So, I am new to this blogging thing.
My friend Sarah (in the picture with the horse) is studying abroad in Florence, ITALY & inspired me to blog… but she doesn’t know it.
Fun fact: I urban-dictionaried (yes, that is a verb I just created) synonyms for “newbie” and have no idea what this first post is going to be about.
There is beauty in the unknown, I think. I met a girl tonight who I genuinely enjoyed talking to. Her name is Samantha, but she goes by Sam. I just googled what her name means… hoping I could tie it in to whatever I am writing. It is the feminine version of Samuel (which means “God-heard) … and “-antha” is Greek and apparently means “flower”. If she were a flower, she would be a pleasant one. A brave one… like a rose. She came to my campus ministry’s event for her first time, all alone. To many, that may not seem like a big deal.
Yet, I find it intriguing. I don’t like going to very many things by myself.
For example, I’m looking for a new church in my college town. So I wanted to try out one on Sunday that a couple of my friends told me about. I was going to carpool with my good friend, Jenna. But, she texted me that she was sick and couldn’t make it.
Fun fact/Vulnerable moment: At first, I wanted to be selfish and upset that she couldn’t come with me. But, then thought to myself… if I were sick, I would want someone to take care of me. So, then I offered her a ride to the doctor. She politely declined and I proceeded to find out new church plans.
So, I texted one of the two guys that told me about this church and asked them what service they were going to (because I did not want to go alone). He told me they were going to 11 o’clock service. I checked the weather and put on my Sunday best. I was having a good hair day, too. Which made me happy. I looked up the address to this church and discovered it was in a warehouse. Different, I thought. But, kind of cool. I drove alone. Nervous, but excited. I listened to “The Way” FM on my way there. A lot of people make fun of that radio station… because they are known to repeat corny songs quite often.
Fun fact: I think I secretly like that radio station. It IS calming.
So I drove to this church and pulled into the parking lot. Which was… different, too. I was kind of sketched out by the warehouse parking lot, but immediately caught a glimpse of two warm welcoming smiles standing outside (the weather was perfect that day).
Despite seeing these smiles, I sat in my car… I was hoping to see my friends pull in so I could pretend like it was perfect timing. I would turn off my car, and walk up at the same time as my friends. I sat in my car waiting to see them for maybe 4 minutes and gave up on that small wish. I thought to myself… “Allie, you are 20 years old. You can walk into a church by yourself. It’s not weird. It’s not weird. It’s not weird. People will greet you. It will be fine. Walk inside, maybe your friends are already in there.”
So after this pep talk I gave to myself, I decided to walk in.
SO.GLAD.I.WALKED.IN.
They were so friendly. I got complimented on my bag and was greeted by 4 people. One lady was so cute and sweet. She looked my age, but was married with one baby girl. (I hope I age like her). She had a cute southern accent because she is from Knoxville, TN (I wish I was from somewhere that gave me a cute accent). My mom is from TN, so I got excited. I was also excited because they gave me a free T-Shirt.
When I got to college, I heard that my favorite four-letter word would be free.
That is a true statement.
And this post is getting loooonnnggg.
My friends got there eventually. After I talked to the greeters, awkwardly walked around inside with a cup of water, fake-texted, and pretended to look for a seat… they finally walked in. I was relieved and happy to have people to sit by. The message was great, worship was amazing, and then we went out to get some yummy lunch afterwards.
Anyways, going to things on your own is TOUGH and AWKWARD sometimes. But, it usually means you are an independent person. Good things often come out of making independent decisions.
Last fun fact: I am becoming more and more independent lately. I drove EIGHT hours all alone to Georgia last weekend. I don’t like coffee very much… but I even got myself a vanilla latte to stay awake (super sweet, but still counts as coffee caffeine). So, yes, I felt sophisticated.
To further my independence and blossom like a flower (-antha)… I decided to blog. I don’t know what to blog about except for my life and funny thoughts. But I am honestly pretty proud of this post.
This is kind of fun. & my word count is about 900 right now. I have reached essay status… bye!
OOPS: One last thing… I just added “The Unknown” to my title and realized my URL is dearlylovedandKNOWN. Woah. Contradiction.
To clarify:
- “The Unknown” I refer to in my title is about where God can take me with independent decisions.
- I am dearly loved and KNOWN by Him.
To be loved is to be known & to be known is to be loved.
allie rae's thoughts and stories 