what's your favorite flavor?

if i had to pick the very best thing about summer, it would be snow cones.

so in order to determine the best of the best, kristin and i have decided to try every snow cone stand in the edmond/okc area... a very great task indeed, but i believe we're up for it.

the stands will be judged based on differing categories: ice, variety of flavors, service, and syrup to ice ratio. bonus points are also awarded for various reasons.

clearly, our first random inspection was awarded a bonus point for their delicious gummy bears.

the importance of music to girls.

i recently finished a book by this title. i was browsing in the library when i was struck by the title: the importance of music to girls.

music has always been vastly important to me. as a girl, i dreamed to one day be in the music industry- not as a performer, but as the face behind the label. that later turned into a litigator behind the label. but here i am, just a few years later- a missionary. perhaps one day the Lord will bring me back to nashville or los angeles.

but i digress. back to the book. i checked it out and dove straight in, only to discover that this book was actually a memoir. lavinia greenlaw's coming of age. i am definitely not a memoir reading kind of girl- i'm always looking for a story to feel a part of- biographies have never been my thing. but as soon as started into this one, i felt like i had written it. the writing style, the emphasis on lyrics and eras of music, it felt like talking to a best friend- the kind that speaks your language.

i just got off the phone with two of my friends who are spending five weeks in florence this summer with campus crusade.

i am reminded of how thankful i am for passions... and for friends that understand them.

transitions.

at the beginning of my senior year, i began a new journal. i have a passion for journaling- for me, there's no better outlet. but one of my favorite things about journals is naming them. this last one, i named 'transitions'.

it seemed so fitting- going into my senior year. i expected to be transitioning out of college, out of life as i'd always known it, and into a career that i had yet to discover. i really had no idea what would actually happen. that's my other favorite thing about journals- they always surprise you.

i'm currently raising support to go to italy with campus crusade for christ. when meeting with people i often tell them how i never, ever saw myself going into full-time ministry. and that is so true. i never saw that one coming. but that's one of my favorite things about the Lord. unlike my journals, He is never surprised.

whole new world.

get ready. here i come.

benvenuto.

it's the new word around here. benvenuto. it's rarely used correctly, but i like spouting it out anyway. however calm or chaotic the situation, it never fails to please.

i wish i could take this post to tell you all about how the Lord has shown me His faithfulness and trustworthiness. but let's be honest, that post would be way too long. instead, i would like to keep my word and tell you about the door that has opened for me...

... i'm going to italia!

the past few weeks have been full of very high highs and low lows... definitely an emotional roller coaster. i was beginning to feel like instead of two doors- it was actually one revolving door. you know the kind. you spun round and round in it when you were little- pushing, pulling, but only going in circles. that's where i've been.

eventually, the spinning stopped and the celebrating began. the Lord provided a fabulous girl... abigail to join me in italy. we will be going to florence together to serve on a team with agape italia. i am over-the-top thankful for her. i cannot wait for that new season of life to start.

other than preparing for a year in italy, i've been focused on graduation. it's hard to believe four years at oklahoma state university have passed me by. i am truly in a season of thankfulness. thankful for my friends. my major. my great job at the photography studio. my summer project teams both in branson and thailand. my family. my roommate. the people that have invested in my life. so many things.

so i know this post isn't exactly witty or wildly entertaining. but this is where i'm at. a phase of life is ending. a bend in the road is upon me. i am nostalgic about all that is behind and expectant of what lies ahead.

beautiful.

somewhere between today and forever.

welcome. benvenuto.

my name is melody and i currently reside in this world of transition. transition world looks very similar to real life- it just comes with a lot more questions. what do you want to do for the rest of your life? will you use your major? do you have a job? are you dating anyone? are you interviewing? what does your family think?

the questions never end. transition world also comes with a bit more uncertainty. because deep down, you know that you are asking yourself all the same questions but unlike with everyone else- you are not able to pull off the breezy 'it will all be okay' charade.

so insert blog. as i transition out of college life and into whatever lies ahead, i would love to jot a few thoughts and maybe even receive some feedback. within the next two weeks i will know whether i will spend the next year in italy working with Agape Italia or raising support to join staff with Campus Crusade for Christ. there are two doors before me and one of them will literally open or shut very soon. i'm praying and believing that my door to italy will open, but i am also resting in my God's sovereignty. whether He says yes or no, i shall be satisfied.

so here's to whatever lies ahead. the road between today and forever has already been paved. my God knows exactly what it looks like. i'm sure He's waiting for me to embrace that truth.

thanks for stopping by. i'll let you know which door i end up walking through.