I Know, I Know

I actually need to write something of substance. But it's not gonna happen for a few days. I'm leaving in just a few to head to Arlington to see Z, I mean, test out a new bed and then tomorrow he's bringing it (provided I like it) up here and we're spending the weekend together we're gonna hang out this weekend (edited for my mother's fragile heart).

But don't worry, the promised and long awaited posts are coming. Just more slowly than I thought.

It's days like these that I love my life...

Blessings for a restoring weekend,
Bethany
The LORD your God is with you, He is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, He will quiet you with his love, He will rejoice over you with singing. Zephaniah 3:17

Speechless

A quick update about my Friday:

This morning was pretty dull. (I know that makes you want to read more, right???) We found out some news in the office but other than that, things were pretty much on the same monotony level as they usually are-BORING! While at lunch, I ran an errand and then went home to gather my stuff for my trip to Grandma's. Z & I texted while I was gone and as usual, he had me beaming from ear to ear. I'm telling ya, when you decide to wait on the Lord to send you the right one, you better get ready because when He does it, He does it RIGHT. So I get my things together and, running about 10 minutes late, make a quick tomato sandwich (which I've had every day for lunch this week and I LOVE) and head back to the office. As I'm coming in, a co-worker who's leaving for lunch says "I know something you don't know" and that scares me to death. I'm one of those people who imagines the worst possible thing that could happen so I'm anxious to get back in the office. When I walk through the door, I look at my desk and there they sit:

A dozen red roses.
My heart is pounding and I'm glistening (as we Southern girls do) and I read the card as everyone ooo's and ahhh's over them and it is the sweetest card with the perfect note from Z. I can't believe he sent me flowers-roses at that! I don't know what I did to deserve them but appreciate them so much. More importantly, I appreciate him-the way he treats me like a lady, respects me, wants to do for me, accepts me just as I am. Those of you who know me know I've never known a man like him who treats me the way I feel I should be but Z is definitely that man. I am overwhelmed with gratitude for having him in my life and though we took a huge risk even meeting each other, it's a risk I would gladly take again and again. Knowing him is worth it.

So I just wanted to share how blessed I am to have such a wonderful man in my life. Z proves that it's so worth it to wait for what God has destined for you. Sometimes He has to use incomprehensible ways to get it to you, but He will. And when He does, be ready to be overwhelmed!

Blessings to you all,
~B
The LORD your God is with you, He is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, He will quiet you with his love, He will rejoice over you with singing. Zephaniah 3:17

Please Forgive Me, I Know Not What I Do

When I typed yesterday's post, I really meant what I said about more being on the end of my fingertips. But last night, my eyelids won out. I had actually been very productive during the first part of the evening-eating a healthy dinner of beef tips and rice (cooked in my lovely new crockpot-why did it take me so long to buy one? The thing is the best innovation for working women EVER! I can't tell you how it warmed my heart-& tummy-to come home to smelling dinner cooking and ready to eat.) and then taking care of some business items that needed my attention. But then, at 7:30, it hit me-my body began feeling heavy and my eyelids began to droop. Not wanting to desert my workout, I decided to nap from 7:30 - 8:00 and then get up, exercise, clean up the house and get ready for my visit to Grandmother's. But no, I woke up at 8, talked to Z for a bit, went back to sleep until 10:45, talked to Z some more and went to bed. So not a productive evening. And I so wanted to share with you all too! Oh well, the past is the past and I'll try to do better this weekend. Perhaps I'll come up with some good material while relaxing in Henderson with Grandmother. Her mock lasagna is sure get my creative juices stirring!

You guys behave, enjoy your Friday & have a fun, fabulous weekend! Can't wait to get you all caught up on things in lovely Paris!

Love to all,
~B
The LORD your God is with you, He is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, He will quiet you with his love, He will rejoice over you with singing. Zephaniah 3:17

Not Guilty

I've been accused of droppin' it like it's hot regarding my blog since it's been almost 2 weeks since a new post went up. (Thanks, Z.) I haven't purposefully ignored you, my faithful readers Mom & Dad, it's just been a whirlwind since I made my great exodus to NC with Ash for a few days.

