so i've been thinking a lot recently.....it's funny how things change.
like, you say that you're going to do this one thing and then, half-way through it, you realize that it's not what you wanted. this isn't really going to be a big update, but, looking back at my last entry, it's kinda funny to think how much has changed in my life.
i never thought my life would have turned out this way.
...it's SO much better!
and the best part? it's still not over yet.
even though i have absolutely no idea what's going on or what's going to happen next...it's kinda cool. it's like everyday's a surprise.
i like surprises :)
Monday, December 29, 2008
Friday, November 14, 2008
stones in the desert and aspirations of paris
A lot has happened since my last update. Perhaps the most manifest to you, the reader, being the sudden name change of this blog. Here's the story behind that...
Joshua 3 is an account of Israel crossing the Jordan River into the land the Lord had promised their ancestors long ago. Because the waters of the Jordan were too deep for the peple (and the ark of the covenant) to cross, the Lord cut off the water so that "the waters which were flowing down from above stood and rose up in one heap" (Joshua 3:16). When all of Israel had crossed the Jordan River, the Lord commanded them to set up a memorial of stones so that, "when your children ask their fathers in time to come, saying, 'What are these stones?' then you shall inform your children, saying, 'Israel crossed this Jordan on dry ground.' For the LORD your God dried up the waters of the Jordan before you until you had crossed, just as the LORD your God had done to the Red Sea, which He dried up before us until we had crossed; that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the LORD is mighty, so that you may fear the LORD your God forever" (Joshua 4:21-24).
So basically, I'm borrowing from the Israelites (well, God, technically...) the idea of erecting a memorial of the great things God has done in my life. While my memorial is not necessarily physical or made of stone, my hope is that it will testify to the amazing and wondrous things the Lord has done.
Now, to switch gears a bit, here's what's been going on in my life these past few weeks...
Last Saturday I went to the UNC v. Georgia Tech game with my friend Josh. It was a lot of fun...even though I didn't really know anything about football. Poor Josh tried his hardest to explain things to me. What can I say? I'm pretty much a lost cause. :)
I've been working at the Preschool @ the Creek a ton. I love those kids almost as though they were my own. And that's the cool thing about it...in some small sense, though I am single, they are my kids.
Amy Carmichael, single missionary to India and one of my heroes, often dealt with loneliness from lack of a mate.
As my favorite author Elisabeth Elliot writes, "The devil painted pictures of loneliness that were vivid to her years later. She turned to the Lord in desperation. 'What can I do, Lord? How can I go on to the end?' His answer: 'None of them that trust in Me shall be desolate' (Psalm 4:22). So she did not "handle" loneliness--she handed it to her Lord and trusted His Word. 'There is a secret discipline appointed for every man and woman whose life is lived for others,' she wrote. 'No one escapes that discipline, nor would wish to escape it; nor can any shelter from it. And just as we have seen the bud of a flower close round the treasure within, folding its secret up, petal by petal, so we have seen the soul that is chosen to serve, fold round its secret and hold it fast and cover it from the eys of man. The petals of the soul are silence.' Her commitment to obedience was unconditional. Finding that her singleness was the condition her Master had appointed for her, she received it with both hands, willing to renounce all rights for His sake, and, although she could not have imagined it at the time, for the sake of the children He would give her--a job she could not possibly have done if she had had a family of her own."
I quote all that to say this: although Amy Carmichael was physically childless, she had many (spiritual) children. Not to compare myself to the greatness of Amy Carmichael, but that's sort of how I feel about the preschoolers (and even middle school girls) I teach. I feel as though they are, in some way, my spiritual children--that God has appointed me, of all people, for whatever reason, to teach and instruct them in the ways of the Lord. This has become so apparent to me within the past few weeks. It is quite convicting and I have not taken this responsibility seriously enough.
Speaking of singleness, I love it. I know that it goes against the mainstream--and especially at Southeastern, where young couples are meeting and getting married in a matter of months. Let me be clear: I know that God has appointed it to me to be single for this season of my life. I don't know how long the season shall be, whether it will last for a few months, a few years, or, to be quite frank, for the rest of my life. And really...it doesn't matter to me. Honestly. I could never have the hopes of attaining a godly man's attention for the rest of my life and still be so incredibly happy and peaceful. Because my identity is not in some guy. No matter how cute or sweet or godly he may be. On the other hand, I do hope to become a wife and mother some day. Yet, I desire all the more that God's will be reflected in my life. I want what He wants. Single or married.
