New Year, New Adventures!

 Happy New Year!

    Well, I guess we are half way through the year by now... but nevertheless! This is your half year check-in! How are those new year resolutions going? ;) Just kidding! But on a serious note, how are YOU doing? Check in with yourself. How are you feeling, physically, emotionally, socially, mentally, spiritually? To keep balance within ourselves, each of these need to be cared for... so how are you doing??? If you're doing well, that's incredible. Live it up, and spread the joy to others that may not be doing so hot right now. If you're not doing well, please know that you are in my prayers, and that you can always shoot me a message and know that you will have an ear to listen to you. Honestly, these past two years have been difficult... heck, even this last month has thrown a lot at us as a country (but also personally.) So, check in with yourself and others. We are all hurting in some way. How can YOU be the light in someone's life, or, how can you rest in someone's else light for awhile? 

My people <3

Philosophy: "On, Truth"

I like to take a little bit of time in each blog to contemplate life in some sort of way. The topic that has been on my heart recently is that of truth, and how we understand truth, and how we attempt to find truth in the world and in ourselves. If this is not your cup of tea, feel free to skip ahead and you'll be greeted with some pictures of August and Oliver! :)

    Imagine that one would look at a cloud from the ground. Depending on where they are standing relative to the cloud they would experience a different perception, a different reality. If they are directly below the cloud, they might see a blanket of gray that is seemingly never ending. If, from the ground, they were ten miles away they may see a towering column of white. Before humans could fly, these were some of the primary experiences of the cloud, shy of being on top of a mountain peak and being inside of the cloud. Now, through the innovation of technology, humans are able to travel through a cloud in an aircraft. This would have been myth, dreams, and a walking place of only the birds and the gods. Now, for those who are fortunate enough to be able to afford air travel, their perception has been expanded to understand being inside of a cloud with all of its turbulence and fog. Even so, one might believe that they have experienced all there is to experience in the cloud, but yet they may not have ever seen the molecules that make up the cloud with their specific properties and ever-changing shapes, not to the mention, especially today, their bondage to pollution and toxins. Within just one cloud exists many perceptions, which lead to many truths to be known about the cloud, but even within a moment, that perception may change as the environment around the cloud changes. The wind might blow, or the bottom of the cloud may give way and shower down on the Earth below. The cloud, in tandem with the light, might produce a rainbow. The cloud may be moving toward you, or away from you, or in front of you, or behind, all relative to you, but also relative to others who are perceiving the same cloud. All of these perceptions lead to differing truths, and yet, we cannot understand all truths at the same time from our limited perception. Especially, this is the case, when we understand that the cloud exists in time, and while we perceive it, it has already changed- rippling into a seemingly endless possibilities of perceptions and truths. It is not plastic, but rather flexible. It is not static, but dynamic. While I may believe that I hold truth about this object, I hold almost nothing except ignorance. Now, multiply this by every single input of information that we gather from our senses at every single moment in our lives with every single human who has ever lived or will ever live. This is endless.

    This is all to say without mentioning anything about how I evaluate my perceptions and how I might feel about them emotionally. The viewers past experiences, apathy, ability to connect and find meaning, present circumstances, and so much more will affect what sensitivity they have to the perception in the first place, and then will effect what consequence of truth they will be led to. This truth is never complete, and never can be completed, only added to and deepened, without finality.

It should also be noted that the viewer might not be aware that they only perceiving a part truth, or even desiring, consciously, to look for truth- but rather, they may just be looking at the cloud in passing. As we move through life, hardly are people looking to the clouds especially for truth, or meaning, analogies, or to experience something bigger and greater than they are, for it is hard to keep the illusion of life going when we accept the grandeur of that in which is majestic, inspiring, and free. We certainly would not invest any further in the joyless, frustrating, draining, or meaningless- at least, if we had the choice not to, which in almost all cases, we have some degree of autonomy over.

    The music artist Watsky sums up this investment in the illusion and facade of life that keeps us from finding a deeper sense of truth within the human condition when he says:

“The reason there is smog in Los Angeles is, if we could see the stars, if we could see the context of the universe in which we exist in, we could see how small each one of us is, against the vastness of what we don’t know, no one would ever audition for a McDonalds commercial again. And then where would we be? No frozen dinners and no tv. Is that a world we want to text in?”

While this example is steeped in 21st century lexicon, the theme is the same throughout all of time. All of parts of history have created illusions that distract from the pursuit of truth in the human condition, but I believe that no time has been more convoluted with illusion than now.

