Author: Samantha Gratton

Thursday Three

Samantha Gratton

What is it about Thursdays? You look back at the week and think it was ages since the weekend. What did you even do last weekend? Gosh. Yet it’s marks the beginning of an end (or vice versa I suppose) to the week that has something great about it. Besides, who knew I could start so many blog posts just talking about Thursday? I sure didn’t.

1. We said YES. This past week, friends of ours asked us to be in their wedding this September. Friends we met here, in North Carolina. Something about that is crazy to me. We were both really honored to be chosen for these roles and especially after only knowing them for the past year or so. When we moved we really hoped and prayed we could both make close friends and be close friends. While being in someone’s wedding is far from the deciding factor on your friendship status (please, don’t even get me started about how weddings weirdly make you rank your friends), we are really excited to be a part of their big day and their lives.

2. Shut the front door, there’s snow outside. I know I went on a mini-rant/lecture on what is and is not cold last week. This time, it actually is. I wouldn’t say all of the snow days the kids got away with were totally justified but hope they had a good mini-vacay anyway. I decided to embrace a new-to-me Southern recipe by putting a bowl out on the porch to catch some flakes for snow cream. It tastes about as exciting as it sounds: milky sugar snow. As long as there’s sugar involved, it’s a bona fide Southern dish. And alright already. There’s something really pretty and even kinda fun about snow. I said it.

3.  There’s a lot of people in the world. Yep, I’m going big with this last one. But it’s true. People are everywhere and I keep being reminded we have to work at things together. People can challenge you and frustrate you but they also strengthen you. It’s worthwhile to come together, even if it’s sorta inconvenient or outside your comfort zone. They’ll rub you the wrong way and sometimes you want to say, “I can do it all without them!” But there will always be someone else that will annoy you in almost the same way. Might as well figure out how to bring out each other’s strengths and work as a team.  

Thursday Three

Samantha Gratton

It’s been a long week. Nothing particularly bad or big, just lots of little things happening and stress from all those things. Work has been a little hectic lately for everybody here and sometimes it’s hard to know what will be more relaxing: tackling all the things looming over your head or blowing it all off completely. So let me bring you a super short Thursday Three that consists of the most bizarre and unrelated items possible.

1. Something about being tired brings a strange mix of emotions to the surface. You fight easier or spill over too soon. It can also bring out your comfort creativity. When you’re energized that creativity can ooze out in all sorts of wonderful ways but when you’re weary there’s something raw there. It can either sting or soothe to expose that fatigue. Somehow we keep forgetting that our comfort creativity takes very different forms. He plays music and I eat chocolate write. Even though we’ve been married for a few years now we’re constantly seeking and remembering what are strengths and joys are. The trick is figuring out both how to make them work together and when it’s okay for them to simply stand alone. 

2. I don’t want a dog right now. I was going through some sort of major puppy fever not so long ago but now that desire is buried deep once more. It’s nice to know that at least. I’d rather plan a trip and save up money. Whew. Glad that discussion’s finally over.

3. Senior photos are the best. We have a nice camera, and I decided it was time to have a decent “casual” headshot. You know, for my work email or the blog or that frame on my husband’s desk I’ll be buying this weekend. So the hubby was given the title of art director, and we spent a few minutes awkwardly walking around the neighborhood. Got a few decent ones…

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Then we got this gem.

I channeled all of my inner high school senior meets glamour shots.

Feel free to vote for your favorite.

Weather-wise

Samantha Gratton
Let’s just go ahead and talk about the weather for a chilly minute. It seems I cannot comment about it without offending someone, but I’ll go ahead and try anyway. To start off, weather is a fact after it’s happened, but how we think or feel about it is based on our experiences. To understand my experiences, I’ll tell you that as a kid I lived in Virgina Beach, VA. I remember the time when it snowed enough to stick around for a few days or when we wore winter coats for 40 degrees and couldn’t imagine being colder. But then I moved to the Midwest the week of a blizzard and used my boogie board as a sled because I wasn’t equipped for that kind of winter.

For over a decade I lived in the heart of Iowa. One year snow covered the ground 43% of the time, and I lived in what was considered one of the 25 coldest cities in America. Snow means waking up an hour earlier to shovel the driveway, scrape your car and hope it will start only to come home and do it all over again. A blizzard means it starts snowing and feels like it will never stop. Snow is no longer pretty and white, but piled high and dark grey from cars and snowplow trucks driving by all day. Salt and sand cover the roads and slowly ruin your cars, shoes and floors. When it gets really bad you might get a snow day, but don’t plan on it. You have to learn to drive through a few inches of unplowed snow and know when you slide how to avoid hitting cars, people or light poles. It becomes a part of life. Snowball fights, going sledding, making snowmen and winter fashion are fun perks but often come with months of cold and weather-related responsibilities.

