My high school cross country coach and his wife are two of my favorite people, and I haven't seen them in far too long, so when my mom asked if I wanted to ride out to their home with her on Tuesday evening to pick up some beef (and by "some" I mean 85 pounds), I jumped at the chance. Life on a farm feels so romantic to me sometimes, and there is nothing like catching up with Dr. Race over a glass of really good wine. 

The scenery isn't too bad, either.

  

When the world feels dark and overwhelming, it's nice to have a place where things don't seem to change.

My heart goes out to Boston this week. Life should be joyful. We shouldn't have to be afraid at every turn.

My parents and I decided to visit Sean at school on Saturday, so we packed a little picnic lunch, loaded Rocky into the car, and drove to Farmville to walk part of the High Bridge Trail together. Walking across the bridge is really awesome--it feels like you're on a boardwalk at the beach, but you're high above the treetops the entire time.

   

 Rocky got a little more than he bargained for and had to be carried at the very end, but he's still a sucker for a good walk.

  

After our walk and picnic, we stopped by The Bakery for some tea before heading back home. 

My roommates and I used to walk there from my college apartment all the time, so it's always nice to visit.

I've been to Farmville twice in two weekends! What a treat. 

It's hard to believe I'll be there once more next month for Sean's graduation.

When we got home we ordered Chinese food and my mom made us a martini.

A Saturday well-spent.

What did you do this weekend?

My sweet friend Emily got married this weekend in Richmond, and I felt overwhelmed with gratitude that she invited me and Rob to be there to see it. Emily and I were both English majors at Longwood, and didn't really get to know one another until after I graduated and she was a senior. We had already been Facebook friends, but really only connected later through blogging. We started meeting for coffee whenever I was in town, and we'd talk and laugh and get teary-eyed as the hours passed and our lattes got cold and we got really serious about life and marriage and God and Harry Potter and politics.

And then one morning, I was in Farmville for the weekend, getting up early to see her present her senior seminar paper on The Bell Jar, and as she spoke with passion and excitement and answered questions about her topic in front of the room, I realized that she and I were actually real friends, and again I felt overwhelmed. How sweet it is to find yourself in such a random, special friendship.

I started this weekend early, on Friday morning, and I drove to Longwood to visit my brother and talk to a handful of my favorite professors from undergrad. I didn't realize it until I was driving away from campus just how perfect it was for me to stop by Longwood on my way to Richmond to see Emily. Farmville, Virginia is where so many good things begin--my education, my relationship with Rob, my friendship with Emily, and her relationship with her now husband, Robbie (another Economics-studying Robert, just by the way).

Emily and Robbie got married on Saturday and I don't know if I've ever seen any two people happier.

How sweet it is to see true love like that.

I dropped my Rob off at the airport on Sunday afternoon and drove home through the rain. It was warm and grey outside, and when the rain stopped the sun came out, and I rolled down the windows of my car. I've been having a really rough time lately. I've been sad and overwhelmed and negative a lot of the time. But seeing Emily this weekend reminded me that I can be positively intentional about a lot of my life. So as I drove, in the middle of my musings about spring; and my fond memories of college; and the thought of our bright, prosperous futures with the people we love the most; I took a deep breath from the cool, wet air outside and smiled.

How sweet it is.