april 29th

My summer outfit [aka my I've-stopped-caring-what-I-wear-so-I-wear-the-same-thing-every-day outfit] 

april 28th

He reminds of Fievel the mouse from Fievel Goes West.

april 27th

Volunteers at the Wingate Hotel for the Spa party for Administrative Professionals Appreciation Day. [say that 5x fast. i dare you.]

april 26th

the phaaaaaantom of the opera is theeere, insiiiide your miiiind.

april 25th

Morning Bible study outside. God is so good.

april 24th

This is how mega-churches like Thomas Road Baptist do Easter.
[yes, that is an empty tomb in the right corner]

april 23rd

Ride the city bus if you're looking for adventure... it was almost too much for this little white girl to handle alone.

april 22nd

is this a graveyard to bury her heart?
or is it a garden
where new life will start [sleeping at last]

april 21st

Elle's a beast. In a good way.

behind the mask

lately i've been asking so many questions, but haven't really found answers. something's prompting me to look deep inside myself, but i get scared & pretend to be busy so i don't have to take the plunge. maybe i'm just tired of going through the motions... of living in this Christian bubble. sure, i can put on the good girl face & use all the correct lingo [i'm currently taking theology & i've realized i know very little about my faith] but at the end of the day, i could just be another lost soul.

i know the truth. i know what i should believe. but do i actually believe it?


i've been taught these things my entire life. i was saved when i was 3 years old. God was never a question or a doubt in my mind. you'd think i would be at the "top of my game" when it came to christianity. but as each day passes, i feel myself drifting farther away from what i know should be my top priority. i have no passion... i have no desire.

right about now the question am i even saved? enters my mind. i believe with everything in me that i have been rescued from death, that Jesus paid the price for my sins. i know the Holy Spirit lives within me, otherwise i wouldn't be feeling so convicted... right?

as i sit here in the grass with the wind blowing around me, the words I AM come to mind. to even the greatest, godliest men in history, God defined Himself as I AM. which really is no definition at all. more like a fill in the blank since He is everything beautiful, good & perfect. so who am i to demand the Creator of the world show Himself to me? i should be the one opening myself to Him, falling flat on my face in awe & wonder.

this post doesn't really have an end, a conclusion, a finish. it ends the same way it started: with more unanswered questions. yet somehow i have a feeling of peace... peace not of my own doing, but of something--Someone--working within me.

maybe i don't need to know all the answers... just faith in a God who does.

I AM who I AM.

april 20th

Nerds unite! Best overheard conversation ever... pretty sure the guy in the red figured out I took a picture. I realized I am just as guilty of being a nerd... I was playing sudoku while eavesdropping.

april 19th

Today was pretty uneventful, hence the picture of my shoes. But it is flip flop weather!

april 18th

Yes, I am that creeper who takes pictures of random strangers... [cute Vans couple. I envied them.]

april 17th

I don't mind being blinded by the sun.

april 16th

sing 'til your heart hurts
then sing some more
don't stop singing 'til we see the shore
sing it loud and clear 'cause i promise you
that someone will hear you sing --seabird

april 15th

Hawaiian luau--poor college student style.

april 14th

Tennis, it's been too long. Thanks for the sunburn, freckles, sweat, & sore muscles. Totally worth it!

april 13th

Smile, you have cotton candy! [Carley]

april 12th

Examined a fish in Biology today. Who knew it could be so fun to scare the lil feller.

april 11th

3 weeks until summer!

april 10th

My roomie at her lacrosse game!

april 9th

Sitting in a cloud 3,800 feet above Lynchburg. Courtesy to Sharp Top.

King of the world.

april 8th

Thank you, Dr. Johnson, for inviting me & my classmates over to your gorgeous house for an evening of unexpected fun. Thank you for buying pizza for us & allowing us to give in to our cravings to make cookie dough [& eat it too]. You truly are the coolest professor I know.

april 7th

My sister's mirror.

april 6th

I spy with my little eye my shadow passing by.

april 5th

My little girl dream of becoming a doctor just so I could use a stethoscope came true in biology today.

april 4th

My birthday sign shown in convo today. I totally missed it... always running late is definitely not cool.

april 3rd

Today I'm 20. WHOA.
In other news, we had a picnic [PB&J of course], ate froyo & took naps in the sun. A perfect way to celebrate two decades.

april 2nd

The Last Supper at Olive Garden. We enjoyed a Tour of Italy [really... the name of the dish we ordered] before starting our "diet" tomorrow.

april 1st

Modern Marie fashion show. Let them eat cake!

One of my favorite designs.

My other favorite!