surprisingly refreshing

I went to lunch with my friend Teal yesterday. She is person that is as beautiful inside and out as the color of her name. We went to Oxford together and we have diligently tried this school year to get together at least once a month for lunch. I love our conversations. They are always so good and encouraging. It's a time where we can both spill out everything going on in our lives and seek prayer for one another. It seems like I talk to people every day that are going through exactly what I am going through and that is nice. But sometimes it is nice to talk to someone who is not experiencing the same things and is excited to hear about my life. They also offer fresh ears and eyes for advice.

Teal and I talked yesterday about school, work, future plans, boyfriends (basically just Blake), summer jobs and lots of other stuff. We reflected on the past realizing that just a year ago from now we were in Oxford and traveling the world. I can't hide that we both were longing for old times. :)

We talked about the future, but did not let ourselves become overwhelmed with the unknown. We talked about the present, but did not let ourselves become stressed with things that needed to be done. And finally we talked about the past, but did not let ourselves become comfortable in old ways. There's too much to live for to be stuck in the past.

Towards the end of our conversation Teal and I were talking about the remainder of the semester. Both her and I are tired and ready for the end. We both have responsibilities in classes and jobs that we are ready to be done with. In our goodbyes and encouraging words Teal said something that caught my ear and pricked my heart. She said, "I will pray that the end of your semester is surprisingly refreshing." I realized then that the only way to allow myself to enjoy these last 4 weeks of my junior year is to choose to be surprisingly refreshed by the good things. Now that is a LOT easier said than done, but I will give it my all.

Life can by hard, but it always has the potential to be surprisingly refreshing.