2009 Favorites

Well I'm no film critic or editor or anything, but I thought I'd wrap up this year by sharing my favorite things from different categories. I'm sure you're all very intersted to know.


Fiction book - "Christy" By Catherine Marshall. My faithful readers will know I liked it a lot. It was by far the best fiction work I read this year (even though it's based on an actual person and events, it's still fiction). I did read more than two books this year, too! I actually read more than 20, which might be a record for me since fifth grade when I actually had time. It's the story of a well-bred young woman who goes to work as a teacher in Appalachia. It takes place at the turn of the century, and is filled with adventure, romance, love, and spiritual insights.

Nonfiction book - "Under the Overpass". Account of a young man who became homeless for most of a year, just so he could learn about their plight and understand that part of our country better. From a Christian perspective, it was convicting and enlightening.

TV Show - "In Plain Sight" (USA) This did not come out in 2009, but we began watching it this year. It's about a US Marshall in charge of witness protection, and all of the cases she deals with. Well-written, with ends and plots that keep you guessing even when you think you've got them figured out. I like the dynamics she has between her co-workers. I could probably do without her family life, but it does develop her character better. (Warning, I wouldn't call this a "family friendly" show, but it is fairly clean after the first couple of episodes). Daniel and I both really like it, so much that we watched both seasons within a couple of weeks. It's a summer show, and last season ended with a huge cliffhanger, so now we can't wait.

Movie - This was not a year of movies for us. It's hard to get away. I enjoyed "Up" and "Star Trek" the most. Right now I don't recall others that I saw in the theater. Movies just aren't as big of a part of my life as they used to be.

CD - Steven Curtis Chapman's "Beauty Will Rise". Basically, this is Steven's own journey through his grief after losing his 5-year-old daughter. It's hard to listen to, but at the same time, I loved it. Sort of like putting peroxide on an open wound. It hurts, but it heals. I love the honesty and purity in his words, and the hope that they leave behind. Probably this won't become one of his big award-winning albums, but it will definitely be cherished.

Bible Verse - Isaiah 43:18, 19, 21 "Do not remember the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I shall do a new thing; now it shall spring forth. shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness and rivers in the desert... to give drink to my people, my chosen. This people I have formed for myself."
If you're a reader of my blog, you know the significance this verse held through my pregnancy. Now that Jayna is here, I can revel in the "New thing" God has done.

We are waiting outside of the door, looking for God in every day life, reaching for Him and experiencing the pieces that we can, waiting... "New things" and "former things" and ways to remember God have become a part of my life that I cherish. I hope that 2010 is full of new things for you, as well as for me.