And God has blessed me beyond measure with lots of strong, godly men at Southeastern. They have truly become my brothers. They look out for me and protect me. They open doors for me and pray for me (and with me) and hang out with me and joke with me. They are incredible.
And now...big news.
I'm going back to Greece this summer! :D :D :D :D
Pastor Dave has been kind enough to ask me to be his office assistant for International World Changers (thank-you sooooo much!) and the Tichenors invited me to stay with them for a month or so afterward. I almost cried when I read their message. By all means, it was quite random, but they said that I had been on their hearts and they felt that God had given me a heart for Greece (He most definitely has!) and wanted to know if I wanted to come stay with them and get plugged in. Umm...yes! So, I've been in contact with them and we've begun to make preparations concerning that.
I. am. so. excited!!!
I cannot wait to see them again! I am so going to cry! Especially when I see Katie! I miss her a lot!
Speaking of international travels, I went to a missions meeting today at school for my degree. I learned about my international semester, which I will be doing the spring semester of my Junior year, Lord willing. I'll be packing up and moving overseas for a semester and partnering with the International Mission Board in spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ to unreached people groups...most likely in the Southeast Asia area. We will most likely be serving a people group who has never heard of the name of Jesus. Now that is humbling. Even though it's about two years away, I ask for your prayers now. Pray that God would work out all the details--for school to run smoothly so that I can go, for the teams to be assembled, for the hearts of the people that we will serve. God is so good.
And, speaking of school, I'm taking eighteen hours next semester. I'll be taking Old Testament Intro II with Dr. McKenzie (he's awesome!), History of Ideas II with Gravely (also awesome), Western Civ II, English Comp II, Intro to Computers (how exciting! haha), and Biblical Counseling with Dr. Cat! (I'm really excited about that one!)
I'm also looking forward to assistant coaching girls' fifth and sixth grade Upward basketball at Richland Creek again this year! I cannot wait to see how God works through that! He has really given me a passion for reaching both children and middle school girls!
So I'll be busy in the coming months...enough to keep me out of trouble ;). I know a lot of people are concerned about me taking on too much, but, with the Lord's strength, I can do it (Philippians 4:13 "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me"). I'm not so concerned with "burn-out," either because, as Dr. Cat says, burn-out is disobedience to the will of God. When you're burned out you've taken on something God has not called you to do. I have prayed about my classes and my schedule and I believe that this is the direction God wants me to take. However, if I do become "burned out," I'll have to reconsider what I believe to be God's will--perhaps I over-looked something? But, I'm not going to worry about it now. To God be the glory.
I watch the Hills. A lot. LC had her chance to go to Paris. She gave it up to spend the summer with her boyfriend Jason (yeah, he's a jerk). They soon broke up and she said that she regretted not going to Paris, often wondering what could have been. I have resolved that I won't be like her. I'm not going to pass up my chance to go to "Paris." I'm not going to let a boy or anyone else, for that matter, dictate what I do and what I don't do. As Jim Elliot once said, "Live to the hilt every situation that you believe to be the will of God!"
So, I realize that this has been a beastly post. And, if you're still reading...thanks. I'm out...to dream of Paris.
Joshua 3 is an account of Israel crossing the Jordan River into the land the Lord had promised their ancestors long ago. Because the waters of the Jordan were too deep for the peple (and the ark of the covenant) to cross, the Lord cut off the water so that "the waters which were flowing down from above stood and rose up in one heap" (Joshua 3:16). When all of Israel had crossed the Jordan River, the Lord commanded them to set up a memorial of stones so that, "when your children ask their fathers in time to come, saying, 'What are these stones?' then you shall inform your children, saying, 'Israel crossed this Jordan on dry ground.' For the LORD your God dried up the waters of the Jordan before you until you had crossed, just as the LORD your God had done to the Red Sea, which He dried up before us until we had crossed; that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the LORD is mighty, so that you may fear the LORD your God forever" (Joshua 4:21-24).