A year and a half ago we headed south, with warmer weather being one of our objectives. We moved in the middle of August and thought we’d never stop sweating as we lugged our things inside from the humidity. After that passed we had a long fall, followed by a winter that barely graced freezing temperatures for more than a few days. When friends from the Midwest posted about blizzards and snow all the way through May we exchanged high fives for avoiding it and went outside. In the spring we witnessed what I think should be called a yearly pollen storm as you can visibly see clouds of pollen in the sky and covering your car. Summer had a lot a rain and then got hot before we found ourselves in fall again. We purchased what we call our “North Carolina winter coats” (read: softshell jackets) and started claiming it was chilly if it dipped below 60.

When we visited Iowa a few weeks ago, it was bitter cold with one of the days never even reaching 0 degrees outside. Upon returning back to North Carolina ten days later it felt like spring and we loved it. Within our day of travel we experienced a solid 50 degree difference. Literally. It was crazy. Last night in Raleigh, snow was predicted so the grocery store was a madhouse, schools closed early and either cancelled or delayed for the next day and a storm of social media posts took place. What ended up happening? I couldn’t help but giggle. It rained for a little bit and then snowed for maybe an hour or two before dropping into the 20s for the night. In some places the snow stuck but in my yard the grass was far from covered. This is not common weather for January and might even be crossing into record temperatures for the month. 

Can we all agree that there’s a difference here? Because I can’t help but see these winter experiences as total opposites. Neither is better than the other, it’s incredible either way. As humans we can’t help but talk about the weather and that’s okay. I just think it’s not worth getting upset or defensive about whatever your weather may be. So to those in the colder states, when I say how warm it is here, I am not trying to gloat. I’m happy to live in a place that has milder temperatures and allows me to avoid a winter hibernation or seasonal affective disorder. That’s what the weather here has resulted in for me. To those in the warmer states, I’m sorry that when you say it’s cold it doesn’t seem like I take you seriously. I know it feels cold to you and the weatherman is calling it a winter storm. While I’ve seen it so much stronger and colder, I’m not trying to one-up you. I’ve lived in cold weather and it wasn’t for me, that’s why I’m here! Let’s agree that weather is crazy and our experiences are all different. Deal?

Thursday Three

Samantha Gratton

Hello Thursday, my day of the week. The day that I’m tired and ready for the weekend but sometimes stay up too late anyway just because. Getting home when it’s dark outside makes me feel like I never even had a chance at the day, so I try to stay up late out of defiance but usually don’t accomplish much in those hours anyway. So it goes.

1. Sore muscles are the best worst feeling. After months without formal exercise I decided to try the gym that’s much closer to where we live last night. It was good to get back there and fake some confidence while I lifted baby weights next to hulking men as they grunted. Glorious. Okay, not that part. But I tried to do the machines for the first time since the big injury this summer and didn’t end up on crutches. Success. 

2. Learning is fun. I’m taking not one but two graduate level classes this semester at a nearby university. So far so good, but the homework hasn’t really piled up yet. I’m really glad for the opportunity though to learn some new things and hopefully open up some interesting opportunities down the line. The classes are in the nonprofit management program, which in no way relates to what I’m doing in my day job. Sometimes I think doing things like this is really great and interesting and other times I wonder what the purpose is or what I’m doing with my life. But in a good way.

3. February might be my favorite month of 2014. I know that sounds a little presumptuous and not totally fair to the rest of the months. But seriously, so many of my favorite things are happening this February that I can hardly wait! First of all, my favorite holiday (Groundhog Day) is on February 2nd, as always. We might even try to throw another party this year for it. Too soon to say officially, but it’s a good possibility. Second, the Olympics are coming! It will be like a party every day for 17 straight days! I LOVE the Olympics! So, even though that has no direct relation to this week, I’m pretty pumped about February.

A Mere Chasing

Samantha Gratton

I’ve found last year’s list of goals/resolutions and started this year’s. If I haven’t hyped up my big resolutions enough yet then let me assure you it’s way cooler than “update all photo albums” or “read more books”…ahem, right. I also happened upon Ecclesiastes and think it might need to be a yearly tradition to read when setting resolutions each year.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for doing something more than watching TV each night or simply enduring each day to get to the next. But I can get ahead of myself. I plan and imagine an entire life that’s suddenly fulfilled and meaningful and more beautiful than any tumblr feed or pinterest board out there. I’ve made it. Except not really. Nothing I do will be ever be enough to hit that mark: “All streams flow into the sea, yet the sea is never full.” Don’t go crying about it, but you won’t ever make it either. There’s something disappointing in that, but even more so, there’s something incredibly freeing and wonderful about it. It’s all meaningless. Such a refreshing reminder.

5 The sun rises and the sun sets,
    and hurries back to where it rises.
6 The wind blows to the south
    and turns to the north;
round and round it goes,
    ever returning on its course.
7 All streams flow into the sea,
    yet the sea is never full.
To the place the streams come from,
    there they return again.
8 All things are wearisome,
    more than one can say.
The eye never has enough of seeing,
    nor the ear its fill of hearing.
9 What has been will be again,
    what has been done will be done again;
    there is nothing new under the sun.
10 Is there anything of which one can say,
    “Look! This is something new”?
It was here already, long ago;
    it was here before our time.

