Thursday, March 25, 2010

Old friends and new beginnings.

I'm wondering why it is that the life-moments most heavy with meaning are the ones that are hardest to reduce to mere words formed into sentences. I have no answer to that question. I only know that, now I'm here with a half hour carved out for stringing together some words about my lovely friend Carla's weekend wedding, I don't really know what to say. I want to say that she was a magical bride, radiant with a sort of 1940s beauty. At the same time, she was thoroughly herself, laughing and crying and expressing her emotion in facial expressions as much as in words. Her new husband Alastair ("with three A's") was so very obviously overjoyed to be joined to this precious girl for life, and his tears as he watched Carla walk down the aisle to Pachelbel's Canon (the piece Carla had always vowed she would be married by) sparked a landslide of tears from a whole bunch of us who were watching.

The ceremony was a joyful one, full of worship and also a sense of festivity at the new beginning awaiting Carla and Alastair. And the reception following was sparkling with fairytale touches -- swags of linen hung from the ceiling, tiny white lights, glowing candles, and a profusion of pink roses. It was an overwhelming of the nicest sort to be amongst so many of my beloved New South Wales friends at once. The day was too short and the hall too full of excellent people for there to be much time to really talk and catch up, but it was awesome just to see them and to be reminded anew of how good it is to be loved by people who have known you long enough to see your flaws and to realise that you really take far too long to reply to letters -- and yet continue to be loving and kind and super all the same.

So, since I can't explain any of that in words sufficiently elegant, I'll instead point you to some pictures of the special day: Bethany's, Rachael's, and the wedding photographer's, all of whom got some gorgeous shots.

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Feathered skies.

I am relishing every bit of Autumn. These are the kinds of days that may turn out any which way. On Monday, it might be bright and shining and warm. On Tuesday, it may be bleak and rainy. On Wednesday, a gale could be trying its utmost to shake the house from its foundations. I love it all. It's letter-writing weather. It's candle weather. It's cocoa weather. It's cardigan weather. And these things make me happy.

What's making you happy right now?

PS. My friend Jessica, who is smart, funny, a little snarky, and an incredible photographer, just started blogging. You should definitely check out her blog.

Wednesday, March 3, 2010

Tuesday, March 2, 2010

A letter:

Dear Self (and others like you),

The world is full of creative people, and the internet is like a full-to-busting library of all their work. Only, in this library you can borrow more than plain old books. Yes, you can also peek into other peoples' journals, open their sketchbooks, browse through their rolls of undeveloped film, and -- sometimes -- look inside their brains.

It's inspiring. Amazing. Mind-blowing. And sometimes it gets you down. You think that the way you see the world, and the way you interpret what you see, is nothing compared to the way they see it. What they do is wondrous and otherworldly, but what you do is mediocre.

Well, Self, I need to tell you something.

We've already established that you're not a genius and never will be. I'm sure you know that you've got a lot to learn. But let one of the first things you learn be this: what you do is mediocre to you just because you do it. Think about it. Of course you cannot look again through your own eyes at a work you've created as a result of what you see with those eyes. Of course it will all be familiar. Of course you will understand that about 99% of the world's creative people will be able to do better.

But none of that matters.

This is because God made you who you are, and because His work has value, the way you see the world has value. Oh, don't get proud about it. It has value because of Him, not because of you. And I'm not telling you to find yourself, because it's finding Him that matters. But, Self, please be happy being You. God made you You for some reason, even if you never get it. So be the best possible version of You, for His glory and smile.

Love,
Danielle
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