mission trip.

Hello friends,

I am so excited about my trip to La Esperanza, Honduras to help minister to young school kids. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity for me and I urge you to assist me through your kind prayers and/or financial support. I will be leaving March 11th, 2011 and will be returning on March 19th, 2011. If you would like to help financially support me, please contact me at ashleyxn@uab.edu! Thanks so much & God bless! :)

♥- Ashley

The first 7 stanzas of an Anne Bradstreet poem.

Contemplations:

Sometime now past in the Autumnal Tide,
When Phoebus wanted but one hour to bed,
The trees all richly clad, yet void of pride,
Were gilded o're by his rich golden head.
Their leaves and fruits seem'd painted but was true
Of green, of red, of yellow, mixed hew,
Rapt were my senses at this delectable view.



I wist not what to wish, yet sure thought I,
If so much excellence abide below,
How excellent is he that dwells on high?
Whose power and beauty by his works we know.
Sure he is goodness, wisdom, glory, light,
That hath this under world so richly dight.
More Heaven than Earth was here, no winter and no night.



Then on a stately Oak I cast mine Eye,
Whose ruffling top the Clouds seem'd to aspire.
How long since thou wast in thine Infancy?
Thy strength and stature, more thy years admire,
Hath hundred winters past since thou wast born?
Or thousand since thou brakest thy shell of horn?
If so, all these as nought, Eternity doth scorn.



Then higher on the glistering Sun I gaz'd,
Whose beams was shaded by the leafy Tree.
The more I look'd, the more I grew amaz'd
And softly said, what glory's like to thee?
Soul of this world, this Universe's Eye,
No wonder some made thee a Deity.
Had I not better known (alas) the same had I.



Thou as a Bridegroom from thy Chamber rushes
And as a strong man joys to run a race.
The morn doth usher thee with smiles and blushes.
The Earth reflects her glances in thy face.
Birds, insects, Animals with Vegative,
Thy heat from death and dullness doth revive
And in the darksome womb of fruitful nature dive.



Thy swift Annual and diurnal Course,
Thy daily straight and yearly oblique path,
Thy pleasing fervour, and thy scorching force,
All mortals here the feeling knowledge hath.
Thy presence makes it day, thy absence night,
Quaternal seasons caused by thy might.
Hail Creature, full of sweetness, beauty, and delight!



Art thou so full of glory that no Eye
Hath strength thy shining Rays once to behold?
And is thy splendid Throne erect so high
As, to approach it, can no earthly mould?
How full of glory then must thy Creator be!
Who gave this bright light luster unto thee.
Admir'd, ador'd for ever be that Majesty!

So, Im not going to lie.. I am interested in the Puritan portion of my American Lit class.. Thanks to Miss Anne Bradstreet & her beautiful poetry. Perfect time of year to read this too, since it's beginning to become somewhat fall-like.. even though you cant tell due to the daily avg's of 90+ degrees.

the lost get found.

I was surprised yesterday when I started listening to Britt Nicole's new album The Lost Get Found. She is so wonderful, I am a twitter follower of her's and her tweets always brighten my day. Britt is such a great role model for young women like myself, and don't get me started on her lyrics; AMAZING.


SAFE:
You keep tryin to get inside my head,
While I keep trying to lose the words you said
Can't you see i'm hangin by a thread,
To my life what I know, yeah i'm losing control and
Oh no, my walls are gonna break
So close, its more than I can take
I'm so tired of turning and running away
When love just isn't safe.

I'm strong enough, i've always told myself
I never want to need somebody else
But i've already fallen from that hill,
So i'm droppin that guard here's your chance at my heart and

Oh no, my walls are gonna break
So close, its more than I can take
I'm so tired of turning and running away
When love just isnt enough.

Everything you want, but its everything you need
Its not always happy endings but its happy in between
Its taken so long, so long to finally see
The other isn't worth the risk

Oh no, my walls are gonna breeeaakk
Oh no, my walls are gonna break
So close, its more than I can take
So tired of turning and running away
When love just isn't safe

Oh no, my walls are gonna break
So close, its more than I can take
So tired of turning and running away
When love just isn't safe.

Your not safe and that's okay.

..to feel how You forgave me.

This is a spoken word drama about the women at the well who has an encounter with Jesus. This was a free download at Sermon Spice. commoncreed.infohttp://store.studentlife.com/video.php?cn=420 Read the story that inspired the video. http://net.bible.org/bible.php?book=Joh&chapter=4

Beautiful poem by Johnny Ray Ryder Jr.

THE OAK TREE

A mighty wind blew night and day. It stole the Oak Tree’s leaves away. Then snapped its boughs and pulled its bark until the Oak was tired and stark. But still the Oak Tree held its ground while other trees fell all around. The weary wind gave up and spoke, “How can you still be standing Oak?” The Oak Tree said, I know that you can break each branch of mine in two, carry every leaf away, shake my limbs and make me sway. But I have roots stretched in the earth, growing stronger since my birth. You’ll never touch them, for you see they are the deepest part of me. Until today, I wasn’t sure of just how much I could endure. But now I’ve found with thanks to you, I’m stronger than I ever knew.

All Things Considered passage.

