JBradley

Our Wedding Day

Sat, 8 Nov 2008 09:13:46 -0500

October 18th finally came and all our planning, preparing and primping had come to an end.

The day started our like almost any other Saturday morning, except I rolled over to Sandy and said, “Good Morning my almost wife! Happy Wedding Day!” Yup, corny, I know but hey I’m only going to have one wedding day so I will be as corny as I want to be. Now those of you that know me know that I am not much of a girly girl, hence - Makeup - minimal Shoes - practical Clothing - comfortable Hair - brushed. Not on one’s wedding day...

Hair appointment at 10 and then meet Sandy at the vet to see Scout because she broke her toe Friday morning and was staying overnight at the vet. Our Scouty was doing well and we missed her but they took great care of her. So after leaving the vet knowing Scout was in good hands Sandy headed home I went to get my makeup done and a pedicure. Lest I ramble on about the makeup, let me just say I have never had so much stuff on my face. Did I like it, yeah except for all the eyeliner. So after my face and toes were complete I headed home where we were having some pictures taken. Our families met at our house and we had pics taken and then it was ...”Goin’ to the chapel and we’re gonna get ... Civil Unionized” (No, not married, and yes, there is a difference. However I do believe that someday soon all relationships will be valued, respected and treated equally under the law.)

So we arrived at the church and shared our celebration with about 75 friends and family. Our ceremony was perfect from the readings to the songs to the message and the breaking of bread and sharing of the cup. It was wonderful to stand up in front of our friends, family and God and declare our love and promises to each other.

Then off to the cocktail hour and dinner party. Maybe the reason I had such a good time was because it was our party but it truly was the perfect from our friends and families laughing and having a good time to the food that was delightful - I overheard, “If the hors devours are this good can you imagine how the entrees will be?!”

Fun, laughter, meaningful words, family, friends, and at the end a few shots with the cousins made for wonderful celebrations of love, 16 years of love with many more ahead.

I have succumb

Sun, 31 Aug 2008 10:12:39 -0400

I gave in a bit ago and finally hopped on the Facebook bandwagon. I found a couple people from high school and then a few from college, but what makes me really glad that I joined is that I have re-connected with some people from IYPC. IYPC, the Interdenominational Young People’s Conference, is a church camp that I attended in the mid to late 80’s. It was a lot of fun and I had a lot of great times and wonderful memories. It has been over 20 years since I first went to IYPC, affectionately referred to as Poco, but as I look at pictures and reflect back on that one week every year for about five years, I have such great memories and am so thankful for its role in my spiritual journey.

Some of my fond memories...
-Tryst, I’d probably appreciate this time more now, then I did back then
-The Blue & Grey competition
-Singing around the campfire with friends
-Any class with Grant Ward was always very interesting
-The fun times in Moore (the dorm where the girls stayed) and practical jokes we played -
hot chocolate powder in the shower heads, saran wrap on the toilets and I’m sure there
were others that don’t come to mind right now
-Hanging out on Rainbow Chase
-Talent night, Christmas in July or June
-Poco Presses, Nosey Newsies & This and That

I am in the above picture, 2nd row from the top, 6th in from the left with sunglasses on, ‘cause I thought I was cool like that. :-)

Restless Renewal

Thu, 21 Aug 2008 16:19:04 -0400

**I wrote this Thursday but did not have any internet access ‘til today, Sunday the 24th.

As I mentioned in my previous post I was going on a retreat for about three days. I came home yesterday evening feeling very refreshed and renewed. However, the process to get to this point was not simple. I often felt during the retreat very restless, yet, when someone guided me to the word ‘restless’, everything seemed to come together for me. My problem was I spent time feeling restless because I felt as though I needed to “DO” something in order to go deeper. Then I realized that I did not need to DO anything, I just need to be and to be more aware of the world around me, the women I was in community with and my place within it all and how God was, is and will continue to work within it all.

So I came to the retreat with a glass that was empty as I felt that was symbolic of my relationship with God. Albeit, Sandy thought I should fill the glass half way, indicating either half full or half empty. I chose to bring the glass empty and if there were times during the retreat that I felt as though my glass was more full or more empty I would adjust accordingly. Right now, I feel as though my glass is at least half full! I took off from work the rest of this week & Sandy & I are planning to enjoy a weekend at the cabin with a couple Phillies games thrown in.

