So, I’ve always been a little crazy. Ask any friend of mine; they’ll agree. Personally, I prefer the word ‘unique’, but I guess with the present circumstances, crazy (with a bold and daring sort of connotation) couldn’t be more fitting.
Dictionary.com defines “crazy” as the following:
CRAZY: adj., ‘krA-zE
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1. |
mentally deranged; demented; insane |
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2. |
senseless; impractical; totally unsound |
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3. |
Informal. intensely enthusiastic; passionately excited |
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4. |
Informal. very enamored or infatuated |
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5. |
Informal. intensely anxious or eager; impatient |
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6. |
Informal. unusual; bizarre |
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7. |
Slang. wonderful; excellent; perfect |
Ok ok, so it doesn’t fit me to a T. “Mentally deranged” would be a bit of a stretch.. then again, so would “Perfect”. But for the rest of those in between- that’s me. I’m eager for anything, a bit bizarre at times, and “intensely enthusiastic; passionately excited” about my Jesus. I’m enamored by His undying love for me, and infatuated by His grace. I’m crazy about Him.
Go ahead… call me crazy. I like it.
A Little Background:
I was born in Long Beach, California to a God-fearing pastor and his wife. My little brother was born two years later, and though no longer “little”, he will always be my baby brother.
We moved to Valley Center, California, when I was six. Valley Center is a quaint little town in Northern San Diego county. Commonly referred to by neighboring towns as The Boondocks, our town was as rural as you can find in Southern California. We’ve had cows, pigs, horses, chickens… the whole lot. I loved my little three-stoplight town, and though it’s now booming in population and catching up with the rest of the world, I will always proudly call it “home.” Throughout junior high and high school, you’d often find me doing one of three things; sports, taking pictures, or spending hours at the beach. Alright alright… I’ll add a fourth one; causing mischief. I swam, ran track, weightlifted, played water polo and soccer. I couldn’t go a day without some sort of physical activity… Mom thinks it was the only way to “get my wiggles out.”
I’m still quite athletic- I play on the university’s lacrosse team, as well as playing intramural soccer and flag football. I absolutely love going snowboarding, and like surfing almost as much (I’m rather shabby, though).
My camera is attached to my hipbone. Yes, it was a pricey surgery, and I’ve come to regret it because low and behold, it is sometimes difficult to take well-angled photographs from hip level.
~That was my sad attempt at a joke, and I hereby promise to never make another one.~
The beach is a wonder of nature, and will fascinate me as long as I am on this earth. I say the beach, because the entire ocean itself is too beautifully frightening to spend much time contemplating. My walk with the Lord has seen some rough days, but no matter how distant I felt at times, the beach was the one place that I could always
feel my Maker. There were countless nights were I would sit alone on an empty lifeguard tower and just take it all in. I’d watch the terrifying waves explode into one another and pummel the shore, only to melt down to a harmless, gentle, rolling puddle as they crept far up onto the sand. I’ve always struggled with the idea of surrendering complete control to a God that I cannot see; cannot touch. But when I sit on the shore, He becomes real to me. That gigantic ocean washes away every doubt.
I’ve always liked metaphors: they seem to help my tiny human brain get a teeny glimpse of the big picture. Those waves personify Christ to me in a way nothing else can. They are so unbelievably powerful, so breathtakingly beautiful, yet at the same time, so gentle and approachable. Nothing can humble me more than an hour on the beach.
Currently:
I am in my whirlwind final year at the University of North Texas. I moved straight out here to Denton, Texas after high school graduation and I absolutely love it. And yes, I have the bumper sticker that says “I wasn’t born here, but I got here as fast as I could”. I will be graduating this December, and will then leave for “The Race” two weeks later! I have great expectations for this journey, and I know it is going to challenge me beyond anything I’ve ever experienced before. Pray that the Lord will break me, mold me, change me, and work through me to share His amazing gift of salvation!