I love this little excerpt from All Things Considered:

"All Things Considered, January 12, 2009 · Every week for the past 30 years, I’ve hosted a Sunday dinner in my home in Paris. People, including total strangers, call or e-mail to book a spot. I hold the salon in my atelier, which used to be a sculpture studio. The first 50 or 60 people who call may come, and twice that many when the weather is nice and we can overflow into the garden. Every Sunday a different friend prepares a feast. Last week it was a philosophy student from Lisbon, and next week a dear friend from London will cook. People from all corners of the world come to break bread together, to meet, to talk, connect and often become friends. All ages, nationalities, races, professions gather here, and since there is no organized seating, the opportunity for mingling couldn’t be better. I love the randomness. I believe in introducing people to people. I have a good memory, so each week I make a point to remember everyone’s name on the guest list and where they’re from and what they do, so I can introduce them to each other, effortlessly. If I had my way, I would introduce everyone in the whole world to each other. People are most important in my life. Many travelers go to see things like the Tower of London, the Statue of Liberty, the Eiffel Tower and so on. I travel to see friends, even — or especially — those I’ve never met. In the late ’80s, I edited a series of guidebooks to nine Eastern European countries and Russia. There were no sights to see, no shops or museum to visit; instead, each book contained about 1,000 short biographies of people who would be willing to welcome travelers in their cities. Hundreds of friendships evolved from these encounters, including marriages and babies. This same can be said for my Sunday salon. At a recent dinner, a 6-year-old girl from Bosnia spent the entire evening glued to an 8-year-old boy from Estonia. Their parents were surprised, and pleased, by this immediate friendship. There is always a collection of people from all over the globe. Most of them speak English, at least as a second language. Recently a dinner featured a typical mix: a Dutch political cartoonist, a beautiful painter from Norway, a truck driver from Arizona, a bookseller from Atlanta, a newspaper editor from Sydney, students from all over, and traveling retirees. I have long believed that it is unnecessary to understand others, individuals or nationalities; one must, at the very least, simply tolerate others. Tolerance can lead to respect and, finally, to love. No one can ever really understand anyone else, but you can love them or at least accept them. Like Tom Paine, I am a world citizen. All human history is mine. My roots cover the earth. I believe we should know each other. After all, our lives are all connected. OK, now come and dine."

I love this book. I want to experience the world…all that God has created. I want to see the different cultures, feel the different loves, and breathe the different smells. But more importantly I want to change people, and maybe in the process let them be a positive influence on me and my relationship with God.

Racing towards the shoreline.

So, Im a wee bit of a procrastinator and meant to post this poem I wrote at the beach, when I got back from the beach. Better late than never.

"CRASH DOWN ON ME.

I’m sinking like sand on the shoreline,

Every door I open is another mistake.

That’s where Your love begins to intertwine,

With all the bad choices that I make.

Like the waves crashing on the sand,

You rush in & cover me again.

I keep sinking; losing grip of your hand.

You crash in & cover me again.

It’s a mysterious thing, How the waves race towards the shore.

But what is more unfathomable, Is how I’m covered by your grace FOREVERMORE."

-AGN

I am the tree. [Ps 92.12]

The [uncompromisingly] righteous shall flourish like the palm tree [be long-lived, stately, upright, useful, and fruitful]; they shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon [majestic, stable, durable, and incorruptible]. Planted in the house of the Lord, they shall flourish in the courts of our God. Growing in grace] they shall still bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be full of sap [of spiritual vitality] and [rich in the] verdure [of trust, love, and contentment]. [They are living memorials] to show that the Lord is upright and faithful to His promises; He is my Rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him.

God's Promise.

I needed to see this coming home from work the other day. So cliche, I know I know.. but God keeps His promises. He will fulfill the desires of your heart, you only need to be patient. So patient I will be. :)

saints & angels.

Well, I was rummaging through some old cd's today. I stumbled upon the great & wonderful SHeDAISY and Sara Evans, circa 90s. For some reason I popped in the Sara Evans cd hoping it would cause some nostalgic daydreaming like all my other old cds, the ones that always seem to take you back to a certain time or event. But no.. as I listened to the cd a certain song stood out to me. The lyrics were practically screaming to me.

"We're only human, baby. We walk on broken ground. We lose our way. We come unwound.

We'll turn in circles, baby. We're never satisfied. We'll fall from grace.. Forget we can fly.
But through all the tears that we cried, we'll survive..
Cause when we're torn apart, shattered and scarred.. Love has the grace to save us.

I love your imperfections. I love your everything. Your broken heart, your broken wings.
I love you when you hold me and when you turn away.
I love you still and I'm not afraid, cause I know you feel the same way and you'll stay."

Oh my goodness. Are we blind? We will NEVER be perfect, but we will ALWAYS be covered by Grace. The second verse is wonderful.. To me its saying, He loves our brokenness. He loves us when we turn away. He loves our flaws. He just loves us to our very core... even our screwups, our bad hair days, our ill moods, our relentless attitudes. No matter what, He loves us.

my first post, oh boy.

So, the purpose of this blog is quiet simple. It'll be a collection of things that inspire me, things that I love. From poetry, to beautiful artists, to my own photography, and amazing taste in music. It'll be real, down-to-earth, and comfortable. You know, that feeling when you have been away from home for awhile and you didn't want to leave where you're at, but as soon as you slid into your oh-so-familiar bed you couldn't be happier to be home. That's the feeling Im talking about, a place where I can cozy up and be real.