over the past week i have experienced a lot.
i've got stories to tell.
got stories to remember.
and tomorrow, it's a new day.
a day to celebrate the life of Jamie Sykes.
a day to celebrate the life the Lord has blessed us with.
a day to smile and laugh at memories, and perhaps cry.
a day to wipe away tears and remember the joy.
a day to remember a life is now free.
a day to say, "my grandma was wonderful, and i want you to know this."
i love my family. we sure have taken a journey this past week.
a journey i will remember.
God bless you :).
God bless the Ramsey family. Y'all are in my prayers and Ben keep being a strong son. Bless y'all so so much. My heart is with y'all.
as i end my stay in the boro, i want to go back to rva with what i've gained here these past few days. i love my family so much. i am blessed to have them, we have become a support team for each other. cheers Lord for my strong, unique, goober, and much muc more, family :)!
Friday, May 15, 2009
Friday, May 8, 2009
Sitting At Five Fourty One.
i used to have this thing where i would put the time at the beginning and at the end of each journal writing i did... did this in Ireland all semester long. i would begin by writing the Irish time as well as the time back home so that i would know somewhat what my family would be up to... but yeah anyways haha.
As i sit on my couch and my feet placed nicely on the glass table in front of me my heart beats in a way i can feel it. i take a breath and here i am typing. Two days ago i drove back to Greensboro (the Boro) to be home with family. i had received a call from my mom that my grandma only had a few days to live, and even a "few" seemed like a generous number. The Lord spoke to me through a couple of people and so my journey began by leaving after a nice lunch with some of my RVA family. The drive home was it's usual pain-staking trying to stay awake drive, except this time i really felt the Lord's protection over my car, the drive was smooth, even if i felt super dooper tired. i had told my bro bro that i was coming home so someone knew i was on the road and then i told him he could tell the rents... my mom is awesome and didn't tell my dad so it would be a total surprise to him! (my grandmother is his mother)... i got home and she said the look on his face was great, i'd like to picture it as a subtitle as how his heart felt knowing i had come home for the family... but honestly i want to humble the situation. i want to give God all the GLORY! b/c really it was Him that got me out here...
Yesteray i experienced a new experience in life... one that i wouldn't want to put anyone through but one that taught me a lot through a really tough moment and moments. i told my mom that i really did need to see my grandma and she thought it was best. We left the house around 10:43 yesterday and headed to the place where my grandma lives. i was prepared, and talked to my heart before i entered... thinking, "oh, i wont cry..." and we all know that God has me in a crying season haha ;)... well here is how it all began:
The first word God gave me when i saw her little self was "beautiful." i couldn't stop thinking about how beautiful my grandmother was, at this moment... i give this all to the Lord because He gave me His eyes and heart for this time i was spending with my grandmother. "Beautiful." When most people would look and shutter at how weak and pitiful my grandma looked, God kept saying to me "look how beautiful she is." And of course what came next were tears that just kept falling... you try to turn off that faucet in order to bring yourself together but the tears just keep falling. Honestly it took me a while to get together enough to just speak to her without making her worried... my grandmother cannot speak, chew, or even really swallow now, but she can hear. And all i wanted to do was tell her how beautiful she is and how much the Lord has blessed me and my family with her life. Gah, she is so beautiful. i just sat there and looked into her eyes, telling her how much the Lord delights in her and i know she knew what i was saying... we kept our eyes on each other. She expressed a little through her eyebrows and there are some moments i'm going to keep to myself that i will forever cheerish. i am so blessed to have had come home to spend these hours with my grandma. i will never forget the moments we had, and i just pray, Lord, i pray for no pain. God for when there is pain in the night... JOY! comes in the morning!
Lord it's so exciting that she will be dancing with you and grandaddy soon! I LOVE YOU!
I LOVE YOU GRANDMA!
family is a blessing.
i'm really learning to cherrish the moments we are given.
if you have prayer requests for your family please send me an email. i want to pray for them/you :)
love.
five fifty nine
As i sit on my couch and my feet placed nicely on the glass table in front of me my heart beats in a way i can feel it. i take a breath and here i am typing. Two days ago i drove back to Greensboro (the Boro) to be home with family. i had received a call from my mom that my grandma only had a few days to live, and even a "few" seemed like a generous number. The Lord spoke to me through a couple of people and so my journey began by leaving after a nice lunch with some of my RVA family. The drive home was it's usual pain-staking trying to stay awake drive, except this time i really felt the Lord's protection over my car, the drive was smooth, even if i felt super dooper tired. i had told my bro bro that i was coming home so someone knew i was on the road and then i told him he could tell the rents... my mom is awesome and didn't tell my dad so it would be a total surprise to him! (my grandmother is his mother)... i got home and she said the look on his face was great, i'd like to picture it as a subtitle as how his heart felt knowing i had come home for the family... but honestly i want to humble the situation. i want to give God all the GLORY! b/c really it was Him that got me out here...
