Kindness matters :)

 

oh my beloved crocheted car tire cover!  This project has probably  impacted my life more than any other project I have made!  If I am out driving I can often expect people to stop and look at it while they are walking by - if I'm at a red light I sometimes get to catch smiles from people who see it.  

 

Lots of people bust out their phones to take pictures, mostly when walking sometimes when driving... Sometimes even when I am sitting in my car (playing candy crush.... soo addicted...) people will come up to my window and give it a little knock and we will just enter into a conversation that started with a crocheted tire cover :)

 

I just love to think about all the smiles that have come out of this one project and all fun conversations started.  Something about this cover makes people to do things they wouldn't normally do - they step out and talk to strangers, or take photos of a tire cover in public.  These may not seem out of the norm for some people, but for others it was a

 

I remember one lady was just standing at the back of my tracker, just staring and I came up and said Hi and introduced myself and she just said that seeing this cover made her day, and that moment with her made my day!

 

I was giving a really cool revelation from Jesus that day. When Jesus lives in us we are different - and He wants to use us like He used a simple car tire cover to bring a smile to someone :)

 

So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him ... fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Romans 12:1-2

 

It really can be so simple :)

 

and a selfie for fun :)

 

I also wanted to share a song with you that has been on my heart - I have just been totally loving rend collective experiment these days and this song, build your kingdom here gets me pretty excited for things to come!

 

It is just such a song of revival - such a song that brings heaven wherever I am when I am listening to it. 

 

It's a wonderful blanket :)

This wonderful blanket has been my partner all through summer :)  It is made log cabin style with 21 different blocks (all different crochet patterns) that start in the middle of the blanket and end up working all the way out.

I would really love to say that the blanket turned out perfect but it is far from being a rectangle... and there are a few parts where I am convinced I just did my own thing cause there is no way it fits into the blanket :)

But here is my try at the Upperclassman Apartment Blanket - It was really fun to make and I do love the colour so much!

had a few days working on it up the lake - on one early morning even my little friend sat with me and learnt how to do a few stitches on it.  It was a pretty special moment :)

colour outside the lines,

ashleigh

complaining vs. creating

I am in a moment where I feel like I have every right to complain -- I feel like I have the right to complain that my life is not where I planned it to be when I was 25 -- I want to complain that I feel lonely and how I am angry that I am single, have no kids and still live at home -- I want to complain about my jealous insecurities that leave me feeling unimportant, un-needed and forgotten -- I want to complain about those moments when I feel unloved.

I want to complain about all these things... and I did as I sat in my car tonight in a parking lot. complaining... after just giving a word about how the number one killer of creativity is complaining... (relevant article) and before I got in my car a friend just totally called me on it and I just complained more and gave excuses on how I don't want to be creative tonight... and I sat in my car just spewing negative thoughts about myself and complaining about anything I could think of.  So I started the car - plugged in my ipod and pushed play.

This is what came on...

You left your perfection

And embraced our rejection

How marvelous, how boundless

Is Your love, is Your love

How wonderful, sacrificial 

Is Your love for me

Your put on our chains 

Sent us out through the open door

How wonderful

You took our sadness

Crowned us with joy and real peace

How wonderful

JESUS LOVES ME :)

So after listening to this song a few times in my very hot car I decided to take back my night.  I am a pretty good complainer but wow when I just sat for a moment and looked at Jesus and just felt His love.  Like really how marvelous! 

This is love

You gave Yourself

What is love - it is Jesus on a cross.  Love is not a feeling I seek out in others.  Love is not only achieved in a marriage.  Love is Jesus.  Love is sitting in my car alone singing yes, Jesus loves me.  Love is looking at Jesus the bridegroom when I am trying to fight for my victory and knowing He is looking only at me.

So instead of sadness I feel joy and love and peace. 

I feel loved by Jesus.

I feel like it's ok that this is how my life looks - I love my life - I love that I am blessed to be doing what I love :)

I feel like I am at a place where I cannot afford to have thoughts in my head about myself that are not Jesus' thoughts.

I feel victorious that I conquered fears tonight!

It has been over a year since I have rocked out on this blog - the absence has been partly because I feel life just got too busy, but also its been because I felt I set goal for myself I couldn't live up to and even looking at this blog made me feel sad for myself - but I am claiming this back :)

remember to choose creativity - complaining never really is fun :)

blessings and smiles

ashleigh