currently loving

i. fresh air hinting of adventure & newness drifting in through my window every morning
ii. daily visits to the park
iii. laughter
iv. magical sunsets
v. morning lattes on the porch
vi. looking forward to a long road trip & two weeks in the sunshine state
vii. having ice cream every day
viii. messy buns, short sleeves, & flip flops
ix. good time with family & friends
x. making happy memories to last a lifetime

what are your current loves?
eve

i lost my heart to the sea

Part of my heart will forever remain lost amongst the waves

Somewhere beyond that horizon, where sky & sea meet

In that endless land of blue, amid foam & spray

It pulls me, that fragment of my soul

Whispering, calling me back to that sandy shore

And I cannot wait for the day I return

It hurts sometimes, this ache, this longing

"Is it worth it," you ask, "losing your heart to the sea?"

"I don't know", I answer, "but is it worth not losing it?"

hugs,
eve

where the waves meet the coast

i want to be there.
that place where the waves meet the coast.
  that place where the sand creeps into the cracks of your toes and into the strands of hair on your head.

where my daily plans consist of sleeping, tanning and some good picture-taking.

i miss the smell of the water.

i miss the taste of those fruity, strawberry drinks from the tiki bar on the beach, with sand in the slats of the worn-down wooden floor.

most of all, i miss how i relaxed

along the edges of florida, is one of the few places i can relax.
i am able to forget about my worries.

you see.
i am the biggest worry wart you will ever meet.
i think about what will happen tomorrow, and on this very same day next year.
every thought that goes through my brain is a worry that revolves around me messing up in a way that could affect my future.
no matter how hard i try, i can't stop.
except when i'm where the waves meet the coast.

when i step off that plane back home, back into the suburbs, all the stress drops back onto my shoulders and my knees start to buckle with the weight of all my "problems" back.

i miss it where, all that disappears.

***I don't know if we have formally met yet, my name is Stephanie, and I'm one of the new authors here on AOU! I'm a teenager in the suburbs of Illinois. I so excited to be here, and to get to know y'all better :) If you don't know my history, I'm a "retired" blogger. I applied to AOU with about a year-and-a-half of experience. I had a blog called "Fearless" with about 150 or so followers that I wasn't able to keep up and running by myself with school. AOU feels like the perfect place for me to grow, and I hope you guys enjoy having me here. xx. Stephanie***

Wonder // thoughts from the big apple

a Thursday post by Bleah Briann from Lovely 

currently listening to: gyspy by suzanne vega 

I’ve been thinking a lot about wonder, wonder and awe and the beauty that inspires it. I think, however, the deepest and truest form of awe, the kind the bears forth creativity – I believe the kind of awe that inspires writers and painters, musicians and artists of every field, is the awe that is inspired by the beauty of experience and not merely the beauty that we see with our eyes.

I recently spent a couple of weeks up north (as I’m originally from Texas). It was my first time being that far away from home since I was a very little girl. When I was five we took a trip to New Jersey and I hadn’t flown since. To be honest I didn’t think I would like the experience. I found myself on the phone with my boyfriend at five in the morning waiting in the check line trying not to cry. I was carrying around three heavy bags, all by myself in an airport getting ready to fly to New York City. My emotions, to say the very least, were more than conflicting. I will always be grateful to a cheery, thoughtful flight attendant with a glass of ginger ale and some pretzels.

I landed in New York and took a shuttle to our ritzy hotel in Time Square. The clash of diamonds, silk, and doorman with the dirt, grime, and pushy salesman on the way to my hotel were incredibly overwhelming and much different from my little Suburbia here in Southeast Texas. It was beautiful though, the people and the diversity they brought with them. The lights and the surreal feeling of finally being somewhere iconic instead of somewhere so misunderstood as the Lonestar state. In the midst of it all, passing Park Avenue (Just like monopoly!) and pulling up in front of the infamous spot where the ball would drop in just a week, I never thought that I would be spending my Christmas Eve in one of the most iconic spots in the world.

My trip was truly remarkable, a few of my favorite spots included Central Park, Greenwich Village (not pronounced phonetically, I’m glad I learned this from Extremely Loud before the trip), and Grand Central Station, if you’re ever there you should really take a peek at the whispering corners. They were pretty impressive, and whimsical.

I also spent a few days in D.C. looking through beautiful museums and enjoying fabulous food. I saw Le Mis in a national theater and went on a midnight tour of all of the monuments. My cousins and I also took a playful visit to the Zoo, and I ventured out to the subways on my own to take a peek at Georgetown and found a very hipster-esque paradise on my last day for a salted caramel hot cocoa and chat with a Scottish boy.