Yesteray i experienced a new experience in life... one that i wouldn't want to put anyone through but one that taught me a lot through a really tough moment and moments. i told my mom that i really did need to see my grandma and she thought it was best. We left the house around 10:43 yesterday and headed to the place where my grandma lives. i was prepared, and talked to my heart before i entered... thinking, "oh, i wont cry..." and we all know that God has me in a crying season haha ;)... well here is how it all began:
The first word God gave me when i saw her little self was "beautiful." i couldn't stop thinking about how beautiful my grandmother was, at this moment... i give this all to the Lord because He gave me His eyes and heart for this time i was spending with my grandmother. "Beautiful." When most people would look and shutter at how weak and pitiful my grandma looked, God kept saying to me "look how beautiful she is." And of course what came next were tears that just kept falling... you try to turn off that faucet in order to bring yourself together but the tears just keep falling. Honestly it took me a while to get together enough to just speak to her without making her worried... my grandmother cannot speak, chew, or even really swallow now, but she can hear. And all i wanted to do was tell her how beautiful she is and how much the Lord has blessed me and my family with her life. Gah, she is so beautiful. i just sat there and looked into her eyes, telling her how much the Lord delights in her and i know she knew what i was saying... we kept our eyes on each other. She expressed a little through her eyebrows and there are some moments i'm going to keep to myself that i will forever cheerish. i am so blessed to have had come home to spend these hours with my grandma. i will never forget the moments we had, and i just pray, Lord, i pray for no pain. God for when there is pain in the night... JOY! comes in the morning!
Lord it's so exciting that she will be dancing with you and grandaddy soon! I LOVE YOU!
I LOVE YOU GRANDMA!
family is a blessing.
i'm really learning to cherrish the moments we are given.
if you have prayer requests for your family please send me an email. i want to pray for them/you :)
love.
five fifty nine
Monday, May 4, 2009
Imagine a Montage of a Year But...
Not enough pictures to show it all... so basically i thought that this post would be dedicated to random photographs with beautiful people.
i went through my facebook pictures and was amazed at the memories of this past year flowing through my head to the point of excited exhaustion haha. i am amazed at how much we learn in a year... but even more so in an hour, a minute, a second. A DAY! ah it's crazy. and i'm thankful.
yup... oh yes, one more thing... these photographs you are about to view don't speak those 1000 words enough for the memories behind them as well as the memories that i'm not even posting or don't even have photographs to be the witness. praise the Lord for EVERYTHING.
i went through my facebook pictures and was amazed at the memories of this past year flowing through my head to the point of excited exhaustion haha. i am amazed at how much we learn in a year... but even more so in an hour, a minute, a second. A DAY! ah it's crazy. and i'm thankful.
yup... oh yes, one more thing... these photographs you are about to view don't speak those 1000 words enough for the memories behind them as well as the memories that i'm not even posting or don't even have photographs to be the witness. praise the Lord for EVERYTHING.
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
One Thirty Eight. A Simple Smile.
Yesterday the rain came down like there was no tomorrow. As if there had been a drought for like 10 years and then God let it rain, haha! Well, for once I actually decided to drive to school, but this was because 1. i had to go to kinkos, 2. it was pouring rain to the point of not being able to avoid getting soaked.
Before i get to the smile part of my blog i'd like to praise the Lord for putting my car in park!!! i had to reverse at some point in my trip and was at a stop light. The light turned green and i did what most people do at a green light, accelerated. But my engine reved and and i was confused... i looked down and i had been in park but just minutes before i had been in reverse! There was a car directly behind mine, so i would have been in a pretty bad wreck, caused by the one and only me. PRAISE THE LORD!!!
so... yesterday walking to class from the parking deck and there was a river puddle between stuffy's subs and the other building. i saw this guy walking towards me and i could tell we were both thinking about how to get around this... so i go left and find a smaller area of the river, and he follows but to his right. The conversation we had was just a smile and a simple laugh... but this really hit me in a poetic way... God gave us the ability to smile and laugh. Now bear with me for a second... imagine yourself going through your day and all of a sudden something just makes you smile BAM! there it is a smile bigger than your face! Now remember that feeling? The feeling of a true smile occuring all in one instance, and sometimes we don't even know why this smile occurs. i like to imagine these pure smiles as little presents from God. Something to mix up our day... something so simple, but with such a huge impact. i love smiling. i love that feeling... when i know it's a real smile :)! i have always described these as the ones you can feel your ears go up. It's a whole face kind of thing... your expression tells it all, without words.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR SMILES.
gah, i love You!
