Love me some Scrapbook Therapy J
Not just posting photos on social media!
Yep, I’m that kind of person who scrapbooks her pictures and
fun stuff into massive memory sized photo albums. I take some seemingly
worthless pieces of paper like film stubs or the tickets from the Eiffel
tower and add them to paper that probably costs about a dollar, along with
candy wrappers, and a photo or two. Then, along with some little cute or pretty
stickers, the scrapbook page tells more of the story than the pictures can tell by themselves in a typical photo album with plastic sleeves for holding
individual photos. I do print photos every once in a while so that I can
scrapbook something new… or just look at photos in a frame that isn’t digital,
a computer, or a phone…
Today, I used some paper that cost less than a dollar, some
lace that was free, paper lace and pictures from our Colorado Honeymoon in
2004. I specified ‘Colorado Honeymoon’ because we did have a 2nd
honeymoon in Brazil a little after our first honeymoon in Colorado.
Random thought: I
have heard of people advocating for married couples to get married and NOT have
a honeymoon because of some weird study of other historical cultures. Not going
to elaborate, because I don’t agree with them – but those historical cultures
aren’t thriving anymore – just sayin’. I would like to point out that a
Honeymoon right after the wedding, and basically whenever a couple can get away
to have another Honeymoon, is IMPORTANT to us. Romance, love and intimacy don’t
stay overwhelmingly present in our lives without the commitment and quality time
they require to stay alive. So, I repeat…Honeymoons are important to us, and we
advise married couples to have plenty of honeymoons, not just the first one after a wedding. (And to
couples who feel like they don’t deserve one for whatever self-condemning reason
– its not about deserving. It’s about loving well!) Time alone together is a
beautiful thing….I’m totally going to make a plan for us to get away….
Ok back to Scrapbooking…
Anyway, I was scrapbooking today. Usually when I miss my
hubby I will scrapbook some pictures from our wedding, honeymoon, or engagement.
I am not in a race or on a time limit to ‘get her done’. It’s more like art therapy
for me. I have scrapbooking materials from years back….My sticker collection
that started when I was 8 has only grown and become more sophisticated. And the
books I put the stickers in are way more fancy. Sometimes I use stickers to
make a scrapbook page look awesome. It’s not about the stickers, paper, or
picture. It’s about the combination of details that make a page look, and feel
just perfect to me. I’m looking for the details to be cohesive and honest, but absolutely
pretty. Most of all, I am looking at a memory and cherishing the time we spent
making that memory. I’m using the photos of that memory to build a foundation
for the future – our future together. I spend the time collaging, cutting, and
pasting to strengthen my love for my hubby – who I am missing terribly while he
is away.
So scrapbooking isn’t just therapy. It’s an act of love that
most people can appreciate on some level. Why do I say that? I have seen how
people are touched by a thoughtful friend who actually took the time to
handwrite a note in a thank you card. I have cherished cards from my spiritual
Mama, and from my spiritual papa. I have carried hand written letters from my
parents in my Bible. I printed out love letters from my hubby when we were
engaged and planning our wedding (They were emails cause he was in Africa and I
was in America). Something about time spent to communicate how important
someone is just touches people. We spend our time according to our priorities.
What a gift to spend time with, or thinking about someone special.
I’m going to say this, and people who forget that I am a
missionary, it might sound like preaching… cause it is. I’m sitting here
listening to worship, typing about acts of love that show thoughtfulness, and I’m
overwhelmed by how the details of my life are woven together like a masterfully
designed tapestry. I notice that that emotion is because I’m loved. I know I’m
loved by Papa God because I spend special time reading about His perfect
character, and getting lost in Jesus love letters to us - His bride. I see His hand in my life because
I recognize that the good things in
life come directly from one person, not random fate, but a thoughtful loving
Papa God. I am convinced that ALL goodness flows from one source. The only one
who is Good! Its easy to see how much he loves me when I believe that.