When I left Friday evening, I had every intention to update while I was gone since my parents are 21st century enough to have wireless at their house and I took my trusty travel computer (read-laptop) with me. But from the minute we left, it was a whirlwind of activity. I still can't believe I did all that eating but BOY was it good! I'll try to make a post later this evening and let the pictures tell the story of the trip. It was a fabulous vacation and honestly, one of the best I've had. So much so, that I threatened not to come home. But alas, Ash convinced me to at least come back and enjoy the rest of the summer (since summer here lasts well into November) so here I am.

So much has happened in the week since I've been back. Lots of church stuff-good and bad but mostly good. The biggest news is that yesterday, I mailed in my application to pursue my Exhorter's ministerial license with the Church of God. Your WHAT??? you say? My Exhorter's. What's that??? Honestly, I really don't know. All I do know is that it is the beginning ministerial license for my denomination and I want to obtain it. My application is at the COG state office in Weatherford by now and last night, the church set me forth to pursue it via a church conference. I'm very excited but extremely scared. I feel like I don't know what I'm getting myself into but there's just something in me that kept pushing me toward it. We'll see in a few months what goes down & I'm sure you'll be hearing a LOT more about it since it will take me approximately a year to complete.

Another item of interest has been my relationship with Z. We've known each other for exactly 5 weeks today and have been dating officially for 3 of those 5. This relationship has progressed faster than any other relationship I've ever been in but I've never felt this way about a man before. There's been a major development between us but until I chat with my parents, all you other members of my fan club will have to wait. I'll post it as soon as I can but in the stead (thanks for that phrase Dr. E), send up some prayers for Z (and me) that we will find the Lord's perfect Will for us.

August promises to be a busy month at church and I'm so excited! With events and meetings planned nearly every night, I can't wait to see what God is going to do for us as a corporate body while we continue to follow His lead! I'm invigorated by the potential and judging by our recent encounters with His presence, an intense outpouring is on its way! Oooooo, shala bala! :)

Ok, enough for now. A longer post is on the end of my fingertips and as soon as I have a spare moment this evening, I promise to release it. I hope you all, each and every all one of you, are doing well-leave a comment and let me hear from my people! Thanks for checking back in for the long-awaited update. More is on the horizon!

Much love,
~B
(I've been doing a lot of this lately.)
But those who wait on the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. Isaiah 40:31

I'm leavin' on a jet plane...

(but sorry Peter, Paul & Mary-and John Denver-I do indeed know when I'll be back again.)

In honor of my impending vacation, I've decided to bring in special guest, List Format, to help me share with you why I am SOOO excited about the next 7 days. Mr. Format, you may begin...

TOP 10 REASONS WHY BETHANY IS EXCITED ABOUT VACATION

1. BYE BYE
I am LEAVING PARIS! As much as I have grown to love this town, it gets old seeing the same old things, day after day.

2. FRIEND
I am vacationing with my bestie, Ash. We ALWAYS have fun together and there will definitely be many good memories made on this trip! Plus, I can't wait to see how many people ask us if we're twins or sisters. This will be fun!

3. MEMORIES
Ash has never flown before so this will definitely be a learning experience for her. I can't wait to hear what she has to say about all the proceedings of the flight. Especially since I've researched the TSA website and provided her with as much information as possible to make her first flight enjoyable including "What are you wearing on the plane?" and "What is it exactly that I can't have in my purse?". I'm loving it!

4. Z
This evening, I'll get to spend some time with Z as I'm staying with him and his family tonight and he'll be taking me to the airport in the morning. He was sweet enough to offer to do this for me so that we could avoid parking fees and is even getting up before God does on Saturdays to deliver me to my flight. (It really works well for him to live so close to the airport-now I have every reason to go down the night before a flight to see him and we can do the whole mushy airport goodbye thing. Just kidding. Kinda.)