So basically, I'm borrowing from the Israelites (well, God, technically...) the idea of erecting a memorial of the great things God has done in my life. While my memorial is not necessarily physical or made of stone, my hope is that it will testify to the amazing and wondrous things the Lord has done.
Now, to switch gears a bit, here's what's been going on in my life these past few weeks...
Last Saturday I went to the UNC v. Georgia Tech game with my friend Josh. It was a lot of fun...even though I didn't really know anything about football. Poor Josh tried his hardest to explain things to me. What can I say? I'm pretty much a lost cause. :)
I've been working at the Preschool @ the Creek a ton. I love those kids almost as though they were my own. And that's the cool thing about it...in some small sense, though I am single, they are my kids.
Amy Carmichael, single missionary to India and one of my heroes, often dealt with loneliness from lack of a mate.
As my favorite author Elisabeth Elliot writes, "The devil painted pictures of loneliness that were vivid to her years later. She turned to the Lord in desperation. 'What can I do, Lord? How can I go on to the end?' His answer: 'None of them that trust in Me shall be desolate' (Psalm 4:22). So she did not "handle" loneliness--she handed it to her Lord and trusted His Word. 'There is a secret discipline appointed for every man and woman whose life is lived for others,' she wrote. 'No one escapes that discipline, nor would wish to escape it; nor can any shelter from it. And just as we have seen the bud of a flower close round the treasure within, folding its secret up, petal by petal, so we have seen the soul that is chosen to serve, fold round its secret and hold it fast and cover it from the eys of man. The petals of the soul are silence.' Her commitment to obedience was unconditional. Finding that her singleness was the condition her Master had appointed for her, she received it with both hands, willing to renounce all rights for His sake, and, although she could not have imagined it at the time, for the sake of the children He would give her--a job she could not possibly have done if she had had a family of her own."
I quote all that to say this: although Amy Carmichael was physically childless, she had many (spiritual) children. Not to compare myself to the greatness of Amy Carmichael, but that's sort of how I feel about the preschoolers (and even middle school girls) I teach. I feel as though they are, in some way, my spiritual children--that God has appointed me, of all people, for whatever reason, to teach and instruct them in the ways of the Lord. This has become so apparent to me within the past few weeks. It is quite convicting and I have not taken this responsibility seriously enough.
Speaking of singleness, I love it. I know that it goes against the mainstream--and especially at Southeastern, where young couples are meeting and getting married in a matter of months. Let me be clear: I know that God has appointed it to me to be single for this season of my life. I don't know how long the season shall be, whether it will last for a few months, a few years, or, to be quite frank, for the rest of my life. And really...it doesn't matter to me. Honestly. I could never have the hopes of attaining a godly man's attention for the rest of my life and still be so incredibly happy and peaceful. Because my identity is not in some guy. No matter how cute or sweet or godly he may be. On the other hand, I do hope to become a wife and mother some day. Yet, I desire all the more that God's will be reflected in my life. I want what He wants. Single or married.
And God has blessed me beyond measure with lots of strong, godly men at Southeastern. They have truly become my brothers. They look out for me and protect me. They open doors for me and pray for me (and with me) and hang out with me and joke with me. They are incredible.
And now...big news.
I'm going back to Greece this summer! :D :D :D :D
Pastor Dave has been kind enough to ask me to be his office assistant for International World Changers (thank-you sooooo much!) and the Tichenors invited me to stay with them for a month or so afterward. I almost cried when I read their message. By all means, it was quite random, but they said that I had been on their hearts and they felt that God had given me a heart for Greece (He most definitely has!) and wanted to know if I wanted to come stay with them and get plugged in. Umm...yes! So, I've been in contact with them and we've begun to make preparations concerning that.
I. am. so. excited!!!
I cannot wait to see them again! I am so going to cry! Especially when I see Katie! I miss her a lot!
Speaking of international travels, I went to a missions meeting today at school for my degree. I learned about my international semester, which I will be doing the spring semester of my Junior year, Lord willing. I'll be packing up and moving overseas for a semester and partnering with the International Mission Board in spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ to unreached people groups...most likely in the Southeast Asia area. We will most likely be serving a people group who has never heard of the name of Jesus. Now that is humbling. Even though it's about two years away, I ask for your prayers now. Pray that God would work out all the details--for school to run smoothly so that I can go, for the teams to be assembled, for the hearts of the people that we will serve. God is so good.
