The Art of an Invite

We are 3 days shy of 1yr and 7 months of many potential babies and too many "no's" to count them. We have at times held our breath for hours waiting for the phone call letting us know that we would become parents but received an email instead. We have rejoiced with many friends who have announced their pregnancy's and have been ecstatic at our friends who have been chosen to be parents!!! We... oh wait, I have shed many tears at times and have laughed much more than those tears that I have shed. And so, we continue to wait, to live to the fullest to continue to plan for our future and live in the present. Lunch meals still need to be made, client reports need to be printed, laundry needs to be washed and most of all, relationships continue to grow.

This blog post has been on my mind for months and finally I am sitting down to type it. I grew up in Mexico where we spend a lot of time around a meal, we thoroughly enjoy the food and we thoroughly enjoy the company. My mom was never one to show off her pearls or her diamonds. She always wanted people to be comfortable and didn't want them to wish they had riches by a simple broach she would wear... She taught us to be rich in friendships and humble in our belongings. She also "strongly" dislikes social media and prefers to keep her life in private so here I am spilling all her secrets:)... (jk. Mammi)

Daniel and I are building our first house and we don't really share pictures... The death of my sister and the category of "things- house included" doesn't trump her life. I remember when she past how people to me were so interested in their "material" things that they paid more attention on posting on ig than on reaching out to me. I wanted nothing to do with that and the callousness that that made me feel. We recently lost our dear Aunt Holly and friends have had some huge losses as well. I usually keep my posts to those that mean something to me. I want to respect those who are grieving and stand by them. The world continues while their world has been shattered to never be the same again. 

Here is where my title comes in: The Art of an Invite: 

Invite:

verb (used with object), invited, inviting.

1. to request the presence or participation of in a kindly, courteous, or complimentary way, especially to request to come or go to some place, gathering, entertainment, etc., or to do something: 

You see, by me posting on ig, or on this blog or even by opening myself up I have to accept that love, loss and common sense (not really) will come hand in hand. Life is full of pain, but life is full of joy. I am 100% grateful for the life that God has allowed me to live. I am so grateful for my husband. We get so caught up that we have to have the perfect house to be able to invite people but to me that is not the case. It doesn't matter what house you have, in the end it matters if you open it up to friends, new and old. I know that the American way is to say, "Come on over any time." But to me that has never been an invite. An invite says, "I desire to know you more and to be in your presence, please allow me to know you more and vica versa". An invite says, "My life is messy, and I am a work in progress, an art piece still being refined, will you still love me as I am?". An invite says, "Join me and those whom I love in this journey we call life".

For those of you who didn't know this of me, an invitation to me is one of the greatest forms of love. That means you want me/us to know you more. What an honor. My sister's house was a two bedroom apartment FULL of love, FULL of adventure, FULL of beauty. We giggled, we snuggled, we cried, we even fought, we cooked, we feasted, we had picnics in the living room, we did life. That is the type of invite I want. A full life rich in friends. 

I close this post encouraging you to practice inviting those who are in your life (or those who you want in there). Send a text, send a paper invite, email someone. If you're not getting invited, who cares, YOU invite. We all need each other, we all have our weird quirks and humor but if we never reach out we'll never know how rich our lives can be. I am looking forward to our move in date, I am looking forward to the sleepovers which we'll have, to the hundreds of guests which we'll have. I am looking forward to allowing our dear ones in to know us more. I am looking forward to the many memories we will create with you all. I leave you with.... hold your breath... yes, some pictures of the house and with the prayer from our dear friend Don that was prayed over our house.

PRAYER FOR YOUR NEW HOME  God bless your new home.  May it be a church where you meet God on a daily basis, a school where you learn about Him and each other, a hospital where you find healing and wholeness, service station where you minister to the needs of each other, and a garden where you enjoy the beauty of His holiness.  Amen