~As a side note, have I mentioned that he and I are "in a relationship" (to use Facebook/MySpace terms)? I spent Friday night and Saturday with him last weekend and we had the DTR (define the relationship) talk and decided that we want to try to pursue this. The distance situation is not ideal but it is what it is and we're making the best of it. The best way I know how to explain it is this: When in a relationship, there are multiple levels on which there is potential for one to connect with another person. For me these levels include physical, emotional, mental, spiritual, and humorful-even though that's not the word, I can't find the one I'm looking for. (I know there are more but these are the most prominent and important to me.) In the past, I have connected with the guys I've dated on varying levels. All of them shared a connection with me on the physical level as there is usually a visual trait that originally attracts me to them and vice versa. However, I may connect with one physically and emotionally and another may strike me physically and with his sense of humor. Until Z, I had yet to meet a man whom I connected with on every level. But I do with him. He just "gets" me-for lack of a better term. He can almost read my mind at times which is scary or we'll jointly say the exact same thing. And the way he fills silences in conversations with "yeah", "well", and "aaanywaaay" is absolutely adorable. He is by far the best guy I've ever dated and not to sound conceited but I'm glad I've waited. He treats me the way I feel I deserve to be treated and we have a mutual respect and concern for each other. The only drawback is that I don't see him more but we discussed it and that may actually be better for the both of us since we both stay fairly busy. I still wish that we could be busy seeing each other but it makes the time we do get to spend together more special. And I think we cherish each other more than if we had the luxury of being together every day. Anyway, we're off to a great start and seeing him is an added bonus to my vacation!

Sorry for interrupting, List. Please continue...

5. FAMILY REUNIONS!
Need I say more? Seeing kin folk (and seeing a baby cousin I haven't had the pleasure of meeting yet) and eating more food than you can imagine all at the same time is pure bliss to me. I think I'm more excited to see Mom and Dad than anybody else though. I never dreamed that I would have stuck around Paris for so long so I'm still getting used to only seeing my parents every few months. Although I am blessed enough that they still pay for me to fly home whenever I can make time and I am so thankful for that. It will be a year to the day Sunday that I first came to visit Paris and now, a year later, here I am. My, how time changes things!?!

6. BROTHERS
Getting to spend time with my brothers is always a blast for me. From the time I see them, I'll be laughing. I've already been laughing with my little bro, JP this week. He's been calling me a bit more often and his latest call included the following:

JP: Why don't we talk more? You're fun to talk to.
Me: Because you're busy working and going to school all the time.
JP: Well, I usually have a break around 11:30 every night.
Me: So call me, it'll only be 10:30 here. I'm still up then.
JP: I'll have to do that.

You have no idea how much that warmed my heart y'all. And check out our conversation via the Facebook wall (begin reading at the bottom of the insert which is the last picture of me-the postings are listed in order of most recent date):

Bethany Pearce wrote at 10:19pm yesterday Ok, Mr. Business Agg. I'll take 40% and any tips you get... No more negotiations. Me no speak English. Write on My Wall - Delete

Jonathan Pearce (N.C. State) wrote at 9:51pm yesterday I'll give you 30% if you are really lucky Write on Jonathan's Wall - Delete

Bethany Pearce wrote at 9:42pm yesterday If you think I'm gonna let some crazy, hyperactive chihuahua carry my 3 karat platinum ring down the aisle, you've got another thing coming. Now that I think about it, I don't know if I'd let you carry them. :) Maybe you just better stand at the door and pass out programs-you could sell them for a small fee and make a li'l extra cash at my wedding! Ha... Matt's already said he's selling tickets to it so you guys could provide a package price. But I get a 50% cut... Write on My Wall - Delete

Jonathan Pearce (N.C. State) wrote at 4:53pm yesterday you can't just mail order a guy and marry him like that......I'm too old to carry the rings, better get a cute dog pillow so Toby can hold it. Write on Jonathan's Wall - Delete

Bethany Pearce wrote at 4:07pm yesterday P.S. I'm glad we're not getting divorced any time soon. I'll be needing a ring bearer in my wedding... :) Write on My Wall - Delete

Jonathan Pearce (N.C. State) wrote at 12:11pm yesterday Hahaha......you crazy Write on Jonathan's Wall - Delete

Bethany Pearce wrote at 11:32am yesterday Don't be blah. Suck it up champ! :) Don't forget to tell fill-in bf that he'll need to wear his best khakis and polo to the reunions because if I am going to endure everyone's gossip about my baby, I'll at least need him to look presentable. Write on My Wall - Delete

Bethany Pearce wrote at 2:22pm on July 11th, 2008 1.For the record, I have no problem that you and Joe are any kind of life partners, I just don't want to see it plastered all over FB. 2.You're right, you don't stand a chance and I haven't even seen the girl. 3. I just really want to see if you and your gf make a cute couple. So obey your elder and get on it! Write on My Wall - Delete

Jonathan Pearce (N.C. State) wrote at 2:18pm on July 11th, 2008 Me and Joe are hetero life partners and you're going to have to deal with that. He's engaged anyway, I don't stand a chance, she's a lot more beautiful than me..... Write on Jonathan's Wall - Delete