And, speaking of school, I'm taking eighteen hours next semester. I'll be taking Old Testament Intro II with Dr. McKenzie (he's awesome!), History of Ideas II with Gravely (also awesome), Western Civ II, English Comp II, Intro to Computers (how exciting! haha), and Biblical Counseling with Dr. Cat! (I'm really excited about that one!)
I'm also looking forward to assistant coaching girls' fifth and sixth grade Upward basketball at Richland Creek again this year! I cannot wait to see how God works through that! He has really given me a passion for reaching both children and middle school girls!
So I'll be busy in the coming months...enough to keep me out of trouble ;). I know a lot of people are concerned about me taking on too much, but, with the Lord's strength, I can do it (Philippians 4:13 "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me"). I'm not so concerned with "burn-out," either because, as Dr. Cat says, burn-out is disobedience to the will of God. When you're burned out you've taken on something God has not called you to do. I have prayed about my classes and my schedule and I believe that this is the direction God wants me to take. However, if I do become "burned out," I'll have to reconsider what I believe to be God's will--perhaps I over-looked something? But, I'm not going to worry about it now. To God be the glory.
I watch the Hills. A lot. LC had her chance to go to Paris. She gave it up to spend the summer with her boyfriend Jason (yeah, he's a jerk). They soon broke up and she said that she regretted not going to Paris, often wondering what could have been. I have resolved that I won't be like her. I'm not going to pass up my chance to go to "Paris." I'm not going to let a boy or anyone else, for that matter, dictate what I do and what I don't do. As Jim Elliot once said, "Live to the hilt every situation that you believe to be the will of God!"
So, I realize that this has been a beastly post. And, if you're still reading...thanks. I'm out...to dream of Paris.
Saturday, November 1, 2008
"i mean, if you hear a creepy noise coming from a dark room just ignore it!"
so normally, i'm not a big halloween person. i'm not really sure why. i guess dressing up and purposely trying to scare myself never really appealed to me growing up. but this halloween was incredible!!
i went with my favorite twins sam & savannah (they are so cute! and i love them very much!) over to their friend brad's apartment to watch scary movies and eat junk food (which was absolutely amazing!).
the first movie we watched was "stay alive," which wasn't too bad...but it did freak me out enough to make me nervous about going upstairs by myself to go to the bathroom (not gonna lie haha). by the time we were like a third of the way through our second movie "the covenant," jackie & olivia dropped in! (yeah, i love them too!)
brad, savannah & chris peaced out for a while to drop in on another party (the rest of us were too lazy to get off of the couch) so sam, jackie, olivia & i scrunched on the couch to watch "one missed call." so creepy moment: we were all joking about one of our cell phones suddenly ringing and scaring us (because the movie is about dead people calling your cell phone and leaving you a voicemail, which is you talking as you die) and like halfway through the movie dylan called and we all SCREAMED. it creeped us out so bad. haha i guess it was "perfect" timing.
when the rest of the crew came back (they scared us by opening the door haha), we finished out the night by watching "the amityville horror" (so creepy!), "sleepy hallow,"...and, finally, "monster's inc." by the time we left, it was 5:30 am...way past curfew...whoops!
i crashed in sam & vannah's room...mostly because i was creeped out and knew they would protect me in the event a psycho murderer tried to kill me...or i received one missed call...yeah...not too pleasant...haha.
we slept until like 12 this morning...and i'm still very tired! good thing daylight savings is upon us! woohoo for an extra hour of precious sleep! i'm out!
i went with my favorite twins sam & savannah (they are so cute! and i love them very much!) over to their friend brad's apartment to watch scary movies and eat junk food (which was absolutely amazing!).
the first movie we watched was "stay alive," which wasn't too bad...but it did freak me out enough to make me nervous about going upstairs by myself to go to the bathroom (not gonna lie haha). by the time we were like a third of the way through our second movie "the covenant," jackie & olivia dropped in! (yeah, i love them too!)
