There is nothing new under the sun: Life and Death

If there's something to be said about Virginia, it's teeming with life. From the wildflowers to the grass to the multitude of college students...everywhere, there is life. It's not that there isn't life in Michigan, but there's this energy...a buzz that is really missing here. I can't even put my finger on it. I think part of it might be economic. The economy in Michigan is bad, but I don't think you notice how it's dragging down the area until you're in someplace like Virginia. It's just ... something. This was also the first time I've seen Matt relatively awake in almost a year. He was, in a sense, brought back to life.

A long story short, we went to mass with Michael last Sunday. The priest spoke on dying to self. It's a pretty familiar concept, but something about it really cemented everything. He said that (paraphrase...he said it much better) it's only when we die to self that the good and new can form. Again, it's not like I haven't heard it before, but ... It cemented everything that Matt and I have been talking about for the past few months. If we want to move forward, we need to die to ourselves, our desires, our things. There isn't a doubt in either of our minds that this is what we're supposed to do. We're just taking a couple days to recover from the trip and figure out what needs to happen next.

Ok. Enough of the blah-blah-blah. Picture time! I haven't touched 'em up yet, sooooo...

Michael is all that...and then some.