Gratitude

As the year comes to a close, the pressure of determining how to reinvent or better oneself beginning January 1 looms. Rather than dwelling on what I am not or what I do not have, I am making the conscious decision to reflect on the past year in an exercise in cultivating gratitude for the present, or I suppose now, the past. The year held moments of revelry and joy among friends, pain and sadness that we prayed God would use for good, the beginning of new traditions as well as faithful fulfillment of the old.

We found many reasons to celebrate in 2011. Praise God from whom all blessings flow.

1. Ringing in the new year at Stacey Griffith Sims' wedding in Houston, TX -- a wonderful Vanderbilt reunion weekend spent with Virginia, Katy, Sarah, James, and Vern among many of our younger friends.

2. Amazingly, the Texas girls did not over-hype their secret Valentine's Day gift to us, a mafia wedding themed murder mystery dinner at their apartment. An evening we will not soon forget.

3. My family took a once in a lifetime trip to Europe to visit Robin at the end of her semester studying abroad in Seville, Spain. We spent two weeks touring Madrid, Paris, and London. It was an incredible experience to spend this kind of time in such magical cities with my family. We shared many meals together, visited museums and landmarks, and created a host of memories. I appreciated the culture, art, and language of Madrid since I have spent a significant portion of my life immersed in Spanish classes. I appreciated the inherent beauty and elegance of Paris, along with the food which was by far my favorite. And I loved the history of London preserved in Westminster Abbey and the Churchill War Rooms. I am so grateful that my family had the opportunity to do this together.

4. Not until this year did Memorial Day become one of my favorite holidays. We took full advantage of the long weekend and had a cookout at Wedgewood where we watched The Sandlot on the projector, canoed the Harpeth River with 35 of our closest friends, laughed until we cried while watching Bridesmaids, and spent a long Monday morning at Star Bagel.

5. This summer Memphis was home to a host of celebration as we watched Janet, Elizabeth, Lizzie, and Mary Grace walk down the aisle and begin a new season of life. I am so grateful for the time spent with Hutchison friends this summer at all the events that surrounded these weddings. I am also very grateful for the Lord's provision for each of these dear friends who have found wonderful men to marry and spend the rest of their lives with.

6. The boys of Elmwood claimed the 4th of July and hosted the first annual Steve McNair Invitational Cornhole Tournament, complete with a dunking booth, fireworks, and a patriotic sing-a-long led by none other than Mason. The competition was stiff, but John Michael and I fought our way to the championship game and had our moment of glory with a dramatic firework entrance. Unfortunately the championship game was quick and our loss painful, but we allayed our despair with the hope of a victorious return in 2012.

7.  On my birthday Sarah, Emily, Brad, Megan, and I drove to Jackson, MS to meet all of our college friends and spend the weekend celebrating Jeb Raulston's wedding. This weekend was extremely special to me as it represented the first time that our entire group of friends had been together since we graduated from Vanderbilt. We all stayed in the same hotel in downtown Jackson and treated the lobby as if it were the lobby of Branscomb. We had coffee together in the mornings, played board games in the bar in the afternoon, and spent the nights dancing away to the sounds of the Tennessee Tallboys who made a one-time reunion appearance. What a treasure my college friends are to me.

8. We were fortunate enough to have another college wedding to celebrate this year. My dear friend from Vanderbilt, Allison Wilder, got married in Baton Rouge, LA in September. This weekend was a rich reunion among Vanderbilt friends that was a powerful testimony to God's faithfulness in Allison & Critter's relationship. The rehearsal dinner was the most sincere and beautiful time of worship as person after person stood and spoke about the work that God has done in each of their lives individually and together. During the ceremony the pastor shared the Gospel story which was the perfect climax of the weekend.

9. Halloween was another holiday claimed by the boys of Elmwood who invited us into their home, more specifically the room that they transformed into the "Rave Cave" for a night of laughter and dancing. The winner of the costume contest was one Allyson Camp who bore an uncanny resemblance to Mason.