Bethany Pearce wrote at 2:15pm on July 11th, 2008 Hurry up and put up a pic of you & her so that I can quit looking at this semi-gay picture of you and Joe already Write on My Wall - Delete

Bethany Pearce wrote at 2:11pm on July 11th, 2008 Ok, what is this??? A relationship status update and I didn't know about it ahead of time??? I even stayed up with you until the wee hours of the morning and you're gonna be like this. I can't believe it. I'm crying. Sad day. Write on My Wall - Delete

See, growing up, I've not really had the best relationships with my brothers. Being a perfectionist, OCD girl and being viewed as a fanatic to them (How else do Baptists describe Pentecostals?) has alienated me from them and I think they've felt I'm just too hard core to talk to. But I really feel that he and I are beginning to restore that sibling relationship now. He's even mentioned pursuing pharmaceutical sales and us living together in Dallas after he graduates and although that thought was a bit sketchy to me at first, I think we'd have a good time together. Of course, in 6 months when he actually does graduate, he'll have changed his mind and be moving to Seattle to sell coffee or something. Anyway, I am so thankful to have brothers who know how to laugh and enjoy family company as it has provided the best post-Sunday lunch entertainment I know and I look forward to what this weekend will bring. Family reunions always bring a whole new repertoire of laughable material to the table and I can't wait!

7. FOOD
Courtesy of my father's precious family, I get to enjoy not 1 but 2, count 'em, TWO wonderful, home-cooked meals. Now, I know I've been dieting and exercising some (and last week, I think I'd lost somewhere around 30 lbs.) but family reunion weekend-I'M FREE! I refuse to deny myself the treat of eating what I want and however much of it and as detrimental as that may sound for my weight loss, I actually tend to eat less when I go into it openly. So I am VERY excited about all the good food I will be enjoying at the reunions and even moreso the meals Mama will make after we return home. She knows what I like and is SUCH a good cook. I really should take some lessons from her. And on top of all that, I'll be in Zaxby's country! Woo hoo! And I can't tell you how excited I am to get to eat a Zaxby's club or the Chicken Fingers meal with that Texas toast and cole slaw! MMM...I can taste it now! So yeah, my love affair with food continues!

8. NC
I don't know if you've gathered this from reading since you've never read my blog but I absolutely LOVE my home state. My blood runs Carolina blue and I miss Tarheel country when I'm not there. The landscape, the smells, the familiar sights-I can't wait to take them all in again and plant my feet on my home turf once again. "Nothing could be finer than to be in Carolina in the morning!" I know exactly why Gus Kahn felt that way-there's no place I'd rather be!


9. SLEEP
As selfish or lazy as it sounds, I am so ready to sleep. Per my previous post, you should understand why I'm not resting well. Yesterday I noticed that I'm only comfortable when I'm standing as sitting or laying puts pressure directly on the area and sends blinding pain to my mid-back. So the prospect of sleeping in a comfy bed-perhaps even sleeping as long as my body desires-is a HUGE point of relief for me! (Don't worry, purchasing a new one is on the top of my priority list when I return next week so there is an end in sight to all my complaining.)

10. LOVE
Ridiculous as it may sound, this trip is going to be full of love. Love from family, friends, Z and I need a little of that right now. At the risk of sounding whiny, I have felt a bit "alone" here lately, like I've poured out myself on others so much lately that I'm empty and I'm excited about the time I'll get to be poured into. I don't want a parade or crown to wear, I just want to be loved. I know there are lots of people here who do (ok, that sounded egotistical but you know what I mean) but sometimes, I just need to be reminded that I'm loved for all of me-my past, present and future included-and only people who know my past can love me in that way. I also like to feel that love and unfortunately, I am so busy so often that I don't take the time to feel that love or effectively pour it out on others. The point of this paragraph? I'm excited about LOVE!

Ok, now I seriously MUST get busy at work or I may not have a job to come back to. I guess this long post has been a while in the making. There's so much more to share but that will have to be done from Z's house this evening or the plane/car rides tomorrow. Pictures and fun stories are sure to follow!

Much love & many blessings to all of you, Mom & Dad! Can't wait to see you at 12:09pm tomorrow in Charlotte!

~B
Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.
1 John 4:7-12