(taking the shortest break in history to finish up the blog i started this morning... now back to the GO GO GO of end of the year final projects and printing my life away at kinkos sooooon)
oh yeah and just got the new meg and dia cd... it's so different...
Before i get to the smile part of my blog i'd like to praise the Lord for putting my car in park!!! i had to reverse at some point in my trip and was at a stop light. The light turned green and i did what most people do at a green light, accelerated. But my engine reved and and i was confused... i looked down and i had been in park but just minutes before i had been in reverse! There was a car directly behind mine, so i would have been in a pretty bad wreck, caused by the one and only me. PRAISE THE LORD!!!
so... yesterday walking to class from the parking deck and there was a river puddle between stuffy's subs and the other building. i saw this guy walking towards me and i could tell we were both thinking about how to get around this... so i go left and find a smaller area of the river, and he follows but to his right. The conversation we had was just a smile and a simple laugh... but this really hit me in a poetic way... God gave us the ability to smile and laugh. Now bear with me for a second... imagine yourself going through your day and all of a sudden something just makes you smile BAM! there it is a smile bigger than your face! Now remember that feeling? The feeling of a true smile occuring all in one instance, and sometimes we don't even know why this smile occurs. i like to imagine these pure smiles as little presents from God. Something to mix up our day... something so simple, but with such a huge impact. i love smiling. i love that feeling... when i know it's a real smile :)! i have always described these as the ones you can feel your ears go up. It's a whole face kind of thing... your expression tells it all, without words.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR SMILES.
gah, i love You!
(taking the shortest break in history to finish up the blog i started this morning... now back to the GO GO GO of end of the year final projects and printing my life away at kinkos sooooon)
oh yeah and just got the new meg and dia cd... it's so different...
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
The Love is Sealed Upon My Heart.
i believe in love.i believe in being broken in order to know love.
i believe in hope.
i believe in rescue.
i praise the Lord today for the light He gives me in my life.
i haven't been writing blogs lately because i have been super busy with many different things... EASTER! was celebrated this past weekend, as well as my 21st birthday, on the SAME DAY!!! Praise the Lord! What's cool is, Jesus is alive everyday... so Easter IS everyday! Haha, well kind of...
About a week and a half ago i got back from an amazing long weekend in Cocoa Beach, FLAH! i was blessed to meet amazing people. i was blessed to learn a lot about brokenness, which is a prayer of mine, because i want life to be real, prayers to be REAL, LOVE TO BE REAL... i learned a lot about who i am and who i am becoming. i was inspired. i was listened to, and listened to a lot all at the same time. i was encouraged by and hopefully encouraged those around me. My roomie was more than i could have asked for during MOVE09 the TWLOHA conference for training and learning. i really can't write down the whole experience because there was so much, which would overload the blogger system with so many words. If i could draw a picture of the weekend, i still think i would have a hard time expressing what the trip meant to me, and i'm sure my new friends feel the same. It was amazing, and we are all excited to continue on the inspiration from the weekend we experienced together. Jesus has given me a heart for the broken-hearted, the lonely, and really, a heart for people. i am blessed to have a mom and dad that supported me going on this experience adventure and i can't wait to do more for TWLOHA b/c TWLOHA has done so much for me. i am so stoked that the Lord brought To Write Love on Her Arms into my life. It's time to give back to the community, and i am willing and ready! i want to write a poem about my experience there, but that will have to come when it comes.
LOVE LOVE LOVED MOVE. Like i said, can't describe in words, but my roomie Lindsay did an amazing job in writing out the experience :)!
i appologize for not writing out everything like i had planned on doing. Time got the best of me and filled my days up with work for the end of the semester projects, as well as getting together everything the VCU chapter of TWLOHA needs to be approved. i hope we get approved for FALL 2009!!!
i am 21.
that's weird to write out, say, or even think about.
the fact that i made it to 21 is the most important thing.
not the being able to drink, or go to any shows that are 21+, or whatever comes with 21.
i am blessed to be here.
i am blessed to be a warrior.
i am blessed to be able to love on people.
it's a battle, life that is...
dad, if you are reading this, know i love you. know that no matter what we have to go through to learn how to love each other, i will still love you, and i am trying SO so so so hard. know you don't have to worry about me turning into someone who doesn't accept people, for i am not the judge, God is, and when it all gets down to things, past the human flesh of me, i am a lover of people, because that's what God does, and i want to love like Him, for we are His children. i am thankful, SO THANKFUL, for you and mom and drew... for without God putting you in my life, i wouldn't have gotten to where i am today, and where i am going. let us heal this relationship, because there is no point in leaving the broken pieces broken.
i love You, Lord.
i love you, family.
i love you, you reading this.
cheers.
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Blog to Come...
THE MOVE CONFERENCE WAS AWESOME and i will be following up with a bloggage as soon as i get some time to write it all out :)!!! LOVE LOVE
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)