Life as of late.

As people have genuinely been asking how the last week (or 3) have been, my mind feels stunted, I cannot remember, and I blurt out "good!" So bare with me as I recount the last bit of life; join along if you would like to know.

1. Easter. 
...was good. Being away from family, holidays continue to take on a new flavour, in this new-again city. We spent two of the days of the long weekend with friends. We conquered Lynn Peak, which involved lots of uphill hiking, deep snow at the top and a veeery slippery decent. Good friends of ours also hosted a Sunday night dinner/potluck, complete with roast lamb (Kiwi/Aus tradition), communion and games.

Easter was good. I'm learning how to really recognize the freedom and grace of Jesus dying and rising again. I'm learning how to renounce other kings in my life, and exalt Christ as my King. I am his child. He loves me and I love him. From that identity, I get to serve and live my life in many different areas: marriage, family, friends, work... keeping Christ as my King, who I worship.

2. Starting a little balcony garden.
Even if we can't spend much time on our balcony (it being on a busy, loud, often abrasive transport truck-lovin' street), I still want it to look pretty, which means growing things! I don't even know if I like growing things. But I figured I should try. So I bought seeds and a bag of dirt (yeah... this originally farm girl BOUGHT dirt... er... soil. Ridiculous). I scrounged alleys for discarded planters and pots, found plenty on Craigslist, and even bought one new. I learned what germinate means. Mom taught me to soak sweet pea seeds first. Some plants need to be started indoors (who knew?!). And off we go. Already I have lettuce, daisy and forget-me-nots sprouted! I can not WAIT for sweet peas to start. I planted a LOT. I want an out-of-control, billowing CRAZE of sweat pea pinks, purples, whites and reds growing up the wall!

3. Refinishing our new table.
We got a sweet dining set from Chile... ahem... Craigslist (but originally from Chile) for $200 - 6 chairs and a sturdy table. The table top had water stains and plenty of wear, so we decided to strip and restain it. It now looks AWESOME! Andrew probably invested 10hrs of sanding, and I put in 2 days worth of staining. It took time! But... we thought the stain was going to be the same colour as the chairs... it's not. They are still dauntingly looming on the next-to-refinish list. Andrew already sanded one; it took 3hrs. Only 5 more to go...

...complete with dead tulips & crooked frames. You're welcome! 

4. Work.
April's been busy. I had 4 days off this weekend; I haven't had 2 consecutive days off in a row in 17 days. I KNOW this is too much for me... and so I crashed this weekend. There has been a FUNshop on cooking, a games night, introducing new volunteers to the community, planning volunteer training, farewelling to a team member, coffee with volunteers, babysitting little ones, cooking with the bigger ones, an improntu baseball practice at the park, meeting for lunch over school lunch break and of course dreaming about prom and upcoming high school graduation with some of the girls. I love my job!

Our Inner Hope team (missing Jenny) on Bethany's last staff meeting day at our new local JJ Bean

5. Andrew's Selection Weekend @ Douglas College
Andrew has applied to Douglas College in Coquitlam (about 40min drive from us) for full time school in the fall! - for Child and Youth Care Counselling. It's a 2 year diploma, and Andrew hopes to go on and get his degree in 2 more years at the same campus. He so enjoyed his position at the youth custody in Kitchener, and feels like he's found his niche, both career and life-calling. He made the first cut, and was invited to a selection weekend in April, where they consider 120 people for the 30 spot program. Ask him - it was intense. He hasn't written an essay in almost a decade. So much group work, writing and sharing opinions and ideas - trying to impress the instructors, but not be over dominant. He has a strong advantage in being an older, mature male with life experience, but man, "We had to talk about feelings the whole weekend." The instructors commented on his maturity and sensitively (to women) (thank you, marriage), and strong leadership skills. It will still be another month before they announce their decisions - so we're really hoping and praying! This will dramatically change life for the next 4 years if he gets accepted!

6. My parents are coming in 17 days!

It will have been 8 months without seeing any of our family face to face. Mom & Dad celebrate their 30th wedding anniversary tomorrow and we're thrilled that they're pairing a week in Vancouver alongside with their celebratory Alaskan cruise. This will be the first time my parents have been out to visit together (they've always come separately) and this is obviously the first time we've been married and living in Vancouver. We can't wait to re-show them all our favourite parts of the city, hike the northshore, drive to Whistler, eat out at yummy restaurants, shop (with mamma), Granville Island, take them to our church, have them to Inner Hope for dinner, spend a night in Seattle with them... but mostly, I can't wait to have them in our home, cook dinner for/with them and of course... finish every day with a game, in true Hill fashion. The best part of living in Ontario last year was being geographically close to family to simply "share life". And we get to do this for 9 days here. We deeply miss our families; May 9th can't come soon enough!!

