Tea Inspired Dreams?

I tend to be a girl of simple tastes.

No 3D midnight showing of the Hobbit for me, thank you. I think I'll take three hours with my best friend watching the stars...if I'm going to be up in the middle of the night anyway.

Christmas gifts? I prefer them homemade. Or none at all. My Christmas list this year:
1. Jesus
2. Joy
3. Peace
4. Time

Yeah, there's stuff I want--material stuff. But when you've experienced the joy and peace that comes from spending time with Jesus, nothing material is needed. And Christmas isn't about material stuff. Goodness gracious, He came to be born in a manger, in some rags, with the animals. 

Every year for the past 4 years we have hosted a Christmas recital at our house. It started out with just me and three other friends wanting to perform for my Grandparents, then it evolved into a much bigger, much more joy filled, much more food filled, music filled, people filled, Jesus filled time.

We have a wide range of talents and instruments.

My one friend plays the fiddle so well that you just stand there and look at her joyful, glowing face that is completely calm as she fiddles out that music and thank God for giving her such an incredible talent.

Then there's 4 young violinists (my youngest sister included), all budding underneath the direction of my friend Brighid, who plays beautifully on the violin and piano, but can also bring out tunes on the banjo, accordion, guitar, and much more.

There's the voice that sings out to God with such a sincerity that most of the moms were crying.

Hannah, one of my closest friends, can play the piano keys silly and the clarinet...and the violin...and yeah, you get the idea.  

The sad thing is, I don't get to be with these friends that much. True, I absolutely love spending time with what I call my "Corning friends" or "New York friends", but when you have so many social circles to be skating in, and then college on top of that, and on top of that, everything else, it gets me a little dizzy.

However, it's a joyful burden, to have so many friends that love you and you love back that you aren't sure what to do. And with every burden of every kind, it can just be taken to the Friend that's always there...no matter what. 

Now, that's all good and everything, but it's not what I came on here to write about. What I came on here to write about is how spoiled we all are. Let me retreat and rephrase that: how spoiled I am.

I was sitting at my desk the other evening and eating a chocolate Reese's peanut butter cup. Those happen to be favorites of mine. And ever since I've been sugar free, my taste buds have been horribly repentant, as if they committed some crime to be so deprived of Reese's for so long. I have some pretty wonderful friends and siblings though.

While sleeping socializing at Wegmans for lunch on Sunday my friend Amo came over to me and said she had a gift. It was sugar free Reeses. I was pretty excited.

Anyway, I was eating one while drinking some tea. The tag on the tea bag said "dream" and it got me thinking about how we're so easily encouraged to change the world, and then we're offered the tools we need to do it. Yet we're discontent. What I'm trying to say is that there's no one over in the prisons of China telling the persecuted Christian's to "dream big" and they certainly don't have specialized diets to fit their lifestyles, yet they aren't losing faith. I'm not saying that any of those things are bad. But rather it makes me appreciate what I have more.

I have a life. Unlike a lot of kids, I'm still alive.

And I have so, so, so, much more, that to even spell it all out would take a life time. I've got friends, lots, and lots of friends. Yes, we've already established that. 

Most importantly, I have Jesus. And we get to collectively celebrate His birth this Christmas.

Isn't God so good to us?

He's kind enough to throw in other things as well, like a trip to Honduras, parents that trust you (trust me...that's always a relief) and are open to whatever crazy ideas might be in your head, sugar free Reeses, and a one mile run even when your exhausted.

Just a thought...someday...if I were EVER to for some RANDOM reason be the producer and manufacturer of a tea company, I would have my tags say, "Pray" or "Give thanks to God" or scriptures to look up while drinking your tea. I think that would be nice. :)