brad, savannah & chris peaced out for a while to drop in on another party (the rest of us were too lazy to get off of the couch) so sam, jackie, olivia & i scrunched on the couch to watch "one missed call." so creepy moment: we were all joking about one of our cell phones suddenly ringing and scaring us (because the movie is about dead people calling your cell phone and leaving you a voicemail, which is you talking as you die) and like halfway through the movie dylan called and we all SCREAMED. it creeped us out so bad. haha i guess it was "perfect" timing.
when the rest of the crew came back (they scared us by opening the door haha), we finished out the night by watching "the amityville horror" (so creepy!), "sleepy hallow,"...and, finally, "monster's inc." by the time we left, it was 5:30 am...way past curfew...whoops!
i crashed in sam & vannah's room...mostly because i was creeped out and knew they would protect me in the event a psycho murderer tried to kill me...or i received one missed call...yeah...not too pleasant...haha.
we slept until like 12 this morning...and i'm still very tired! good thing daylight savings is upon us! woohoo for an extra hour of precious sleep! i'm out!
Thursday, October 23, 2008
oh the places you'll go!
two nights ago i couldn't sleep. i guess i just had a lot on my mind.
so at 2 am, i read this poem from dr. seuss.
i wanted to post it because it's kind of matching up with my life now and it encouraged me in some small way.
even though i'm still in wake forest, God has taken me so many "places" these past few weeks, teaching me some pretty difficult, yet incredibly wonderful lessons.
but right now i think i'm in "the waiting place," waiting for...well, to be honest, i don't know exactly what i'm waiting for. but the point is that i am waiting. i'm waiting on God to show me my "next move" (well, not so much detail to me exactly what that next move is...but more like to tell me where to step when i need to; not like i need to know beforehand...if that makes any sense haha besides...this not knowing what's going to happen before it happens...it's kinda cool. it's like a surprise! haha).
i have no clue what God's doing or why certain things have turned out the way they have, but, the cool thing is...i don't have to understand. i don't need to understand. i probably don't want to understand haha. all i have to do is just simply trust Him. He knows what He's doing. but in the meantime, God is teaching me so much and, although it's hard sometimes, He's growing me in ways i never could have dreamed of.
i may be in "the waiting place" now, but i don't think i've ever been so content in my entire life. i'm waiting on God, but i'm absolutely loving every minute of it. He has truly captured my heart all over again.
anyway, here's the poem. i hope it encourages you like it did me.
later days.
Congratulations!
Today is your day. You’re off to Great Places! You’re off and away!
You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose.
You’re on your own. And you know what you know. And YOU are the guy who’ll decide where to go.
You’ll look up and down streets. Look ‘em over with care. About some you will say, “I don’t choose to go there.”
With your head full of brains and your shoes full of feet, you’re too smart to go down any not-so-good street.
And you may not find any you’ll want to go down. In that case, of course, you’ll head straight out of town.
It’s opener there in the wide open air.
Out there things can happen and frequently do to people as brainy and footsy as you.
And when things start to happen, don’t worry. Don’t stew. Just go right along. You’ll start happening too.
OH! THE PLACES YOU’LL GO!
You’ll be on your way up! You’ll be seeing great sights!
You’ll join the high fliers who soar to high heights.
You won’t lag behind, because you’ll have the speed.
You’ll pass the whole gang and you’ll soon take the lead.
Wherever you fly, you’ll be the best of the best.
Wherever you go, you will top all the rest.
Except when you don’t...
Because, sometimes, you won’t.
I’m sorry to say so but, sadly, it’s true and hang-ups can happen to you.
You can get all hung upin a prickle-ly perch.
And your gang will fly on. You’ll be left in a Lurch. You’ll come down from the Lurch with an unpleasant bump.
And the chances are, then,that you’ll be in a Slump.
And when you’re in a Slump, you’re not in for much fun.
Un-slumping yourself is not easily done.
You will come to a place where the streets are not marked.
Some windows are lighted. But mostly they’re darked.
A place you could sprain both your elbow and chin!
Do you dare to stay out? Do you dare to go in?
How much can you lose? How much can you win?
And IF you go in, should you turn left or right…or right-and-three-quarters?
Or, maybe, not quite? Or go around back and sneak in from behind?
Simple it’s not, I’m afraid you will find, for a mind-maker-upper to make up his mind.
