Under a microscope

Bloggers: dissected.

I've said before that blogging has helped me overcome fears of opening myself to the world. I put it all out there (for an entire year at that): my writing, my choices, my fears, my triumphs, my failures, and you, dear reader, dissected it.

And while I've hoped that maybe I've inspired one or two people along the way with my own posts, I know that reading other bloggers is often what inspires me.

The handful who I regularly follow invite the world into their own with such ease that you immediately feel like you know them.

One such blogger I find myself rooting for, nodding in agreement, and sharing tears--happy and sad--all from a blog reader's perspective: behind the computer screen.

Her name is Jessica. I met her via internet stalking.

No really. I totally did.

Last year when we found out we were going to be on that HGTV show, Greg googled the show, stumbled upon the keyword in one of her blogs, and then realized she lived about two miles from us and was going to have the same thing done.

I emailed her, just to say "Hey, we're going to go through the same thing, isn't that crazy?"

Our families met for brunch.

And a little acquaintance-ship was born.

Jessica is an amazing photographer. She's a phenomenal writer. She is incredibly crafty and has excellent DIY taste. (You should definitely click on all of the links to check out her stuff.)

What impresses me the most about her, though--what I find absolutely down right inpsiring--is her heart, and her faith.

When she and her husband struggled with conceiving a child of their own, they put it all in God's hands, and let Him guide them.

He led them to Charlie, they're beautiful oldest daughter.

And a year and a half later, He led them to Lola.

Her faith is extraordinary--the fact that she just took herself out of it and gave it up to a higher power is what I think a lot of us struggle with. We want to let go of the situation, we know we can't control it, and yet it's so difficult to take that step of removing ourselves.

Faith: found.

As I said before, her photography is amazing, and recently (like two months ago recently) she started an online photography school. (You should definitely click on that link, too!)

And you know what she did with the tuition people submitted for the first set of courses?

Well, you can read about it here, but...I'll go ahead and spoil it for you: she paid for medical care for a child in foster care. An entire year's worth of medical care.

And then she purchased five water filtration systems for an African village that will last them a lifetime. That means forever.

Oh and then? She paid for education for an entire year for a student in Haiti.

I don't know that she kept a dime for herself.

Heart: enormous.

I am inspired by her drive and determination; her love for all human beings; her warm slight southern accent and penchant for "y'all" in her writing; and putting herself--her entire life--out there for the world to view.

I can't think of a more beautiful life to read and follow and smile and cheer on.