It has happened. Again.
I thought I had at least another month but, alas, I was wrong.
I spent several hours outside today dispersed among three different walks. I walked downtown with my mother and sisters this morning. I took a leisurely stroll through a field and down residential streets with a dear friend in the early afternoon, and then walked across town and back in the late afternoon. It was simply glorious. The sun was shining and while there was a wind it seemed as if it was always blowing my hair back from my face in a rather romantic gesture.
A lack of romance arose after dinner when sitting in the living room with my dad and friend. My hairline was a little itchy. I noticed some bumps but thought nothing of it. Then my nose itched. My fingers found a few more bumps. The skin around my collar bone began to itch. By this point I knew what was happening and ran to the bathroom.
Sure enough I was looking a little red in places and was breaking out in hives.
Have I mentioned how much I love my sun allergy?
For those newer to the blog about four years ago I developed a mild sun allergy. In May or June, typically, as the weather warms up, my skin has to go through a slight adjustment period. Last summer was so cold and the weather so inconsistent that this adjustment period did not end. This year, because the weather has been so warm this early, apparently this period has started a little sooner than expected. So tomorrow I shall have to go in search of some sunscreen. I have always said that this time is the closest I ever feel to being a vampire!
Hives aside, this Easter weekend has been incredible. Sunday morning I went for a walk. The sun was shining and the breeze carried with it a sense of the fantastic. I came across a field and before I knew it I was running to its centre and spinning, arms outstretched to the heavens.
For a moment in time it was as if the world of fantasy that I have always loved merged with my reality.
I was reading in The Hope of the Gospel this morning and something George Macdonald wrote struck a chord within me. He said, "The child sees things as the Father means him to see them, as he thought of them when he uttered them. For God is not only the father of the child, but of the childhood that constitutes him a child, therefore the childness is of the divine nature."
Reading Lewis' Chronicles of Narnia or Tolkein's The Lord of the Rings has always stirred a longing in me for worlds such as those, for adventures of epic proportions. They cause a longing for eternity within me while at the same time creating a realization that I do not live in Middle Earth or Narnia. This can often lead to a sort of despair.
Yesterday morning it was as if I caught a glimpse of the world as God meant for it to be... of the world He thought of when He uttered the words to create it. Colours were brighter, sounds clearer, smiles truer. While the longing for eternity is still there I also discovered a hint of the existence one could have here... now.
Last night my sister and I were discussing views of the world and how the choices people make impact how they see the world. Life is brutal, ugly, hurtful... this is true. Yet it is also beautiful and hopeful.
I want to make the choice to view life through the lens of a child... to see this world as God intended it. This does not mean that I want to live a life only seeing "happy" things. Winter rested in Narnia and evil overtook it. All hope appeared to be lost in Middle Earth. But maybe if I allow God to show me what He sees, I can show His love and His hope to others. Maybe I can be that warrior princess with the sun-kissed face and flowing hair in a way that had never occurred to me before. Maybe God's story and His adventure are far grander than any epic dreamt by human mind.
He is, after all, the greatest Storyteller. And I want my life, this story He has placed me in, to bring such glory to its Author that none will be able to deny His power and ability.
Such is the life of a Christian single.
I thought I had at least another month but, alas, I was wrong.
I spent several hours outside today dispersed among three different walks. I walked downtown with my mother and sisters this morning. I took a leisurely stroll through a field and down residential streets with a dear friend in the early afternoon, and then walked across town and back in the late afternoon. It was simply glorious. The sun was shining and while there was a wind it seemed as if it was always blowing my hair back from my face in a rather romantic gesture.
A lack of romance arose after dinner when sitting in the living room with my dad and friend. My hairline was a little itchy. I noticed some bumps but thought nothing of it. Then my nose itched. My fingers found a few more bumps. The skin around my collar bone began to itch. By this point I knew what was happening and ran to the bathroom.
Sure enough I was looking a little red in places and was breaking out in hives.
Have I mentioned how much I love my sun allergy?
For those newer to the blog about four years ago I developed a mild sun allergy. In May or June, typically, as the weather warms up, my skin has to go through a slight adjustment period. Last summer was so cold and the weather so inconsistent that this adjustment period did not end. This year, because the weather has been so warm this early, apparently this period has started a little sooner than expected. So tomorrow I shall have to go in search of some sunscreen. I have always said that this time is the closest I ever feel to being a vampire!
Hives aside, this Easter weekend has been incredible. Sunday morning I went for a walk. The sun was shining and the breeze carried with it a sense of the fantastic. I came across a field and before I knew it I was running to its centre and spinning, arms outstretched to the heavens.
For a moment in time it was as if the world of fantasy that I have always loved merged with my reality.
I was reading in The Hope of the Gospel this morning and something George Macdonald wrote struck a chord within me. He said, "The child sees things as the Father means him to see them, as he thought of them when he uttered them. For God is not only the father of the child, but of the childhood that constitutes him a child, therefore the childness is of the divine nature."
Reading Lewis' Chronicles of Narnia or Tolkein's The Lord of the Rings has always stirred a longing in me for worlds such as those, for adventures of epic proportions. They cause a longing for eternity within me while at the same time creating a realization that I do not live in Middle Earth or Narnia. This can often lead to a sort of despair.
Yesterday morning it was as if I caught a glimpse of the world as God meant for it to be... of the world He thought of when He uttered the words to create it. Colours were brighter, sounds clearer, smiles truer. While the longing for eternity is still there I also discovered a hint of the existence one could have here... now.
Last night my sister and I were discussing views of the world and how the choices people make impact how they see the world. Life is brutal, ugly, hurtful... this is true. Yet it is also beautiful and hopeful.
I want to make the choice to view life through the lens of a child... to see this world as God intended it. This does not mean that I want to live a life only seeing "happy" things. Winter rested in Narnia and evil overtook it. All hope appeared to be lost in Middle Earth. But maybe if I allow God to show me what He sees, I can show His love and His hope to others. Maybe I can be that warrior princess with the sun-kissed face and flowing hair in a way that had never occurred to me before. Maybe God's story and His adventure are far grander than any epic dreamt by human mind.
He is, after all, the greatest Storyteller. And I want my life, this story He has placed me in, to bring such glory to its Author that none will be able to deny His power and ability.
Such is the life of a Christian single.
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