You can get so confused that you’ll start to race down long wiggled roads at a break-necking pace and grind on for miles across weirdish wild space, headed, I fear, toward a most useless place.
The Waiting Place……for people just waiting.
Waiting for a train to go or a bus to come, or a plane to go or the mail to come, or the rain to go or the phone to ring, or the snow to snow or waiting around for a Yes or a No or waiting for their hair to grow.
Everyone is just waiting. Waiting for the fish to bite or waiting for wind to fly a kite or waiting around for Friday night or waiting, perhaps, for their Uncle Jake or a pot to boil, or a Better Break or a sting of pearls, or a pair of pants or a wig with curls, or Another Chance.
Everyone is just waiting.....
NO!
That’s not for you! Somehow you’ll escape all that waiting and staying.
You’ll find the bright places where Boom Bands are playing.
With banner flip-flapping, once more you’ll ride high!
Ready for anything under the sky. Ready because you’re that kind of a guy!
Oh, the places you’ll go! There is fun to be done!
There are points to be scored. There are games to be won.
And the magical things you can do with that ball will make you the winning-est winner of all.
Fame!
You’ll be famous as famous can be, with the whole wide world watching you win on TV.
...Except when they don’t.
Because, sometimes, they won’t.
I’m afraid that some times you’ll play lonely games too.
Games you can’t win ’cause you’ll play against you.
All Alone!
Whether you like it or not, alone will be something you’ll be quite a lot.
And when you’re alone, there’s a very good chance you’ll meet things that scare you right out of your pants.
There are some, down the road between hither and yon, that can scare you so much you won’t want to go on.
But on you will go though the weather be foul, on you will go though your enemies prowl.
On you will gothough the Hakken-Kraks howl, onward up many a frightening creek, though your arms may get sore and your sneakers may leak.
On and on you will hike and I know you’ll hike far and face up to your problems whatever they are.
You’ll get mixed up, of course,as you already know.
You’ll get mixed up with many strange birds as you go.
So be sure when you step, step with care and great tact and remember that Life’s a Great Balancing Act.
Just never forget to be dexterous and deft.
And never mix up your right foot with your left.
And will you succeed? Yes! You will, indeed! (98 and 3/4 percent guaranteed.)
KID, YOU’LL MOVE MOUNTAINS! So…be your name Buxbaum or Bixby or Brayor Mordecai Ali Van Allen O’Shea, you’re off to Great Places!
Today is your day!
Your mountain is waiting.
So…get on your way!
Dr. Seuss
so at 2 am, i read this poem from dr. seuss.
i wanted to post it because it's kind of matching up with my life now and it encouraged me in some small way.
even though i'm still in wake forest, God has taken me so many "places" these past few weeks, teaching me some pretty difficult, yet incredibly wonderful lessons.
but right now i think i'm in "the waiting place," waiting for...well, to be honest, i don't know exactly what i'm waiting for. but the point is that i am waiting. i'm waiting on God to show me my "next move" (well, not so much detail to me exactly what that next move is...but more like to tell me where to step when i need to; not like i need to know beforehand...if that makes any sense haha besides...this not knowing what's going to happen before it happens...it's kinda cool. it's like a surprise! haha).
i have no clue what God's doing or why certain things have turned out the way they have, but, the cool thing is...i don't have to understand. i don't need to understand. i probably don't want to understand haha. all i have to do is just simply trust Him. He knows what He's doing. but in the meantime, God is teaching me so much and, although it's hard sometimes, He's growing me in ways i never could have dreamed of.
i may be in "the waiting place" now, but i don't think i've ever been so content in my entire life. i'm waiting on God, but i'm absolutely loving every minute of it. He has truly captured my heart all over again.
anyway, here's the poem. i hope it encourages you like it did me.
later days.
Congratulations!
Today is your day. You’re off to Great Places! You’re off and away!
You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose.
You’re on your own. And you know what you know. And YOU are the guy who’ll decide where to go.
You’ll look up and down streets. Look ‘em over with care. About some you will say, “I don’t choose to go there.”
With your head full of brains and your shoes full of feet, you’re too smart to go down any not-so-good street.
And you may not find any you’ll want to go down. In that case, of course, you’ll head straight out of town.
It’s opener there in the wide open air.