We rarely look at the clouds, as our eyes are glued to some device, or our dismal outlook on life has depressed our disposition downwards.

    Even if the viewer is not attempting to run away from the façade of life, they might not be aware that they are simply experiencing part of a truth. In their ignorance they may be unaware. In their arrogance, they may proclaim that they are experiencing full truth.

I present this example as well. A person is walking down a street and passes an alley. Inside of that alley someone is being attacked and robbed. The person without awareness does not notice the someone being attacked and robbed. The person with awareness notices the situation and jumps in to help without understanding what they should do to help and also keep themselves safe. The person with awareness and sensitivity notices the situation and calls for help. None of these paths are better or worse in terms of truth (maybe in ethics) but rather they are all different depending on the person and their experience, awareness, sensitivity, etc. Each produces a different version of truth, leading to a different version of choices, leading to a different version of reality.

    We can only experience anything from our perspective with the limited beings that we are. Our awareness may be lacking, leading to a lesser degree of perception. Our awareness may be distracted by technology leading us to be less sensitive to that around us. But all in all, we must admit, aware and sensitive as we are, that we are temporal and limited creatures. We exist in a time, and then stop existing in another time, and our minds cannot fathom even all of the information that only our times offers, let alone the information of all of time, and of what is yet to come. While we can dream and transfer ourselves from the now, into the then, we still cannot know what will come to be.

    Imagine that Truth, capital as in supreme, as a giant picture, and for each experience we each hold a small puzzle piece. Depending on our experiences and sensitivities, we may hold many puzzle pieces, or possibly, none at all. Surely, a man from Croatia has no perception of me writing this right now, nor ever will. Therefore, he could not hold any truth about this experience unless he somehow imagined it, or dreamed it for the sake of thinking about that which seems highly improbable (which I have done). Anyways, we each hold, so long as we have a perception of it, some puzzle piece that contributes to the larger picture. If we were omnipotent, we would have all of the pieces AND the knowledge on how to construct them together into one, and the overwhelming sense that there is a need to construct them and order them in the first place… all of which are processes that would take another twenty pages to even begin to dig into. But, since we are not, we do not have the pieces to see the entire truth. As we perceive the experience from the front, someone else perceives it from behind. As we perceive the experience now, someone may have in the past, or in the future. And, even though I may understand that there is a backside, I may choose to experience it or not experience it depending on may factors- even if I am aware, which is a joyous proposition to ponder as we think about our freewill in this lifetime. Furthermore, not all people have the same yearning for perceiving in multiple ways, nor do they desire to complete the picture. Lastly, some people are not even aware that there is a picture. And truly lastly, I am not sure that there is a picture either.

    But, to see what I believe to be a fuller version of the truth, one must be able to hold many experiences and pieces of knowledge and synthesize them with empathy. We must be able to accept and metastasize other perceptions, even if we don’t accept them to be valid from our personal perspective. This is empathy driven by the desire to seek truth. Unfortunately, the desire to seek truth leads us to confirmations riddled with bias and we rest our case living into a part truth. As said before, I believe that truth can never be fully experienced, but only deepened. I would be cautious approaching anyone who claims that they have found Truth. Most likely, they have found comfort in illusion- poisoned by arrogance and fortified with self-righteousness. “Being in someone else’s shoes is different than standing somewhere else.”- Lauren

I have learned so much from Lauren, just as she has from me, because by design we see outwards. But we can see each other from the out, looking in. Now imagine 7 billion different perception from the outside looking in, and we start to realize that despite our intimacy with ourselves or our partners, we could never begin to undertake or understand the depth of truth about even ourselves or anyone, or anything else. Let alone in this moment, or in the plethora of ways that we will inevitably change through time and experience. Even if we were to die and stop changing, as other change they may remember us differently either due to their new experiences as a human, or by their inability to remember.

    The human condition offers very little truth, but rather small glimpse and puzzle pieces that only reveal themselves to us through empathizing, connection to others, being in relation, listening, deep meditation, and contemplation of self, others, the world, God, and life at large.

    So where does this lead us? How do we find truth? Is it possible to find truth? Or, is it only possible to find your own subjective version of truth? I have a lot of thoughts that still need to be ironed out with time, experience, reflection, and prayer. But, in short: God is Truth. God calls us into relationship, into empathy, into love, and into experience- and only He holds all the perspectives at one time. Where as we can hold some perspective... some of the pieces, He holds them all; calling us to look towards Him who holds all the answers.

