TOURRRRR

So I'm getting a lot of questions about the tour that's listed on my page, So I thought I might answer your questions in bulk cause ya'll are clogging my inbox haha.

Q: WHAT IS THIS TOUR?
A: Since getting back from The US, I've been working my but off trying to get TWLOHA off the ground. We decided one of the best ways to embrace Australia would be to kick off with just a simple tour with our good friends Ellington (www.myspace.com/ellintonrock) Who are huge TWLOHA supporters from the beginning and as well Jake and Mick being two of the raddest guys you will ever meet. The tour kicks off in the Sunshine Coast on November 27th and heads through Brisbane, Sydney, Canberra, Adelaide and finishing up in Melbourne on December 14th. Merch is available in every state. This is a chance to bring your friends down to the shows and introduce them to TWLOHA.

Q: IS JAMIE COMING?
A: No. But isn't awesome cheap instant merch just as good? no more crazy internet orders on your mum's credit card and waiting 3 months for it to turn up! haha

Q: WHY AREN'T YOU MAKING IT TO PERTH? OR DARWIN? OR EVEN TASSIE?
A: We really want to head over to those places but the budget is small, the team is small, the contacts are small. but please, If you think there is a great time for TWLOHA to come over, please email austalia@twloha.com and let us know!

Q: WHAT CAN I DO? I REALLY WANT TO HELP.
A: YES YOU CAN HELP! promote! promote! promote! wear your tshirts, hand out info cards, have those conversations! If you want to make TWLOHA happen in Australia, than it's up to you to talk about it, tell your friends who are struggling that there are people out there who care and love them, that rescue is truly possible.
Help promote this tour, come along, buy some new shirts or totes etc...

This is the beginning of something awesome.

Q: CAN I INTERN WITH TWLOHA?
A: If you can afford to head over to America and live there for about 3-4 months, than go for it! There is no internship programs in Australia available.

(there is more to come....)

Chasing a Storm

A gentle spirit rises within me, like a sweet song made of delicious harmony's and breath taking melodies. A passion grows rapidly yet gracefully. My thoughts are alive and my words have strength and meaning. I find courage and I find my voice. Hope keeps me awake at night and faith never lets me grow weary.
I search
I seek
I desire
I crave
To be more like my father, more like my mother and more like my savior.
I stumble, but I do not give up on this race. I take others by the hand and join with me on this adventure of life.
I am chasing a storm, I am fighting off death, I am a warrior and hold the strength of a thousand men.
I am a child, I am learning.
But I am a women. A women who is battered and bruised but smiles like there was never a war.
I am a bride, awaiting a greater place, dressed in white, prepared for whatever way My Savior will take me.

for you, I am your friend, your sister, I hold you accountable, I will never judge you.
I will forgive you 70x70 times and will forget whatever you have done.
I will take care of you while you are sick
I will hold your hand until you are ready to take your sword up again.

I am humbled by who you are, I am in love with who you are becoming.
I am thankful for your friendships, and for who you arel

I love you.

where did your joy go?

when did you stop noticing the warmth of a sun ray, peeking through your curtains early in the morning...
when did you start fighting with your friends, rather than laughing?
when did the day dream of escaping reality, become a reality?
when did trying to understand someone else's perspective seem pointless?
why does laying in bed with your curtains drawn, seem like a better option than having a coffee with your brother or sister?
where did your laugh go?
what made your smile fade?
when did you start to obsessive and worry about the colour of your hair? and talk about it constantly with your friends, when you should be thinking about more important things?
why did you start spending all your time, night and day, on the internet.. when there is a whole life to explore out there, just waiting?
why does your image matter so much to you? when you are so breath takingly beautiful already?
why does a "scene" matter so much?



Do you know how your friends are?
do you know how your brothers or sisters are feeling?
is your mind so closed off, that you haven't even noticed the fresh cuts along your cousins arms?
did you not notice the tear stains on your sisters cheeks? that she tried to hide, but were as clear as day?
do you not find joy anymore in the first days of summer?
do you not love? do you not feel love?

what made you stop asking for help?
I would love to know....
why do you think no one cares?
when I obviously do.



I can't help but love you...
You are the joy in my life...
so wake up.. please wake up...

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

Loved ones will die. Family will move away. Friends will follow their dreams. Your world will get spun off its axis, thrusting you into a parallel universe where things that you can't change consume you, a world that is out of your control. The sun will rise. Time will go on. Yet you are oblivious to the fact that it is another day. You start to resent the fact that the sun rises. Its rays mock you, bringing no light to your dark suffering. You feel the sting of time as it passes you by and you don't even give it a second glace. You want time to pass. Time heals pain. Or so they say. Haunted by stolen dreams, you struggle to keep things alive that just cannot be. Change is non-negotiable, it is a condition of life.

