The trip to Alabama was pretty decent, although I probably won’t even do that again anytime soon. I drove pretty much the entire way there in one day (around 12ish hours I think). The wedding was small, but not bad, I wasn’t bored… which seems common at weddings from what I hear? I don’t think I get bored because I’m always trying to take pictures and/or waiting for the next moment I need to capture.

I was pretty happy with the shots I took this time around, I haven’t had a good photo-op in a while. I don’t do well with posed shots; candids are more my thing, and weddings provide ample opportunities for that. Here’re some of my favorites:

This one’s a bit blurry, which makes me sad, cause I really liked the composition with the groom in the background… =(

And… again, the rest are on my flickr.

I also uploaded some pics from Christmas.

I had a lot of thinking time on the drive to Alabama (because Kathy was up all night working on her dress so she was pretty dead on the ride there) and one of the topics my mind fell upon was grace. I think it is somewhat ironic that Christianity means the most to the “bad” people rather than the “good.” For example, if one’s been generally “good” all their life, it’s hard for them to realize the significance of grace. If the worst someone thinks they’ve ever done is told a lie or stolen some candy or cheated on a test or something like that, they don’t realize how awesome and powerful God’s grace is. On the other hand, if someone did something really “bad” (I put these words in quotes because a sin in a sin in God’s eyes and there’s no difference between a “small” sin and a “big” one… they both make us imperfect and unfit/unworthy), so bad that they find it hard to even forgive themselves, grace means so much more to them because they realize just how much they don’t deserve it.

Christianity isn’t for the “do-gooders” – they actually don’t really exist… I would guess that everyone at one point or another has in some form or fashion broken the ten commandments and/or hurt someone, acted selfishly, etc. etc. It’s for the people who are beyond all hope, the people who’ve been so messed up that they don’t feel worth any love or forgiveness. The “trick” is to realize that no matter how “good” of a person you generally think you are, you’re probably pretty wrong. =p Everyone needs grace, everyone’s messed up, no one deserves forgiveness because we all fall short of what God desires. There’s a reason why Jesus went to the outcasts of society, the ones people didn’t think deserved any love/forgiveness… the tax collectors, prostitutes, etc. etc.

I think once you realize that you’ve been given this gift of grace and you don’t deserve it, it makes you want to reach out to others because you can’t keep it to yourself. It means you’ve been given a new chance at life, sorta, and you want to use your new life to serve a purpose that would glorify God, to try to “pay him back” (even though that’s not possible =).

So here’s New Year’s resolution #2: To realize the significance of grace and know that every moment I’m alive is a gift from God I don’t deserve. And then, in turn, not to sit idling and to reach out and show others the love and grace I’ve been given.

I am still alive… and will post something with more substance… later. =)

In the mean time, you can see pics from the wedding over at my flickr.