    More on this hopefully sometime soon...

August and Oliver: The Pets!

Here are some pictures of our dearly beloved pets. Please enjoy!!!

We never thought that we would see the day where they could co-exist on the same couch!!! Now, it's their favorite place together!

Oliver loves sitting on the window above August.

Oliver loves hiding, and August loves seeking HAHAHA

August LOVES his new bed.

Action shot of Oliver jumping over August! HE IS A SPAZ

"Paint me like one of your french girls"

Me and August hanging out in Greenville! This was his first time!

Enjoying dinner with these two!

Me and August in our basement. He doesn't get to go down often! HAHA

Happy Memorial Day, from August!

Family photo! August is not interested in looking at the camera- only Oliver Cat

Enjoying our porch. It's all painted, and we got new furniture from Nana! THANKS NANA!

Look at that innocent face <3

On a walk at our favorite park!

A picture of all of us together <3

    We love our pets so so so much and we are absolutely blessed to have them! If you have pets, give them an extra-loving squeeze and a treat for being so amazing! If you have lost a pet, and this section is a little tough... know that we are praying for you. It is never easy to lose a friend <3

Cooking and Wine Adventures!

If you have kept up with my other blogs, you know that I have been really diving into the worlds of cooking and wine, and the intersection between the two, known as Food and Wine pairing. I will post some of my pictures below as well as some of my thoughts so far on this journey.

1: Wine doesn't need to be pretentious. Though the culture of wine CAN BE, and IS pretentious (in some circles) it doesn't need to be. What I have liked most about learning about wine is experiencing different flavors and expanding my awareness to flavors. I have also enjoyed learning about different areas around the world and their agricultural practices surrounding wine! If you're looking for some quick wine knowledge, I would suggest that you go to WINE FOLLY on YouTube. Madeline Puckett does a great job explaining wine!

2: Be in the moment- focus! Another one of my favorite parts about this journey with cooking and wine that I treasure so much is that it has slowed me down. Our lives are SO FAST. Just yesterday, it was last year... or 5 years ago. Time escapes us, for many reasons- but one way that we can attempt to soak in time a little more... is be more present in each moment. Eating is something that we do every single day, BUT how many of us scarf down our meals as quickly as possible so that we can get on to the next thing??? Or even worse, we multi-task while we eat! HAHA. I am guilty. But, I have found that taking my time to prepare the meal and taking my time to enjoy my meal has increased my skill of being present. I do feel as if the quality of the meal is better because my attention is on the process and the joy- and when I get to finally eat it, I feel the energy and time that was poured into it. There is an artistry to cook and enjoying meals- I hope that you are able to find some of that! 

Pictured above was one of our favorite wines- An Argentinian Malbec. The meal is also connected to the Argentinian people. If you notice on the steak, there is a green topping. That is the chimmichuri "sauce". Traditionally, the men were responsible for getting the meat, and the women were responsible for harvesting the herbs and they combined them together and made something similar to this meal. I added some pearled couscous and some panko fried eggplant :) YUM. 

Mom's chicken marsala with a delicious wine from the Fingerlakes up in New York. This wine was named after the original winemaker's daughter. (one of them, at least)

You might notice that the wine glass changed... :) These wine glasses are specifically designed for Pinot Noir, otherwise known in Burgundy as... Burgundy HAHAHA or Bourgogne, as you can see on the bottle. You see, most of what you taste is what you smell! You can think back to the last time you had a seasonal cold and couldn't taste anything because your nose was so plugged up. So, most of what we analyze in wine is actually in the smell, and then we see if what we taste matches those aromas. These aromas come from the grape variety, the winemaker's process, climate conditions, and aspects during the fermentation process such as using oak vs stainless steel. The grape variety Pinot Noir, is HIGHLY sensitive to shape where smell is concerned- so these glasses have a BIG bowl at the bottom to concentrate the smells so that it smells indicative of the grape variety. If you were to put that same wine into another shaped glass, it wouldn't smell the same! :) 

YUM! Another great wine from the Fingerlakes, paired with a Hello Fresh meal that Lauren made. SO GOOD, and so good for you. Lots of veggies. 

