with the greatest post you’ve ever read…I got nothin’.

It’s what I do. I turn things into being all about me. And though a large part of recovery is about me, there is a part equally as large that isn’t. Many within the rooms of A.A. would disagree with my next statement, but for me, it’s a vital part of my story.

For a year, I stayed sober so that I wouldn’t lose Chris.

I know what you’re thinking. “When you stay sober for someone else, it never works.” Well, for me, I didn’t care enough about myself to stay sober. I thought I was damaged goods, but I knew that he didn’t think so and the only way he would be with me is if I admitted that I was completely out of control and powerless over everything. So I did. And after about 18 months, I too realized that I was worth fighting for.

The day before my big anniversary I had the privilege of sitting under the teaching of one of the wisest men I know. His name is John Hambrick. He is an expert in many things. We share an equal admiration for C.S. Lewis. I will never be as versed as John is about Lewis so I love to hear him speak of his work.

He led a workshop called Three Game-Changing Ideas from C.S. Lewis.
Idea #1: Our Choices Change Us
There were five points but the ones that stuck with me were these;
Our choices change us.
What motivates our choices?
John explained that often our choices are motivated by guilt and/or fear. Neither is from God.

Idea #2: Our Imagination Can Be Holy
The thoughts that followed were thought-provoking. These are the two that I am most pondering.
We cannot be compelled to love God.
We love him when we see him clearly. (Do I see God clearly?)

Idea #3: God is Dangerous
Here John referenced several of Lewis’ books. One being from The Chronicles of Narnia. The lion in the story, Aslan, represents God. In this scene, two of the characters are talking about him. “Safe?” said Mr. Beaver; “don’t you hear what Mrs. Beaver tells you? Who said anything about safe? ‘Course he isn’t safe. But he’s good. He’s the King, I tell you.”

“God is the enemy of our self-centeredness. The remover of all addictions that cause us to be enslaved. He will weed out and kill that which works to destroy us. That makes God dangerous. It is when he wants to mess with the one thing that we will not expose to him that we meet this God.” God is relentless. He will not allow us to succumb to misery because of his untamed love for each one of us.

When it comes to spiritual, there is no such thing as a “status quo.” We are either working towards being a heavenly or hellish creature. There is no middle ground. Our choices change us. Just as I made poor decisions in the midst of addiction, I must make conscious healthy choices in my day-to-day living. Though quite simple, it’s far from easy.

C.S. Lewis said in The Great Divorce, “There is no other day. All days are present now. This moment contains all moments.” If only we could remember that. How different our lives would be.

John Hambrick is the Director of Starting Point / Staff Development at Buckhead Church. You may follow him on Twitter by clicking here