Peter

Here I am, sitting in Karin's living room in...Vancouver. Curled up in a down sleeping bag, jazz music playing in the background. Technically I should be studying. In reality I should be studying. But since I've met Peter, "should be's" often go down the drain. I still know it must be done, but there's a whole new twist to life that I'm finding quite refreshing. The twist often makes the madness inside of me be at rest, and makes me enjoy life more and more. And that's why I'm in Vancouver, visiting Peter's sister Karin (she's delightful, and reminds me of a fairy) and some other Vancouver friends. It seems rather funny to me that all my friends here know about Peter, but so many of my friends in other places don't yet. When Ashley Star commented on my blog and added a "P.S. Who is Peter?" I figured it must be time to write about him.

It's taken me a little bit to write about Peter, mostly because I was a) crazy busy balancing Peter and school, and b) I wasn't sure how to write about him without my friends being concerned that it's happened so fast.



So, before I continue, let me reassure you all that both of my roommates approve, and I really think it's been God setting it up all along. Where it's going to go in the future.... I don't have a clue. But God knows, and I can trust Him with it right now, and walk where He says to go. Which is a good reminder at this moment sitting in the apartment by myself, given a wee chance to ponder.



Peter is my steady flame. And since that began, life has been quite the adventure. Adventure just follows him, or meets him, or he just saunters right into it. There is never a dull moment, and if one comes along, it doesn't last very long. From shooting himself in the toe with a nail gun (he's a framer, this subsequently enabled us to go on our first date as he didn't have to work for a few days), to having random street people walk into his house in the middle of the night and placing a hot water bottle on his back while he sleeps, to wearing a suit almost all the time to "find [himself] a wife" he's probably the craziest, most fun person I've ever met. He always has a twinkle in his eye and loves to laugh. He's also incredibly capable of having an incredible, serious conversation, although often with a few light-hearted comments or random questions thrown in. When I asked his roommate if he could describe Peter in two sentences, he said he couldn't. He went on to say "there's nothing normal about him." And that's probably why I'm in Vancouver instead of stressing at home over finals.



And don't worry, before we started hanging out he really wasn't in the business of finding himself a wife. And still isn't... he's definitely and noticably trusting God with it all.

And, he loves God ALOT... prerequisite for me dating anyone. I love the way he looks at faith, and has faith, and actively lives it out. Sometimes it throws me off guard... in a very good way. Who he is and the way he looks at life often makes me realize, or re-think how I relate to things in life. Not that I change the way I think for the sake of wanting him to like me at all. It's just that we think in so much the same way... he reinforces the thoughts that I have and inherently encourages me to follow God closer, seeking Him to guide me, and resting... trusting... not worrying... about otherwise trivial things on this earth.

Both of us often think that our relationship feels surreal... it seems like it randomly came out of nowhere and is SO good. We seem to fit awfully well, and it feels odd to not struggle to make things fit. I know people may say I'm just in the "stars in the eyes" stage, but honestly, I've never met anyone who I fit so well with. I anticipate differences at some point in life, but am excited at the prospect of walking beside someone with our lives undistracted by differences between us, so completely enthralled and focused on God, loving Him as we go along.



So, I walk in this with open hands, with freedom inside me, knowing that it is God who gives and God who takes away, knowing that God has incredibly good plans (no matter what those plans entail) and I get to walk in them, knowing that I can completely trust God with all of it, and knowing that He will continuously whisper to both of us "this is the way, walk in it." Neither of us knows what tomorrow will look like, definitely not trusting our own understanding because so much of this doesn't make sense, but we're both listening and wanting to follow God in it all.

I think there are tons more adventures to unfold...