3: TRY NEW THINGS! I have never cooked a Chicken Curry meal before, but I was craving it! So, I found a recipe and started there, and then ended up changing it and improvising a little bit until I found it to be right for my taste preferences! :) It turned out really well and it was nice to have something new. I have a lot of standard meals, but I LOVE branching out and including new food groups and new recipes. This is also true in wine. We LOVE drinking new kinds of wine- whether its a new grape variety, or the same grape variety but from a different part of the world where they produce it differently. It's always fun to challenge your palate a little bit and get something new going! :) Also, it makes food and wine more exciting. I will totally eat the same thing over and over again (Lauren is not like that HAHA) but it's so much fun to try something new and gain new perspectives and flavors!!!

Sometimes, we get sick of eating the same meals--- and my question always is... HOW THE HECK DO YOU LIVE TO BE 50 YEARS OLD!? Aren't you just sick of everything?!!? HAHAHAHA! Don't answer that... ;) 

Substituted the noodles with ZOODLES (noodles made from zucchini) and created a lemon/honey sauce to drizzle on top. YUM. 

PRO TIP! If you cook with Zoodles, just be sure to drain them because they release a lot of water and can really diffuse all the flavors in your meal. 

Just a picture of a nice healthy lunch that Lauren and I got to share on the porch recently. Slowing down... soaking in some Sun... sharing in a meal and conversation... listening to the birds... and breathing in some air... all the best things. Take some time to be. <3

Speaking of being... we have been doing a lot of "being" with family and friends. We are SO blessed to have such amazing families who love us and care for us, as well as friends who are are just great people. During this time of COVID especially, I know that a lot of people lost members of their families and close friends for many reasons. If that is you, please know that I am thinking of you and praying for you. Take some time to reach out to those who are still here and tell them that you love them. <3

Florida!

Believe it or not, I have never been to Florida before this trip!!! So, I was EXCITED!!!! We went to visit Nana and Pap and it was SUCH a fun time!

At the Country Club for dinner :) 

I burn very easily... so a sun-shirt and umbrella are must have's for me on the beach! HAHA

Beautiful sunset... I also saw my first dolphin on this walk!!! And, there was a beached shark (small)

Lauren's ring with the beautiful ocean in the background

We also went Jetskiing! I LOVE JETSKIING 

AND WE SAW THIS CRAZY STORM COME IN OFF OF THE BEACH!!! Unfortunately, the mixture of storms here, and the giant snow storm back in Pittsburgh canceled our flights home :( On the bright side, we got to spend more time with Nana and Pap playing card games and hanging out- but it did put a damper in some of our plans and work schedules!!!

Two plans that it canceled were a praise band rehearsal and our food tasting for the wedding reception! We were supposed to start our CD recording process, so that was a big let down... and we also had to re-schedule our food tasting! But, eventually they both happened anyway!!!!!!!!

We are so excited for our "Sweet Resurrection" album to come out! There are five original songs and they are all so much fun! The CD is planned to come out in the Fall- stay posted!!!

GIANT THANKS TO: Seth for letting us use his house and for his playing, Adam for doing all the sound engineering, and Jay and Tim for playing on the album as well!!!!!!!! These guys rock, and I can't believe that we are actually dropping a CD soon!!!!! 

Easter!

We also got to spend some time with my family on Easter! Of course, being a church musician, Easter is the busiest time of the year for me and I am always booked to work- so my parents and sister/brother-in-law came down to Pittsburgh and got to see Hope Lutheran Church in person for the first time. :)

I wrote an original Children's Choir Program for the kiddos at Hope Lutheran Church and it was a blast!!! I also wrote my adult choir an original Easter Cantata. It is definitely my best yet. Check it out- and if you're still reading this blog- message me (yellow rubber ducky)

https://youtu.be/4ROXD3dMyJw

We also got all suited up for our Trunk or T'Easter and passed out candy to the kiddos (the week before Easter) :) It was also a lot of fun!!! :) 

And of course, you are never too old for an Easter Basket!!! :) 

All I wanted was some chocolate filled with coconut- and my wish was granted!!! HURRAH!

It was a great Easter celebration at the church, and with my family!!! It was so nice to see the sanctuary full again, and to hear our Joyful Noise Band and all the singing! All of it was amazing. I hope you all had a wonderful Easter as well! :) 

So, what else have we been up to?!? 

All the other stuff!

Well, I shouldn't say ALL the other stuff... so many other fun experiences happened, but here is a small snap shot of some of them... starting with our trip to Washington D.C.!