I came back full of awe and wonder, partially over the sights. The majesty of Central Park, the joy of seeing the Washington Square Arch, The Lincoln Memorial even, the view from Brooklyn Bridge was also pretty astounding.  At the end of the day though, I think the most wonder I found was in the feeling of floating 39,000 feet in the air, of the way my heart echoed the sound piano as the man played in Greenwich. Of being somewhere so many people had been before me. You see, real wonder, I’ve come to find, is in the feelings and the memories. Real inspiration comes from doing things and taking it all in, it also comes from finding out what means the most to you and why. I can’t wait to travel the world, learn the customs, and see the sights. I can’t wait to fill my life with inspiration from every corner of the globe – I also can’t wait for the cup of coffee I’m going to have with my friend today after Kickboxing and the way seeing her for the first time in a week is going to make me feel. You see loves, it’s all about the little things that make you happy. And not what anyone else says about them.

my name is bleah briann, i am an english major in my second semester of college in southwest texas. i'm not very good at a lot of endeavors, but writing is something that i seem to be fairly good at and i've tried to harness all of my creativity into that field for a couple of years now. blogging has helped me do that. you can read more about me as well as some of the other readers here. or you can just head over to my blog and meet me personally for yourself at lovely. i hope you have a really beautiful day and i'm incredibly excited to be writing for this blog!

donuts, music, and passing kansas.

Some adventures are just picture-perfect. Especially when you have Kansas flying by your window.

Why don't you adventure today?

xx.

Lindsey

The Great Road Trip

I love road trips. Watching the miles fly by, while listening to music and knitting or reading a book.  Sometimes we do riddles or watch movies. Sometimes we do nothing at all. But we always enjoy it. I love stopping places and seeing new things, occasionally leaving a love letter for a stranger.

Do you like road trips?

xx.
Lindsey

mountain vacation

 

For almost as long as I can remember, we've gone to Colorado in the summertime. Our vacations consist of hiking mountains, climbing boulders, riding bikes and enjoying the cool air. Last year we didn't get this chance, so we're packing up the van and leaving tomorrow morning. I'll get to relive the fond memory of watching mile after mile of Kansas prairie passing, as I sit and take it all in, probably watching a movie or knitting a sweater. And once we get there, we'll step out of the car and smell that sweet Colorado air, and breathe it in like we're never going to breathe again. Oh, and see that little cutie up there with the crazy hair and giggly smile? She'll be turning a teenager while we're in the mountains. And my dad will be turning... one year older. ;)

What's your favorite vacation?

xx.
Lindsey

Wanderlust

Wanderlust. Mine has been recently temporarily satisfied. This evening we got back from Florida where my family and I spent time on the most beautiful beach ever, we saw friends, got sunburned, built huge sand sculptures, and finally got to see my Daddy graduate from seminary. Until next time, at least I have the sweet sound of an airplane taking off and landing still ringing in my ears.

Do you have wanderlust?

xx.

Lindsey

A Matter of Perception

Let's face it: we all dream of adventure. We dream of the places we'll travel and the things we'll see. We want to have one of those "perfect adventures". But to be honest, I've never had a planned adventure that lived up to my expectations.

About a month ago, my sister and I were staying with very dear friends of ours. The day was drawing to a close and we set out for a walk, carrying along my sister's rucksack with a dozen cookies, a beach towel, and some glitter. Why glitter? Because, being such easily enchanted people, we wanted to blow glitter in the air. At golden hour.

I'd heard many-a-time about the area to which we were traveling, but had no concept of its beauty. In fact, I had such little idea of it, that I almost didn't bring my camera. We walked and skipped and twirled down the paths. Past the house in the model of a castle. Past the abode which looked like a museum. Past the invisible wall dividing our world from this enchanted escape.

When we finally reached the opening to the wood, my voice rang in exclamation as I discovered a wood previously unbeknownst to me. But even the wood and the joy it gave me couldn't compare to the enchantment of our destination in all of its beauty. Following our traipse through the wood, we came to the clearing. A lake on our right and an enormous hill on our left. A little deck at the bottom of the mini mountain... just before the land turned into a prairie. The sun was blazing golden and the result  was an elated quartet of adventurers.

We divided the cookies and nibbled them upon the deck. As the temperature dropped we scrapped the towel's duty of being our picnic blanket, and it became a cape. And a shawl. And a flag in the wind. While the other three danced up the hill, gasping for breath, I took every moment and captured it in my memory-- and with my camera. Perhaps there are no moments more ingrained in my mind than these.

Eventually, we came to the glitter blowing portion of the day. As my little sister and her friend hung on a swinging branch, my friend and I began with the glitter. Of course I had my camera out, striving to get just the perfect shot. And I did.

After all of this, we packed up and hit the trails to head home, as we all mused about how wonderful the day was. And because it can't be completely perfect, I got hit in the head by a three-foot stick... but that was no big deal because I was too happy to care.

The point of this is not to make you jealous or discontent. In stead, I hope that you see that adventure can come when we least expect it. This adventure almost came without my camera around my neck, which means that I had very little anticipation of it. And while these adventures are wonderful, discovering the adventure in everyday things is just as important. Perhaps your perception of adventure depends on how you see life. What do you think?

What is your fondest memory of adventure?

Love and a hug,

Lindsey Lou