Pearls and Penmanship

Hey guys! I'm in the really exciting process of opening up a new blog! www.efflorescencebyalyssa.blogspot.com Don't worry; all my posts from Pearls and Penmanship have been uploaded to Efflorescence. I am over the moon with this new adventure, and I can't wait to see y'all over there :) Alyssa <3 ...

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"Go on up to a high mountain, O Zion, L)" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 0.625em; line-height: 22px; position: relative; top: 0px; vertical-align: top;">herald of good news; lift up your voice with strength, O Jerusalem, herald of good news; lift it up, fear not; say to the cities of Judah, ''Behold your God!'” Isaiah 40:9 Camp. Home away from home. Many don't understand how I could possibly have such a kinship to...

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Conviction pierced me this morning when my pastor made this remark: Do we really mean it when we sing with gusto of the love that demands our 'soul, our life, our all"? The times I have sang this hymn without contemplating this deep lyric outnumbers the stars. I remember the first time this thought pierced me - it wasn't when I sang it....

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In the last month I have been super busy with my new job, finishing up some stuff for school, and just life in general. But a lot has happened in our world in the last month. In our nation. A lot of it is disturbing. I know I am genuinely considering moving to Genovia -- in hopes that it has remained it's 2004...

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Our world grows ever darker. Tomorrow students in high schools across the country are being pressured to participate in a day of silence in support of the LGBT movement. This evening, my mother brought up a shameful point: could we as believers or even conservatives successfully come to the board of a public high school and ask for an established day in support...

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Confession, I have not read a book truly for pleasure for months and months. I know, what kind of English fanatic doesn't lie down and read herself to sleep? I'll have to lay my excuse on my schoolwork and be done. Just now - literally less than a minute ago - I picked up a good ol' religious fiction paperback and read the...

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No novel inspires me more than the New York Times bestseller The Help by Kathryn Stockett. It inspires me to fight, to write, to change the world. Considering that the extreme horrors of racial segregation are behind us, a passion to fight and write for has yet to grab my attention. But something inside tells me it will one day present itself. Perhaps...

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Today I traveled south -- continuously in awe of the evolution passing before my eyes. As I began, the world at large remained bland. Some color had returned to the grassy shoots, but spring's true colors had yet to make themselves known. Then we drove. The fields boasted a deeper sense of color. Bursts of green began to adorn the brush. The windows...

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It has been said that March comes in like a lion and out like a lamb. However, this entire March has left me gasping for breath trying to keep up. The first two weeks were dominated by the final preparation and production of Mary Poppins. Millions of things would pop to the forefront of my mind during the process, and I had to...

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This picture was the inspiration for a writing assignment I composed last week. I was asked where I thought the path led and whether or not I'd follow it. As the second installment of my Bouquets of Sharpened Pencils collection, I give you SOLACE. It was a lovely day in early April. The sky shone the clearest blue, and birds were chirping in...

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I inhaled deeply as I stepped out my front door this morning. The smell of spring greeted me like an old friend embracing me with fresh enthusiasm. I know people partial to weather's extremes -- the fiery heat or frozen chill, but I feel this magnetism towards the transitional seasons. There is magic in watching the seasons change in accordance with the Lord's...

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Often as the winter days lengthen and the snow begins to melt, I find myself dreaming of picnics to prepare, flowers to pick, stars to gaze, and mountains to conquer. I am attracted to color to cover up the present, dreadful dreariness of the out of doors. These few weeks of the year are the most difficult for me and my overall happiness...

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To couples around the world, Valentine's Day is about celebrating their relationship with each other whether they started dating January 7th or have been married for over twenty-five years. To people like me who are currently single (or in my case, single for all of eternity past), Valentine's Day can be a little depressing. Even if you don't really care or are pretending...

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It has come to my attention that words beautifully threaded together by people of importance tend to enrapture audiences of all stages in life. Consequently, I have decided to establish a Quoteful Collections series to be posted as many Thursday's as I am able.  Hopefully, they will satisfy your hunger for thoughts and comments and inspiration on different subjects.  If you do not...

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My mother teaches kindergarten. When she says jump, they jump, and when she says count, they count. She teaches at the same Christian school which I attended through my middle and elementary years. Additionally, my dad teaches fifth grade and my brothers are currently students at this school. It is practically part of our family. Some people think we're crazy. Why in the...

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BOOKS //  The Book Thief  by: Marcus Zusak;  The Help by: Kathryn Stockett;  Pride and Prejudice  by: Jane Austen;  Anne of Green Gables  by: Lucy Maud Montgomery;  Caddie Woodlawn by: Carol Ryrie Brink; A Walk to Remember by: Nicholas Sparks MUSIC // bubble-gum pop, smooth jazz, classic rock, a cappella, and old Taylor Swift FASHION // black and white stripes, oversized sweaters, flannels, top knots, and statement...

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"Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart." --Psalm 37:4 NKJV I am a dreamer. I have big plans for my future. I see myself on stage dancing to "Tale as Old as Time." I see myself dressed for the prom on the arm of a charming young gentleman. I see my first record releasing...

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