"I want a life that sizzles and pops and makes me laugh out loud. And I don't want to get to the end, or to tomorrow, even, and realize that my life is a collection of meetings and pop cans and errands and receipts and dirty dishes. I want to eat cold tangerines and sing out loud in the car with the windows open and wear pink shoes and stay up all night laughing and paint my walls the exact color of the sky right now. I want to sleep hard on clean white sheets and throw parties and eat ripe tomatoes and read books so good they make me jump up and down, and I want my everyday to make God's belly laugh, glad that he gave life to someone who loves the gift." — Shauna Niequist
Hello all :)
I woke up this morning to the sound of raindrops trickeling on the roof above my apartment. Although this sound is a familiar one, something about today felt different. Usually people use rainy days as an excuse to stay inside, sink in the couch, watch movies, and munch on popcorn and chocolate. I however, decided that today would mark the start of a new beginning for me.
What is rain anyway? Well the actual definition is water falling in drops from vapor condensed in the atmosphere...but nobody is really interested in that. Instead of seeing rain in such technical terms and complaining about its consequences as so many do, I decided to think about the value and beauty of it.
When a raindrop hits the ground, it's as if earths surface is immidetiately relieved from the heat of the sun. The flowers and greenery are once again nourished and blooming, and the lakes, ponds, and rivers, are once again filled to capacity.
So today, I chose to take a more positive outlook on rain. I put on my Hunter rain boots, grabbed my teal colored rain jacket, and headed to class. As I walked to the 4 classes I had today I couldn't help but notice the miserable facial expressions and rather anxious paces of each person I passed. When your surrounded by negative energy, it can be easy to conform to it...but today, I just wasn't having that. I began to slow down and embrace the peace of mind I came to know in those early morning hours before I left my warm and dry apartment...and that made all the difference.You see, everything on this Earth is beautiful in it's own unique way, even a rain storm--you just have to chose the right attitude to look at it with. Not only did today change my perspective on rain storms, it also changed the way I look at life in general.
Lately it seemed as though the hustle and bustle of my crazy college life was enveloping me in a constant negative state of mind. With the heavy work load from my studies this fall, working two internships, and participating on the exec board of a club on campus, all the while trying to maintain a social life in my sorority and out, I found myself STRESSED beyond believe...as you could probably imagine. Waking up each morning with an instant feel of anxiousness and worry is not necessarily the lifestyle anyone wants to live. I was searching for answers from friends, family, even horoscopes (yes rather emberassing)...but hitting a dead end every time. Little did I know, a simple rain drop was the perfect remedy. Not only was it cleansing the beautiful Earth that God created, it was also cleansing me both mentally and spiritually.
Writing a blog was something I've been wanting to do for quite some time now..just as a means to get my day to day thoughts and experiences out in the air. I just always used the excuse of being too busy as justification for my procrastination. But with this new peace of mind I gained by a re-evaluating my thoughts on rain storms, I found the time..and am surely happy I did.
So, my lesson of the day and perhaps moral of the story is to slow down and enjoy life--even the parts that may not seem beautiful at first glance! In some other place--distant or far--there is a person who is doing exactly that...who knows, it could make all the difference :)
Until next time..
