sundrenched world

baking injuries

blue sky, long drives

bucket lists, spinning hourglasses

laundry and dishes

sweating out an ocean

hue mid itty

somebody else's sunglasses

waiting, waiting, waiting, on this, on that

fictional theme parks and cities

spring cleaning

buying and selling ephemeral stuff

bill-paying

trilogies

fruit flies, ants, cockroaches

iced caramel macchiatos

episodes, tv shows, heartwarming and cringe-inducing

reading 8 books at the same time, finishing 0

good food

studios

rocking, jamming, beatboxing

late night conversations

crumpled-up receipts that need to be thrown away

thrifting

praising Jesus.

reside-ence

"Do you live here in Bolivar?"

"Uh, kind of."

blank stare

Standardized Tests

Real life is far grittier than they.

I mean, really.

Rule #2 Of Spring Cleaning

C.Y.T./J.

Compact Your Trash/Junk

...because even a pile of dirty clothes is better than vines of laundry strewn across the room.

It makes your mess smaller.  Maybe it just looks more manageable.

Whatever.  It helps, either way.

Rule #1 Of Spring Cleaning

G.R.O.U.C.

Get Rid Of Useless Crap

I am an extremely sentimental person.  It's a fault.

I keep many things around just for the sake of the memories attached to them,

even if these things are literally trash.

I'm learning that if I don't want to become a pack rat,

I need to start throwing away/giving away/recycling some stuff.

Life here is too short and finite to be saving old candy wrappers

just because the candy was really good and I consumed it

on a particularly fun night with friends.

Maybe I'm not quite that pathetic,

but regardless, it's worldly and finite,

and Jesus isn't.

pomp + circumstance(s)

standing plainclothes in a sea of smiling people in caps and gowns

on cinco de mayo/birthday of two friends,

it's hard not to

a:  smile yourself.

b:  praise the Lord.

c:  dance.

you have spent so much of your life

wanting to be different,

trying to be different,

doing things for the sake of individuality,

seeking uniqueness wherever it might be found.

you scorned those who followed the crowd.

the whole hipster attitude ain't nothin' new under the sun.

you succeeded in many of these endeavors.

you reaped what you sowed.

now, what are you going to do with these obscure interests

and lack of knowledge of things

that so many people take for granted?

When we come to it

...is when we'll cross that bridge.

As cliche as the adage may be,

I find it biblical,

and it has been sanity-saving as of late

when I've had the decency to take note of it.

All of the what-ifs and contingency plans and furrowed brows

over things that have not happened and may never happen

will only bring about more stress, strain, wrinkles, and gray hair in the end.

Don't believe the lie that they will add hours to your life

or cubits to your height.

Each day really does have plenty of trouble of its own.

So, seek first the Kingdom.

It has a really great King.

Matthew 6:25-34