DEBBIE LAYNE PHOTOGRAPHY

one week. one week left of summer. and one week until i finally get to see my long beach family again. it's crazy how time flies...and how it drags. 14 weeks is a long summer. a long time to be away from friends who have become family to you. a long time to be away from a place that's quickly becoming a second home. and yet, 14 weeks is not quite long enough to accomplish everything on the "let's make this summer fantastic - list." looking back on it though, i would have to say this summer was a smashing success. God orchestrated the unexpected...some things which of course were once again a challenge, and some things that i have been so blessed by. whether it was reconnecting with friends from elementary school, or pursuing and strengthening friendships as recent as high school, people from near and far blessed me tremendously. whether a walk down memory line or a conversation that i like to call the "girls. guys. god talk," there is such beauty in sharing your heart with another person. i'd say that more than anything, God opened doors to new relationships this summer (something that was not on the summer list, but something i am SO thankful for...). i'm baffled by how God always delivers in the most unexpected ways. i'm a planner, an organizer, and sometimes a control-freak i'll admit...but then God says, "hey debbie, sorry, but i have new things in store for you...so good-bye lists!" and i love it.

so i guess you could say that the theme for my summer was this : friendship.

you know how in high school, when it's time to sign yearbooks and say good-byes, almost everyone says "keep in touch!" "call me!" and then you never do...and before you know it the summer is over and your moving on...well this summer that was different. keep in touch literally meant work. whether it was writing e-mails, phone calls, texts, or quick messages on facebook, it was the effort my friends and i put forth that not only strengthened friendships, but matured them and made them last...and now that we only have a week left, it'll be as if we were never apart. and then there are those friendships that have dwindled, faded. or those friendships that you never even knew existed. but our history with others, our willingness to be vulnerable, to let others in, are all aspects of our innate need to be in relation with those around us, and that ability to let others in, that desire to love and be loved fills that void in our hearts that God specifically created for us to experience His immeasurable love through others.

i don't know if this all makes sense...but the point is that God has a way of placing people in our lives, through doors & windows we didn't even know existed or have long been closed, and blessing us immensely through those people. for that i am eternally grateful and will always be amazed.