I probably be writing more about my retreat over the next week and I hope to blog more regularly. I am not going to make any promises, but I have come to acknowledge the important & cathartic role, writing, be it in a journal or blog, has in my life.

Silence, Spirituality & Silliness...

Sun, 17 Aug 2008 07:28:48 -0400

Almost every year for the past 11 or 12 years I have gone on a retreat in Bethany Beach at the end of August for four days with about 6 other women. The retreat is lead by a woman who is a United Methodist pastor and she really fosters an environment for reflection and growth. This year the theme for the retreat is “Covered By God’s Love.”

I am looking forward to the retreat and just taking a bit of a “break” from my typical day-to-day rat race. One of the aspects of the retreat I appreciate the most, but am challenged by, is our times of silence. Typically, we spend about half of our days in silence, and the first day or so everything seems so loud and I find the silence difficult. However, by Wednesday I welcome the silence and try to think of ways to incorporate the silence into my daily life (that rarely happens). Another aspect of the retreat I really enjoy is the communal living. Most of the women on the retreat have attended in the past years, but there is usually one or two new faces, and we are a diverse group - young & old, gay & straight, partnered & not. I always find it amazing how we come together as a group to prepare meals, provide support & have fun.

So, I am leaving today for four days & then following the retreat Sandy and I are going up to the cabin for three or four days. I am looking forward to this little get-away and maybe when I get back I’ll feel inspired to blog more. :-)

(Downside of all this, no computer for at least four days & then likewise while we are at the cabin. Oh well, I guess I’ll survive. I’ll probably spend a whole day catching up with tweets though.)

“Saved” Off-Broadway

Sun, 25 May 2008 12:47:32 -0400

Yesterday Sandy & I went to see Saved at the Playwrights Horizon Theatre (a gorgeous theatre). The stage production was based on the movie with Mandy Moore & Macauley Culkin that came out in 2004. I really enjoyed the movie and was looking forward to the play immensely.

Let me begin by saying that I went to a Christian College, stood by a classmate when she got pregnant and it seemed as though people chose sides, dated guys with the hope that I could get “straightened out,” tried so hard not to fall for my friend who had me in her clutches early on with her captivating blue/green eyes, prayed “without ceasing” for God to forgive me for my sinful thoughts and desires for women, found solace in the “gift of forgiveness” because though I would have a wonderful day skipping classes with my girlfriend I still felt as though I failed in the eyes of God.

Additionally, I had a professor who taught me that God loves me “Just As I Am,” began to develop a faith that was not only in my heart but as in my head and therefore asked questions of things I was once told to accept blindly because that is what a good Christian does, embarked on a new found theological journey that introduced me to new theologians/preachers/teachers who guided me as I approached scripture with a more open mind.

With that being said... I really enjoyed the movie when it came out 4 years ago and I thoroughly enjoyed the play yesterday, that I saw with the captivating blue/green eyed friend [. The play, like the movie, is very realistic of the youth/young adult evangelical culture that I was apart of in college. Therefore, there were parts of the play, which some might have viewed as cheesy or over-the-top that brought tears to my eyes because I knew it was, and is, real. Specifically, the scenes where people have gathered to “Pray for Gay Dean,” friends I had in college prayed for me and like Dean prayed for himself to be Saved, I too sought to be Saved from “the grips of sin.” Yet in the midst of this great play which I over-identified with I think that some of the songs were lacking in the lyrical department. “Life is screwy, grab hold of a life buoy.” ?!? But the play was pretty faithful to the movie, the timeline was a bit different and the beginning was not like the movie - but was excellent.

I would recommend it! If you are in the NY area get some tickets and go. However, I know that not everyone in the theatre loved it like I did. In fact, the couple on my right left at intermission, the man in front of me when asked what he thought of it said, “Well I think I am going to say for the 2nd Act.” Similarly, when leaving the theatre a Faaaabulous Queen stated that he thought it lacked a plot &/or meaning. I disagree, I think there was plot & it was about developing a faith of one’s own, not judging others no matter what their situation in life and to extend love to all.