Ecclesiastes 1:5-10

Sunday Morning

Samantha Gratton

I don’t often write in poetry form, maybe because I don’t really know the official rules or because my rhymes are usually a stretch. That said, I have recently found that I enjoy writing lyrics for some of the hubby’s songs. This morning is a morning of reflection and in a notebook of miscellany I found a Sunday morning poem I’d already written months ago. It seemed to capture the same sentiment of today so I thought I’d share it despite some of it’s inconsistent patterns.

Sunday Morning

Wake up to the quiet glory
of the early Sunday morning
Thankful for all you’ve done
Staring out to rays of sun

There’s a certain mystery
to the direction of the trees
Luscious green, rolling clouds
crashing waves, windy days

In the morning, I will sing of your love
Show me where I should go
Because my morning is yours

This is the morning, your morning
Let me sing loudly of your love
tiptoe into the day, keep on faithfully
May it be with peace and with love

“Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I entrust my life.” – Psalm 143:8 

Thursday Three

Samantha Gratton

And we’re back! Back from a cold and snowy state we love, back from all the holidays and back from a month of very little blogging. I can’t say I have listed out my resolutions for 2014 yet (partly because I am still searching for last year’s list to see how I fared), but I will say that I hope to blog more. It’s a wonderful part of my life and sometimes people even tell me it inspires them. What’s not to love about that?

So we continue with the Thursday Three. Something about it is just a little charming to me. Clearly it’s been a while so let’s just make this three a wrap-up from where we left off instead of only about the past week, shall we?

1. Christmas is a wonderful thing. Some people get all crazy about it and I’m not to that level. There’s not months of Christmas music or much talk of Santa here. It usually is a busy time of work for the hubby and even a little bit of stress as we squeeze too many things in a packed month. But it’s still good. It’s a celebration of a Savior, a time to gather with family and share time and food with others. Maybe I’m all sentimental because it’s already over and our tree is lying cold and lonely on the curb. But let me say it anyway—it’s good. We got our first ever real tree and decorated it in simplicity. We went caroling, sang songs and smiled for the Christmas card. We talked to some kids about what Christmas means for a video we worked on together. We hosted each of our sisters and their families which included several dogs and small children. We exchanged gifts, watched Netflix and found ourselves in a Nerf war.

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2. Snow and cold are not our friends. We moved away from that stuff but managed to visit right in the middle of winter. To Iowa we went to visit friends and family and celebrate a wedding of dear friends. We hit some of the town’s finest establishments, rang in the new year (and the hubby jammed along for a song on stage), visited my grandparents and watched two people say “I do.” It was fun and freezing, but we’re glad we got to go to all of it. And bonus—our trip got extended due to days of cancelled flights. Yay cold.

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3. Being a grown-up is a funny thing. Sometimes I feel like I’m running around trying to chase down my life. Trying to check off all the lists, go after my dreams and be good at whatever role I fill. Some days I think maybe I’ve made it and I wish I could just walk away with a trophy. But it doesn’t work that way. It’s a constant process of learning and growing. So tonight I’ll sort through weeks of mail while eating cereal for supper at 11 p.m. and just be okay with it. Here’s to another year of who knows what!

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This is the only photo we have from last weekend’s wedding, and I’m wearing a baby fur hood from the photo booth. The hubby was super excited about it and insisted we take this photo but somehow managed to avoid donning any sort of accessory.

It’s the New Year

Samantha Gratton

As the snow falls and we greet the beginning of 2014, I’m trying to put my finger on just what to think. There’s something about the new year. A fresh, clean slate. It’s appealing and exciting. You stop to think about what you want to do and who you want to become. A whole bunch of dreams and goals are stuffed onto a list and even accomplishing half of them would be quite the feat. It can also be a time to reflect on the past and what has brought you to where you are now. It might be good or it might be plain rotten. Some of that impacts how you want your clean slate to look. 

Everyone around me already seems to know just what the year should look like, and I feel like I’ve barely finished celebrating Christmas. It’ll take me at least another week to consider all my reflections and resolutions, but it will be time well spent. I can’t help but wonder if we place too much stock in the “new” and don’t spend enough time in maintaining the now. I’m not shy to change and love the idea of travel and a good challenge, but want to make sure I don’t overlook what is already in motion. I don’t want to reinvent myself. Sure, I want to grow and learn. I want to stop putting my foot in my mouth, and I want to see the world. But more so, I want to live the life I already have. I want to restore strained relationships and love those in my life right now and today. I want invest in my commitments and not jump to the next thing too quickly just because it’s new. I want to understand the depth of my blessings and continue to grow, even if from the outside my life seems stagnant or simple. There’s something happening right now and I want to be focused enough to experience it.