10. Rightfully so, Thanksgiving was a more low key celebration hosted by our house. Our friends gathered together for a potluck dinner and spent many hours around the fire pit playing Catchphrase.

11. And of course, the year in Nashville closed with the annual Tacky Christmas Party hosted by the Wedgewood boys. However this year the boys featured a new addition, Twitter. Doug set up a live Twitter feed on the television at the party so that anyone who tweeted @Wedgewood900 or #TackyWedge would be featured. Beginning with a small group dinner at Melrose Pub and ending with dancing on the front porch of the house, this party was another of my most favorite nights in Nashville.

I am consistently overwhelmed with gratitude for the fact that I am able to live in a city as young and fun and full of life as Nashville, TN. But what brings the city to life is not the coffee shops or concerts or restaurants, but the people. God has provided a beautiful community for me in Nashville that I treasure. This community is full of friends who love the Lord and who make me want to love Him more and better. This community loves to laugh and play and celebrate this unique season of our lives together as well. From this group we have created some new traditions that I hope have become deeply rooted in our community.

1. ORTN. Although this tradition is not a product of 2011, it remains a consistent time set aside for our friends to reconnect after our busy and diverse work weeks.

2. The Bachelor. While we still meet resistance with this tradition, I treasure this time of laughter with Caroline, Christina, and Allyson who have faithfully watched every episode of the Bachelor and Bachelorette with me since we moved to Nashville.

3. Dinner Parties. Jessica and I found great joy in setting aside time to have intentional meals with friends whom we see less often. Our two favorite and most frequent dinner party companions were the Princeton Girls (Jamie, Lauren, and Sarah) and Houston & Grant.

4. Slaying Cakes. Kyle Roe is 100% responsible for creating and maintaining this tradition where we all gather at his apartment on Saturday mornings in our pajamas to watch College Game Day and eat pancakes.

5. Backyard Bonfires. We spent many a Friday and Saturday night in the backyard of our house seated around the fire pit laughing over a game of Catchphrase. These were some of my favorite nights of the year.


I am so thankful for the memories that I have described above and for the fact that I am sure that there are many more that I have forgotten. This year has been overwhelmingly good. However it has not been without painful changes, fears small and large, and suffering. Although it is a much harder charge, I am learning to be thankful for these as well because I must believe that God is still good, even in the midst of pain.

1. By far the most life changing event of the year was the loss of Jennifer's dad in February. This changed us all as we have walked with Jen through the 10 months that followed. I am grateful for the strength, courage,  and companionship she has found in the Lord. Our relationship has grown tremendously through the experience, for which I am extremely grateful. I now consider her one of my dearest friends.

2. I encountered many new challenges at work that brought me lots of tears. I was the object of a great deal of  inappropriate behavior from male co-workers and a significant amount of verbal harassment. I worked harder than I ever have in school with the most demanding schedule I have ever experienced. I have dealt with unhappy clients who yelled at me over the phone and in person, and had to sacrifice important events  such as Allison's bachelorette weekend.

3. I "dated" boy named Phil for about six weeks this summer. I use the term "dating" loosely because we never used that word nor had a conversation about the time we were spending together, but that is certainly what it felt like to me. I felt very uncertain and anxious about our relationship, but learned a valuable lesson in not rushing things, seeking the Lord more so than seeking the wisdom of friends, and having patience. The Lord graciously gave me closure on our relationship as we were able to spend a little time together this fall where I felt certain that Phil is a great guy, but not the one for me.

In the midst of a daily routine and the business that surrounds us, it is easy to lose perspective of the great changes taking place around us and within us. As I reflect on this past year, I am so grateful for what the Lord brought to pass. I have been immensely blessed.

Praise God from whom all blessings flow,
Praise Him all people here below.
Praise Him above ye heavenly hosts.
Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost.
Amen.