Today, as I picked what pictures to turn into a scrapbook collage,
I found a letter that I wrote earlier this year. It was a perfect component for
my scrapbooking page today, and the message in the letter made my heart melty
and smushed. I remembered my new Brazilian friend telling me how a trip to
Mozambique was the start of a brand new dream in her marriage. I was reminded of
my ‘first love’ for my hubby not only to remember the past, and build a
foundation for the future, but to dream again. I have a specific dream with my
husband that I will trust Papa God for, and in the same way that I spend time
remembering my first love for my husband, I will spend time remembering my
first ever first love: Jesus.
The reason I have someone special to scrapbook for: Jesus.
The reason I can feel like an artsy fartsy page is perfect: Holy Spirit. The
reason I can be so deeply connected with my hubby and dream with him is: my
perfect Papa God. If you are not sure about my point here, I will spell it out.
Remember your first love with God. For me it was a moment that I talked to
Jesus on my knees by my bed as a tiny little girl. Remember your first love, and let Him love
you. Spend special time reading through his letters to you. Sometimes I read
them over and over. It changes my spirit, Jesus words fill me up with such
hope, Joy, and love that he changes me. I can’t be a mess forever – I am a
little bit of an emotional mess without my lover, helper, and best friend. We
do life together. Well, I’m less of a mess with Jesus. I am overwhelmed by
Jesus’ thoughts towards me. His imagination is boundless – and my kids have
wild imaginations! Jesus’ thoughts are so much better than mine. I think its
wild when Holy Spirit points out some detail in my life or highlights a dream,
but then God’s thoughts towards me become more and more evident in my life. I
step into the reality of our dreams as I trust God’s perspective.
In my ultra-relevant scrapbooking analogy, Jesus sees the
finished scrapbook – not just one or two finished pages full of one memory.
Jesus sees the entire shelf full of scrapbook photo albums that are full to the
brim from before our birth to after our passing. There is so much more from his
side of eternity, and every little thread matters! In my scrapbook, every
little slice of the paper cutter matters. Every sticker needs to be precisely placed
on the most appropriate paper to highlight a detail or mask a flaw.
I really love a perfectly satisfying scrapbook page. I love hearing
my son say that Mommy is so artistic. I love my husband taking more than thirty
seconds to appreciate something that took me three hours to perfect. Yeah, three
hours is a long time. I did hug kids in between contemplating sticker
placement. We ate a meal, and I did stop and stare at the photos before I
remembered that I should scan the photos because they are so old that they aren’t
digital! Then I finally felt ready to grab the glue and make it semi-permanent.
I found a place for this latest scrapbook page in my wedding
scrapbook. I was really happy to have special time alone with my hubby right
after we said our vows, cut our wedding cake, and greeted our handful of
wedding guests. Our Colorado Honeymoon was in a little old-west mountain town.
I put our honeymoon with our wedding album because it’s all part of our love
story’s first chapter. Its part of our beginning and our first love.
Whenever I miss my hubby, and his tenderness towards me, I
look at wedding pictures. And in that light, considering that I spent a few
hours staring at three pictures this evening, I must be really obviously missing
him. That feeling of longing is a good feeling – for now. It shows that our
relationship has a healthy level of loving connection. It also proves my point
that I would be a sappy sad soldiers wife…
Ok starting to ramble. Bunny trails just pop into my head.
Makes me think of my boxes of handwritten journals from when I was a teenager
just full of nonsense. Ok -stop stopping that bunny trail and saving for another
time.
It’s been fun. I could add a picture of my scrapbook page,
but I have no idea how to do that from this tablet….really I’m not trying to
get appreciation for my artwork. I am sharing how I cope with longing for my
beloved. I’m sharing how I remember my first love. I’m encouraging you to
remember, to breath in that feeling of utter desire, to relent under that
weighty presence of Holy Spirit, and let that love change you into the perfect
version of you that lives in the heart of Papa God and the Mind of Christ.
You are so loved!
Missionary Momma Mia