Facebook: our own personal brag book?

I was reading the Vancouver Sun this morning in my favourite local coffee shop (The Laughing Bean, it's awesome) - and stumbled across an article on Facebook. I found this metaphor humorous... and very true:

[on comparing Facebook to our mothers]
"There it is, monitoring our every move, always watching over our shoulder and puttering around the edges of our personal space, trying to improve us with yoga and nutritional supplements, telling us where to shop and eat and play, always wanting to change our look and always, always introducing us to new friends we don't always want to know, much less date.
"Even when it's off, it's on, working away in the shadows, moulding our profiles and, like a yenta on a matchmaking mission, constantly nagging. Join this. Like this. Post this. Link to that. It's a Nosy Parker, disrespectful of privacy and barging into our rooms without knocking.
"Like our moms, Facebook knows too much about us, and shares too much of our privacy with perfect strangers. It's one thing to voluntarily be an open book, the architect of our personal brag books, but it's another to have your mother in charge of marketing and distribution, to have your photos of the family reunion instant fodder for target advertising."

Maybe I would have agreed with this mother-Facebook metaphor when I was 15, but now I just find it hilarious.

What stuck out to me is this: "It's one thing to voluntarily be an open book, the architect of our personal brag books..."

Brag books. WHOA. Again, a total conviction of something that's been festering in my heart for a number of weeks now. How we (I) only post our accomplishments, attainments, perfectly instagrammed photos, to what? Prove that we're cool human beings? That only great things happen in our lives? That we're worthy human beings because we got a new couch, are on the front of a magazine or the sun is shining in Vancouver (just scrolling through my last few days' worth of posts).

I'm convicted, I'm guilty, and I'm addicted. Addicted to only showing the great.

So let's be honest.
Also this week?
I was a crappy wife.
My house got filthy and I didn't clean it.
I'm sometimes unmotivated and do things just at face value.
I prefer to have days off than to work... often. (Lazy!)
I'm terribly undisciplined when it comes to prioritizing things like sitting and being still with God.
I got disappointed with people. Then I realized I am disappointed in myself, that we're all sucky humans, and then I stop judging people and am thankful for grace for my (and their) sucky-ness.

Yet all you saw was a sweet couch, my bike commute to work and Vancouver sunshine (which was 1/7 days this week probably). Blegh.

So, all that said... I don't know what to do about this.
Is social media somewhere where we only share the good stuff? And the real/crappy stuff is reserved for the close-real-life people in our lives?
Is Facebook a facade for convincing others (and ourselves?) that we have everything together? ...which would be reinforcing a lie because we sooooo do not.
Is Face[brag]book a breeding ground for pride?

Maybe this is just a weakness for me.
Maybe it's not bad to post things and share the little gifts and joys in your life, from the new couch to the sunny weather to the urban bike ride.
Maybe I need to check my motives every. single. time I post anything. 

Straight Truth

So thankful for scripture to cut straight through my confusion and emotions and madness - and make truth clear. These words are what is carrying me through this weekend.

I have been crucified with Christ.
It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.
And the life I now live in the flesh, I live in faith in the Son of God, who loved me, and gave his life for me.
-Galatians 2:20

All of us who have been baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death.
We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death,
in order that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the father,
we too might walk in the newness of life.
We know that our old self was crucified with him
in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing
so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin.
For the one who died has been set free from sin. 
-Romans 6: 3-4, 6-7

And if Christ was not raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins.
-OR-
[Since Christ has been raised, your faith has purpose and we are free from our sins!]
-1 Corinthians 15:17

In him we have redemption through his blood,
the forgiveness of our trespasses according to the riches of his grace,
which he lavished onto us,
in all wisdom and insight
making known to us the mystery of his will,
according to his purpose,
which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time,
to unite all things to him, things in heaven and things on earth.
-Ephesians 1:7-10

If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above,
where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.
Set you minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. 
For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God.
-Colossians 3:1-3

Let us also lay aside every weight and sin which clings so closely,
and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,
looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith,
who for the joy that was set before him
endured the cross, despising the shame,
and is seating at the right hand of the throne of God.
Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself,
so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted.
-Hebrews 12 1-3