Anything you can do, I can do better

This was my very first weekend as a working woman. And I spent a good portion of it in dreamland on my little makeshift futon on my floor. I'm learning to embrace all the new cracking sounds I can make with my neck everyday.

My life has finally slowed down after a whirlwind of events. I ended college in a hurry, cramming for final exams, sprinting to graduation in heels because I woke up late, moving out of my apartment at school into a new one closer to the city in one day, and leaving for Italy the next (hence the makeshift futon on the floor). I returned from Italy two days before I was to start my job, and one week later, I am still sleeping on the floor and trying to figure out where to store my 17 bottles of wine.

Don't judge me.

disclaimer: my photo, not my bottles. i totally had more

As I sit down and catch my breath, I can't help but think about my trip to Italy. I am still on that post-trip high, wanting desperately to go back and do it all over again, but time is a one way street. The only plans I made for Italy were my plane tickets, and a one-item to-do list that read LIVE PRESENTLY. I thought I knew what it meant to live presently. I thought it meant drinking slowly the  sweet nectar of life, so as to savor it. I was ready for a relaxing time to just sit back and take it all in.

somewhere near Positano

And then I was whisked away by scooter to see miles and miles of the magnificence, with only  windblown strands of hair between my eyes and raw beauty.  No distortions from gigantic tinted tour bus windows to skew perfectly formed coastlines and cloud murals in the sky. I was speeding along going I don't even know how fast because can't convert kilometers to miles without a calculator.

beach in Amalfi

I had prepared myself for stillness, but instead I was constantly moving. Each hairpin turn along the Amalfi coast gave me one stunning view after another. I think God just relishes in astounding us. Even the thought of it can't get any better than this makes God smile with glee, knowing that He is the ultimate one-upper.


I saw magnificent views. I got to stop on the side of a highway to Amalfi and just look out at the vastness of the sea, the splendor of the mountains and the radiance of the sun. I got to just stand there and hold my arms out, hugging the warm rays of sunshine and breathing in the salty, healing air. This was it, living presently. The zipping about, the moving around, the running amok and the stopping. The breathing and enjoying. This is life.

vatican as the sun sets

vatican after the sun sets

God takes us through whirlwinds, and gives us breaks. Before I embarked on this little Italian excursion all on my own, I thought that the breaks were the times to sit down, collect my thoughts and realize how much I had enjoyed something. But now I realize enjoyment and contemplation are simultaneous. To live presently, I must thank God for every moment and rejoice in whatever is happening now. To live presently, I must delight in the peaceful, serene moments of silence that God grants to me.

Napoli

So even here, on my makeshift futon bed on the floor, where it is peaceful and serene, I will delight in knowing He is here and He loves me, and He can't wait to show me.