Downtown Disney

Spent the day yesterday hanging out with this:

Russell's cousin, Joyce, was in town with her son, Wyatt. Wyatt—who is 10 I believe—got along so well with Russell that it made me question Russell's age again. But that's Russell, always ready to switch to playful mode and always surprising me with his energetic character.

The picture above is Russell designing a Lego race car at the Lego store. Wyatt is the boy in red. Now, keep in mind that Wyatt is 10 yet Russell was very adamant about beating him and winning the car race. I ended up building a car too in hopes of winning but no such luck with the time and effort these two spent on their own cars. I believe Wyatt ended up winning—but don't remind Russell of that.

Afterwards, we ended up at the arcade in ESPN zone where Russell turned into a complete kid and started to get very competitive at the many games he played. How many, you ask?

A lot. And there were more but I didn't get a picture of all the games they played. They sure loved their racing games. I was almost scared of Russell driving me home in case he thought he was still driving an arcade game...

It was great meeting two of Russell's relatives and seeing how Russell loves to interact with his family. And it's always very amusing witnessing Russell lose to a 10-year old.

OC Fair

Last Saturday, Russell and I went to the OC Fair. It was so much fun. It's too bad that the fair is only here for one month every year since it's filled with so much food and games. And since we no longer have our Disneyland annual passes (wahhh), the fair had to be a slight substitute.

Here's a picture of the Euroslide that I really wanted to go on but got too scared. So I took a picture of it instead:

Russell tried to win me a stuffed animal at a darts game:

Instead, he won me two cute little stuffed animals (one snake and one pink lobster):

Sadly, we lost the snake on the way to the bus shuttle. But the lobster is now in my room along with the medium-sized car stuffed toy I won for myself.

I can describe to you the food there but that would be a whole different post (two words: waffle sandwiches). It was a fun Saturday morning, but we left after four hours since we were getting tired. Next year, we decided to try out the fair at night. And maybe next year, I'll be able to try some of the funnel cakes...

Falling Stillness

(Photo Credit: Sugar VIVA)

I am in a state of falling stillness. Everything is so beautiful and peaceful. I can take forever to examine every detail, every intricacy of every person I will ever meet. I can lose an eternity learning the habits and quirks of everyone I know. I can forget the meaning of time and sit here, warm in the embrace of the sun and knowing that it is love that keeps me warm. Every heart beat—dum dum dadum—is a pleasant melody and I close my eyes and dance to it. Time is slowing down; everything is so still.

And like a ladybug who travels on a daffodil fluff (able to take flight yet choosing to fly on a daffodil fluff), this quiet, slow-motion drop is gone.

While I took a day to examine a second, lightyears have zoomed past. I thought I was a child but college is gone. But I am still a child!—No, those years have passed. I am sitting in an office (When and how did I get here?). I am saying goodbye to friends moving on, I am watching my parents grow old, I am scrambling, scrambling, scrambling to make this time worth what it is. When did my little brother grow five inches taller than I? When did I learn to read and write? When did I fall in love? The time lapses. The wind blows. 

I am falling in stillness. 

Joy

Today, I was finally able to give my worries over to God. And the feeling is so liberating. I want to dance in the joy I have. I want to sit at His feet. I want people to think I'm crazy from all the joy I feel and the way I act because I have an abundant amount of grace. So much grace that it's so overwhelming.

With a long weekend and worry after worry piling up on each other, I had lost the sight of joy. I was stuck in my own head and forgetting to give over my worries and problems over.

Luckily for me, I serve a God who gives joy at times of celebration and also at times of grieving. How can I be so saddened and distressed when there's so much hope to be found in my great God?

How to Overcome Writer's Block

"How to Overcome Writer's Block" is a blog post I wrote as a guest blogger for a website. Click on the link (the title) above to read it!