Halfway Home

There is a part in the movie "Good Will Hunting" where Robin Williams' character gives this monologue about life.  He unravel's Matt Damon's character and pride of knowledge because there is a plain difference between knowing about something and actually experiencing it.

"So if I asked you about art, you'd probably give me the skinny on every art book ever written. Michelangelo, you know a lot about him. Life's work, political aspirations, him and the pope, sexual orientations, the whole works, right? But I'll bet you can't tell me what it smells like in the Sistine Chapel. You've never actually stood there and looked up at that beautiful ceiling; seen that." 

This week I believe marks the half-way point on my travels through Europe.  As little as five years ago I thought I would be living somewhere in the middle of America, in a studio apartment, working two jobs and dancing in three shows a year.  Today I find myself about fifteen pounds farther from a dancer's physique and living in Europe for a glimpse of time.

How did I get here?

That girl I was talking about--the skinnier one--listened to Robin William's speech five years ago and sighed at the thoughts of travel and seeing the world.  That's all they were:  thoughts and impossibilities compared to the life I was preparing to live.  I didn't feel at liberty to dream of having both worlds.

So there I was standing under the Sistine Chapel and the miracle of Michelangelo really brought it home.  God really gave me so many desires of my heart.  The desire for adventure and independence came at a difficult price (think selling books) and it also meant I had to let go of ballet.  I've written before about loving and losing dance only to find my greater joy (read here if you're curious).  I don't think I'll ever lose it completely, and I believe it will be restored someday to the place God wants it to be.

I only write this to give God all the glory for these experiences and encourage those that feel "stuck" and wanting to go other places too.  Thanks to Papa, I have been able to travel more and grow my comfort zone.  I have a feeling these small travels out of the US are merely baby steps for more grand adventures in the future!

As of today at the age of 23, I know what it smells like in the Sistine Chapel.  More than that, I know what it is to discover my greater joy in Jesus Christ.

I don't think it's cliché to quote Psalm 37:4:  

               "Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart."

Colosseum 

I still have some skills

Rainy night at the Spanish Steps

Outside the Monumento Nazionale a Vittorio Emanuele II

One of my favorites

Another favorite of the Pantheon

I gave it a try at some Italian

Musei Vaticani

"Secret" photo of "you-know-what".  No photo could ever come close to how it feels to have that above your head.