Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Favorite Photo


I took this photo this past Sunday when a really good friend of mine and I went for a walk down by the harbor. It is my favorite photo - not only of all the photos I took that day, but of all the photos I ever took with Fairbanks. I just love how the rays of the afternoon sun drown this picture in warmth, evoking a feeling of complete serenity. It elicits memories of far away places, holidays spent by the sea, listening to the screaming sea gulls - and then I realize that it is not a far away place but down by the harbor. I realize how special this is, how lucky I am, how beautiful everything around us is, if we just take the time to look at it more closely. It was not only absolutely beautiful but interesting, too. We explored all the different gadgets used in the fishing industry including various types of hooks, nets and lobster creels.


Saturday, February 18, 2012

Time


The house we are living in this academic year is just down the street from the biggest church in town. It is a beautiful church, albeit more so from the inside than from the outside, and its church bells have become one of the main means to determine what time it is ever since we first moved in. They joyfully chime every quarter of an hour; different melodies indicating how much time of an hour has elapsed, eventually culminating in a series of successive bells signalling the hour. I am becoming more and more accustomed to the rhythm: increasingly I find myself in situations where long before the first tune resounds my inner clock already knows which quarterly melody is about to be played.

Thursday, February 16, 2012

Blue

The above picture was taken down by the beach this past Sunday. I love the vast abundance of blue in the photograph - from light blue sky to deep-blue water. The ocean was as calm as a lake, the sun was shining like it usually only does during mid-summer, and temperatures were well above freezing point. I went by myself, enjoying the solitude amidst families, couples and groups of friends, observing and taking in the beauty, happiness and peace around me. I was particularly amazed by one brave group of friends playing frisbee in their shorts while everyone else at the beach was still in full winter attire.


Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Heart


So much love. Love for the King, love for people, love for life. An evening well spent with great friends, fabulous food, creativity and endless amounts of love. We talked. We ate. We laughed. We explored. We discovered. We inspired. We painted. We sang. We worshipped. We prayed. We loved. Thank you for Your love that came down to rescue me.

Saturday, February 11, 2012

Makes Me Happy


Bunting. For the last couple of months I have become increasingly charmed by bunting of all sorts: traditional triangles, dot garlands - you name it. Literally, anything that remotely resembles bunting makes me happy.

I remember when I first encountered traditional bunting about two years ago, I wasn't all that fussed about it. My now-housemate was showing me excitedly some of the fabric bunting she'd been working on and as much as I tried, I just couldn't share her enthusiasm for it. It looked nice but I just couldn't imagine anyone actually putting it up. To me, it was one of the most useless crafting I ever came across and I rather harshly dismissed it as "this thing English girls do when they are bored". Over the years, though, bunting started to grow on me - to the extent that I started making some paper bunting for my room this past Christmas, followed by some colorful bunting for the living room.

Here are some of my favorite bunting and garland ideas:


Wednesday, February 08, 2012

Sun

... or the lack thereof for that matter. It's no secret that Scotland is not necessarily one of the sunniest places around, especially not in winter. Nevertheless, the last couple of days have been absolutely stunning - freezing cold yet the sun was shining. Unfortunately this did not last until today.

Certainly not impressed by the absence of sunshine, some friends of mine and I decided to head to the beach regardless since none of us had lectures today. It was wonderful and I was, once again, convicted of how I little I appreciate the beautiful scenery around me.

Monday, February 06, 2012

Buttons

Today the new university semester started and with it the bustle in town is back to its usual standards. I enjoy walking through the streets observing this town being full of life as students hurry along the streets, already late on the first day. It is a special time of the academic year marked by the expectations of what this semester will bring, the intention to work harder and, most importantly, the excitement of being united again with good friends.

Unfortunately, after my first lecture this morning, the enthusiasm that once stimulated me to work harder was already wearing off rapidly. Instead of doing some reading as initially intended, I went over to a friend's house to have a catch-up tea with her. It was so worth it - especially when I saw her flatmate wearing this beautiful button bracelet, which her sister made for her.

Friday, February 03, 2012

Words

Everyday. That is the word I came across while having coffee with a friend this afternoon. I like it because to me it represents "choice". EVERYDAY I am given the choice to make the most out of it - to live life to the fullest, to not be held back by afflictions of all sorts, to not worry. Jesus died on the cross so I can live freely. And I am accepting this gift EVERYDAY. Gladly.

Thursday, February 02, 2012

Hands

Today was the second last day before the busyness of university life starts again, so one of my wonderful housemates and I had two lovely friends over for a baking day. We've decided to make my friend's speciality: Brownies. It was such a lovely afternoon with lots of chats and the Brownies turned out perfectly. They were super gooey - just as we like them. Some more impressions: