it covers the hillsides.

we made a surprise visit to columbus this past weekend. it was so refreshing... and just a gift. there is something about connecting these two places on a whim that makes our life feel more cohesive. and it's so awesome that we can do that! there might be a time in our life where that is much harder to do than take a long weekend car-ride to connect things...

but when we come back here...i always wish in a more raw way for the two to be one...the kind where you feel the rawness in your chest, aching-like...

but in the car i was reminded of my thankfulness. i was listening to a new music mix, with my wonderful, dreamboat husband on my way to see and spend time with some of the people that are nearest and dearest in my heart; it was sunny and snowy and we were driving through the mountains in pennsylvania. it looked like a hudson river school painting.  brian and i were talking and just stopped to admire how majestic everything looked. purplely-pink, low contrast lighting, and rolling hillsides with trees, and small houses, and little cows dotted along...

i am thankful for this time of life. though the newness can be hard to swallow sometimes, i am thankful for the more time, for the new faces, new surroundings. my life has started to meld and mend into something that makes more sense in a bigger way. my following and wandering and waiting are bringing peace and joy to me lately. i feel like the pink sunlight that was covering the hillsides has been seeping into me as well.

things from our new life.

snow.

snow is magical. there is something about it that makes everything different.

i am re-reading "snow" by orhan pamuk. i like to read it during the wintry season, because the breathtaking descriptions in the book come alive in such an amazing way when it is actually snowing outside. (try it sometime. you won't regret it.)

we had this gorgeous snowfall last night. it covered everything in a blueish-white, fluffy powder: trees, cars, streets, people. throughout the book "snow" the main character Ka, connects God to snow. what it is, what it looks like, what it does to a situation; to who god is, what god makes things look like, or what god does. the magical, mysterious quality of it. it covers over our dirtiness, the things we do to our environment, both good and bad. everything changes shape completely when covered, and sound is suddenly softened. the tiniest movements are easier to focus on. snow makes everything appear to have a sameness and cohesiveness that isn't there after it melts...

i think people that don't like snow are missing out.

i'll try to post some pictures i took last night. :)