We went to Washington D.C. for the Cherry Blossoms, and while they weren't FULLY in bloom yet, they still did not disappoint!

We got 40,000 steps in that day! SO MANY

We saw these beautiful flowers and decided to take a picture with her ring! :) 

This was our first time seeing the blossoms together! Also my first time eating Shawarma! We enjoyed all of the monuments, great conversation, a nice French/Japanese restaurant, and musical tracks on the way there and back hahaha! 

We did this trip in one day- which is what I hope you can take from this experience. Don't be afraid to travel and experience... even if you only have ONE DAY! I also understand the limitations... like, gas prices, kids, work... I do understand that---but, if ever you have the right conditions... take the chance!!! 

Lauren and I also had some opportunities to do some date days and date nights in addition to Washington D.C. :) 

A nice dinner on Mt. Washington... just to treat ourselves :) 

We also took some time to go to Cleveland and see some beautiful art and eat at a fun lunch place with some interesting cheese boards and new wine! Funny story about this... we only got to spend about 40 minutes in the art museum because we forgot to leave a key for our dog sitter... so we had to run home for August HAHAHAHA Oh life...

Also, one of our first dates was to the Pittsburgh Art museum where we saw the most beautiful Monet painting... and now we always try to find others on our art expeditions! 

SUPERBOWL TIME

If you know my father, you know he LOVES the Bengals... so with them in the Superbowl, it was a BIG deal hahaha We went over to my parents place... better known as "The Shrine" on that particular day hahaha and we watched the game and enjoyed some family time! 

August says... Go Bengals!

Love this guy

____________________________________________________________________________________

Have you ever had those moments where you need to take a step outside of life for a couple hours and just be and think and realize... that was this night. Lauren and I love walking through cemeteries because it reminds us of our finality and how small we are in the grand scheme of life and time. This night, I told her it was time for a walk and talk. We talked about our future, and where we wanted to be, and who we wanted to be, and where we were now, and we had some deep and vulnerable talks. THIS is among the many reasons why I love Lauren... she is my partner and best friend... my person to walk through this life with and to be inspired beside... and to understand this lifetime with. We understand each so deeply and I trust her with my life, as does she with me. I hope that YOU have that person in your life, or that if you have lost that connection... that you work to rekindle that depth and compassion for them again. It makes all the difference in the world to have them. 

I can still feel the wind from that night on top of that hill. It reminded us that we were alive. Alive... actually alive in this time, together. Free to craft our lives how we see fit. Free to experience. Free to love. Free to be who we want to be, unapologetically. Free to understand how small we are. Free to change. Free to learn. Free to feel. Free to find peace. Free.

Other Pittsburgh Adventures!

Annual Family Pittsburgh Pirates Game!

My first Hockey Game! THE PENS SCORED 11 GOALS! IT WAS INSANE!

Free concerts at South Park! We saw the River City Brass, and they did not disappoint!!!

Found a new Ethiopian restaurant... SO GOOD! If you haven't tried it yet, you should!!! We first discovered Ethiopian food in Charolette last year, and we got HOOKED. Now, we found a great place close to home! 

So what is next? 

That is a great question... I can tell you that I have a bunch of things planned, but who knows if any of it will actually happen. Life is funny like that... We plan, and expect, and prepare... and then life says SURPRISE and none of it ends up happening like you thought. I am expecting that will continue to happen- but I do have some fun things to look forward to (hopefully!)

1. Praise Band CD coming out in the Fall- all original Christian music
2. I wrote a new Advent Service of Praise for Hope Lutheran WOOT
3. OUR WEDDING!?!?!?!? DUHHHHHHHHH 
4. Some fun vacation plans for the Summer!!!!!!!!! Hopefully getting down south again! 
5. I am in the process of interviewing at schools for a music position (so keep me in your thoughts and/or prayers!
6. Wine Level 2 will be completed this summer!!! WOO

I write these blogs to remember... to remember and have a record of my life to look back on and to understand... For me, it is part of the reflection process, and the joy of reliving these memories and thinking about life. And for you... well, you become a witness to my journey. You help me to know that I am alive. So, thank you. Thank you for being a witness to my journey and reading this. I hope it brought you joy, contemplation, and into a deeper sense of life. Please know that I am always here to talk if you need someone, and that I am here wishing you well and praying for you and your well being.

A last parting quote:

"I didn't come to exist by my own accord, but I will live... preserving my agency in this plentiful life. I will live." 

-Chase