Be expectant that the days ahead are littered with moments of unexplainable beauty. Love. Life. Laughter. As the seasons change, so too will this season pass. Celebrate new life amongst the ashes. Hold on to the hope of tomorrow, the things yet to come. The day will come when you will rejoice again in the rising of the sun. Old dreams will no longer consume your thoughts; you will put to rest the things that are irrevocable. You will dream again the life that was meant for you.

To find the joy
among the sorrow
to hold a conversation among the tears
we forget what people do wrong to us
we fight for whats right
we hold on to whats good
we embrace the lost

we remember the poor.







(i wish this world was going to end in a smile.

but im afraid it will end in tears)

Something I wrote last night amongst the tears. Sometimes positivity doesn't save a life.. you find that out the hard way.

Home.

A 15 hour flight with building emotions, carried me to a place I had began to forget. A life among others waited patiently for my return, the skin fit, I prayed that it wouldn't.
I watched the sky line fade from shades of deep blue and white, to a dull grey haze and constant mist. My heart beat faster, my world was changing dramatically within a few moments, within a few minutes I was home.

Waiting eagerly for my luggage, the thought of being out of this airport was turning into desperation. I stood impatiently and tried to fight the thoughts and emotions lingering from a painful goodbye to my best friend three days before. I day dreamed about life back in Cocoa and my old home, and the housemates that filled each room....
My bag was there and before I knew it, I was walking out of customs and looking in my fathers eyes. Their smiles filled my mind and I stepped into my old skin, held in tears; escaped unknowingly as I embraced my father and my brother.
America feels like another world, the adventures of riding bikes and tasting strange fried food and the people I met and heard their stories and shared coffee and tears with, it was all a faze.
America felt like a dream.

It is now 7am and the sun hasn't risen, The cold in my room has woken me, forced me to put on layers of clothes to fight it. I dig my hands further into my Boarders For Christ hoodie, wrapping it tight around me to keep the warmth of my body in. My feet have 3 layers of socks and my skin crawls with bumps reacting to the cold.... I lay here listening to Reign of Love and reread my journal..

"some people do not have to search, for they find their niche early in life and rest there, seemingly contented and resigned. at times, i envy them but usually i do not understand them... and seldom do they understand me. i am one of those searchers. there are, i believe, millions of us. we are not unhappy, but neither are we completely content. we continue to explore ourselves; hoping to understand. we like to walk along the beach; we are drawn to the ocean, taken by its power and unceasing motion, its mystery and unspeakable beauty. we like forests, mountains, deserts, hidden rivers and lovely cities aswell. our sadness is as much a part of our lives as our laughter. we are ambitious only for life itself and for anything beautiful it can provide. most of all, we want to love and be loved, to live in a relationship that will not impede our wanderings and prevent our search. we do not want to prove ourselves to others of compete for love. (this passage is for wanderers, dreamers and lovers who dare to ask of life everything which is good and beautiful.)"

remember grace and hope

love gem
xox

Canadians & Kalamazooians (is that even a word)


I don't understand why I am saying goodbye when goodbyes are for suckers. i never want to say goodbye, but here I am, forced upon my lips like there is no tomorrow.
Nada the Canadian and Katie from Kalamazoo are laughing obnoxiously in the bathroom/poo shed about something my ears can't pick up, but I get the feeling, that I am going to miss that sound.
Once, I excitedly came home from work to see Nada, who had been away for the weekend in Tampa. I ran into her room to find her fast asleep, in a rude moment, I jumped on her screaming "I'm so glad you're home" thinking that it was a lovely way to let her know how much i missed her, instead I got "WHAT THE F***? WHO THE F***!!!? S****!! F***..." I don't know who was more freaked out! I have now decided to never wake her ever again, even if the house is on fire.
Nada is honest, reliable, forgiving, loving, caring, gracious, understanding, a listener, and an all round good friend.
I love that we share a love for thrift shops and every meal is veggies with cheese. I love her quirks and obsession with trail mix.
I like that she has the ability to just act completely ridiculous and do such stupid fun things.
I love that she is so alive and active, and getting to know her and watch her grow even more since she has been here has been a privilege.
She is someone that I am truly lucky to have as a friend. So beautiful inside and out.

I hate that I just dropped her at the airport and I may never know when I will see her again.

She is one of my best friends that I will hold so close to my heart.
I will miss her.

Nada, I absolutely love you and will miss you!

gem
xox