the past two weeks...

The past three weeks have been a crazy whirlwind. On Saturday April 4th, I loaded all of my worldly belongings (minus my dresser) into my Subaru Forester and began my journey south. Lindsey, Joe and Jen helped me drag box after box out of the basement. In the end, boxes were abandoned, and Lindsey started loading random loose articles in every empty space. You could see shoes, books, bags, etc backed to the brim through all the windows. It really was a sight to behold. After a great breakfast of pancakes and turkey burgers, I said my one of my hardest goodbyes--to the Farleys. This trio has been my family for the past few months. I will miss their companionship and laughter. They truly are the best three people in the world to come home to. I hardly know how to entertain myself without Calland around to make me laugh.

On the road out of Spokane, the first song to shuffle through on the trusty ipod sang "Praise to the Lord, Who o'er all things so wondrously reigneth. Shelters thee under His wings, yea so gently sustaineth. Hast Thou not seen how thy desires e'er have been Granted in what He ordaineth?" What a perfect theme to proclaim this changing season. It has been a long few years of waiting for the right next step...and it has finally come.

The first leg of my journey lead me to Portland for several days. There I caught up with several good friends: Kacy, Mackenzie, Victoria, Betsy, and Dani. It was wonderful to see these women again. Kacy and I went on a long hike Monday AM and then stopped by a day spa for a little pampering. Over the course of these days, I was reminded of the richness of my time in Portland and the relationships I built there. Though it was a hard time of life, I have come to value the changing work Lord did while I was there.

Tuesday I drove a long 11 hours to Stockton, where I finally got to see my Peter and Paola and their new house. I spent several a few good days with them, and a day with Chris, Kirsten and Johann. I hadn't seen Johann since he was very small, and it was so great to see him walking around and babbling baby-babble. We went to "the Jungle" where he could walk around and play on all sorts of super toys. Chris bought him a ride on a dinosaur, and we had a great time. A couple days later Peter, Paola and I spent a day at Santa Cruz, which really was a treat. The sun was marvelous and the company hard to beat. We had a series of dinners because we couldn't decide what to eat. I highly recommend eating a sushi appetizer followed by Pizza my Heart. A winning combination. I spent Easter morning at Peter & Paola's church where Peter and I lead worship for the servant's service. Once again I was blown away by my brother's talent and heart for ministry. There are some people for whom leading worship just comes naturally, and he is one of them. He is so sincere as he leads--it really encourages me.

Next, I headed south to make a visit in a LA. I saw my mom, dad, good high school friends Emilee and Cindy and Katie and Scott Lyon. I spent my mandatory time on the beach with mom and went to the show my dad is musically directing. On Friday I headed back North, went to a Hockey game with P&P and went to Johann's 1st b-day party!! Sunday morning I played music with Chris at his church, which was also a blessing. He, too, has a natural gift in leading worship and a great heart for people. I love playing with him.

After a frantic-post-church scramble, I arrived at the airport with my HUGE pack, guitar, violin and carry-on bag. My pack miraculously weighed in at a bashful 49.1 pounds, narrowly missing the heavy-weight fee. Two flights and several hours later I landed in my new home, Juneau, AK!! New housemates Naomi, her husband Jason and friend Chris met me at the gate with warm hugs. I had met Naomi at Anna & Spice's wedding last September where we played music together. When she wrote a few months later to see if I would consider coming to Juneau to play with her band, I decided to take a chance. Now, here I am, in the Last Frontier, and loving it. All the band members, minus the drummer, live in a duplex together: Josh and his wife Kara on one side, Jason, Naomi, Chris and I on the other. It is wonderful living in community with these people. From the first day they were easy to be around and it all started to feel like home.

Juneau is a beautiful city. Every time we leave the house, I can't control myself--I just stare the majestic mountains and ocean. Our house is a few blocks away from the picture below, so I get to see these mountains every morning noon and night. The weather this week has been phenomenal--sunny days and a balmy 45 degrees (which is warm enough to get people outside sitting in lawn chairs).

I have nothing but the hightest of expectations for this summer. My job so far has been wonderful, my house-mates better than I could've asked for, and the music super-great. The band I'm playing with is called One Aisle Over http://www.oneaisleover.com/Home.html. Josh and Naomi write and sing the music, and both of them are talented musicians. They both bring a unique, creative style with their music that I really enjoy. Thankfully, my violining fits well with their music and they really like my style. We had our first gig last night and despite some sound difficulties it went really well. It was fun to see my new friends in performance-mode and see how people respond to their music. I am excited to play with this group and see where the summer takes us.

For me, this summer is the cummulation of many things. The Lord has been refining my understanding of my self and teaching me to follow my dreams despite what others may think. Last fall, I was struggling deeply with where I was in life--wanting desperatly to go on an adventure or do something I was passionate about. I remember crying with my mom on the phone, longing for direction and purpose in life. Little did I know that I was in a holding pattern, not for spite, but for grace. It was in that holding pattern that the Lord could best provide for me medically with my surgery and relationally with my community in Spokane. But once those things had been taken care of, God flung wide the doors to the very things I had longed for. Music. Adventure. A non-office-job. A great new community. Beautiful surroundings. All in this Juneau package that I never could have forseen. Indeed, all my desires have been granted in what He ordaineth.