'O! Wanderers in the shadowed land'

"O!  Wanderers in the shadowed land
despair not! For though dark they stand,
all woods there be must end at last,
and see the open sun go past:
the setting sun, the rising sun
the day's end, or the day begun
For east or west all woods must fail..."

-Frodo, The Fellowship of the Ring 

What did I say?   Beautiful.  And so very symbolic and True.   'the shadowed land' makes me think of C.S. Lewis' description of earth "the Shadowlands."  We are wanderers on this earth. But every dark wood has an end- and then the sunrise!

Right now I'm wandering on, learning as I go, feeling the wind on my cheeks and the biting cold in my bones.  Right now I'm growing thanks to the grace of God and His work in me through the Bible, situations, and people who love Jesus.   Every day I take steps forward, holding his hand, gazing at beauty and feeling the thump thump of the song of tomorrow in my heart.

A fellow wanderer in the shadowed land,
~Abby

Classics never age

I'm reading Lord of the Rings again, and it's just as good a book now as it was the first time I read it.   Some things never age- classic books certainly don't.

"The road goes ever on and on
Down from the door where it began.
Now far ahead the Road has gone,
And I must follow, if I can,
Pursuing it with eager feet,
Until it joins some larger way
Where many paths and errands meet.
And whither then? I cannot say."
-The Fellowship of the Rings

Here's to amazing characters, poetry that breathes mystery and magic, and stories that pull back the veil and show me something beautiful.

Go read a classic book today. Turn off the computer, brew a cup of tea and chill on the couch with something that will never quite grow old.

"Bilbo was meant to find the ring, and not by its maker. In which case you also were meant to have it. And that may be an encouraging thought." -Gandalf

"Time to buy and time to lose"

     So, a friend pointed out Five for Fighting to me.   Now, as a disclaimer, I've heard only about 3 of their songs, but what I heard I liked for several reasons, mainly the wistfull, dreamy quality of LONGING.  Here's something from 100 Years to Live:

"15 there's still time for you
Time to buy and time to lose
15, there's never a wish better than this
When you only got 100 years to live" 

~100 Years to Live~

Time to buy and time to lose.   That sounds SO true.   We as young people think a lot about the future, and what we're going to do with our lives.  We dream big, we hope.    Where are we placing our time?  I know where I want to spend mine.   Loving Jesus, loving people, and spreading HIS glory wherever I go.   In every week.  Every day.   Every hour.  Every minute.

"I wish the ring had never come to me.  I wish none of this had happened."   "So do all who live to see such times, but that is not for them to decide.   All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us."

~Lord of the Rings~

"Making the best use of the time, because the days are evil."

~Ephesians 5:16~

~Abby~