Out there things can happen and frequently do to people as brainy and footsy as you.
And when things start to happen, don’t worry. Don’t stew. Just go right along. You’ll start happening too.
OH! THE PLACES YOU’LL GO!
You’ll be on your way up! You’ll be seeing great sights!
You’ll join the high fliers who soar to high heights.
You won’t lag behind, because you’ll have the speed.
You’ll pass the whole gang and you’ll soon take the lead.
Wherever you fly, you’ll be the best of the best.
Wherever you go, you will top all the rest.
Except when you don’t...
Because, sometimes, you won’t.
I’m sorry to say so but, sadly, it’s true and hang-ups can happen to you.
You can get all hung upin a prickle-ly perch.
And your gang will fly on. You’ll be left in a Lurch. You’ll come down from the Lurch with an unpleasant bump.
And the chances are, then,that you’ll be in a Slump.
And when you’re in a Slump, you’re not in for much fun.
Un-slumping yourself is not easily done.
You will come to a place where the streets are not marked.
Some windows are lighted. But mostly they’re darked.
A place you could sprain both your elbow and chin!
Do you dare to stay out? Do you dare to go in?
How much can you lose? How much can you win?
And IF you go in, should you turn left or right…or right-and-three-quarters?
Or, maybe, not quite? Or go around back and sneak in from behind?
Simple it’s not, I’m afraid you will find, for a mind-maker-upper to make up his mind.
You can get so confused that you’ll start to race down long wiggled roads at a break-necking pace and grind on for miles across weirdish wild space, headed, I fear, toward a most useless place.
The Waiting Place……for people just waiting.
Waiting for a train to go or a bus to come, or a plane to go or the mail to come, or the rain to go or the phone to ring, or the snow to snow or waiting around for a Yes or a No or waiting for their hair to grow.
Everyone is just waiting. Waiting for the fish to bite or waiting for wind to fly a kite or waiting around for Friday night or waiting, perhaps, for their Uncle Jake or a pot to boil, or a Better Break or a sting of pearls, or a pair of pants or a wig with curls, or Another Chance.
Everyone is just waiting.....
NO!
That’s not for you! Somehow you’ll escape all that waiting and staying.
You’ll find the bright places where Boom Bands are playing.
With banner flip-flapping, once more you’ll ride high!
Ready for anything under the sky. Ready because you’re that kind of a guy!
Oh, the places you’ll go! There is fun to be done!
There are points to be scored. There are games to be won.
And the magical things you can do with that ball will make you the winning-est winner of all.
Fame!
You’ll be famous as famous can be, with the whole wide world watching you win on TV.
...Except when they don’t.
Because, sometimes, they won’t.
I’m afraid that some times you’ll play lonely games too.
Games you can’t win ’cause you’ll play against you.
All Alone!
Whether you like it or not, alone will be something you’ll be quite a lot.
And when you’re alone, there’s a very good chance you’ll meet things that scare you right out of your pants.
There are some, down the road between hither and yon, that can scare you so much you won’t want to go on.
But on you will go though the weather be foul, on you will go though your enemies prowl.
On you will gothough the Hakken-Kraks howl, onward up many a frightening creek, though your arms may get sore and your sneakers may leak.
On and on you will hike and I know you’ll hike far and face up to your problems whatever they are.
You’ll get mixed up, of course,as you already know.
You’ll get mixed up with many strange birds as you go.
So be sure when you step, step with care and great tact and remember that Life’s a Great Balancing Act.
Just never forget to be dexterous and deft.
And never mix up your right foot with your left.
And will you succeed? Yes! You will, indeed! (98 and 3/4 percent guaranteed.)
KID, YOU’LL MOVE MOUNTAINS! So…be your name Buxbaum or Bixby or Brayor Mordecai Ali Van Allen O’Shea, you’re off to Great Places!
Today is your day!
Your mountain is waiting.
So…get on your way!
Dr. Seuss
Saturday, October 18, 2008
weekend!
finally! it's been a long week! so, i just wanted to update super fast because i have a coaches' meeting for upward b-ball at richland creek in a few minutes...
God's taught me a lot this week...a lot about life, people, relationships (not like romantic relationships or anything haha yeah right), PATIENCE, etc. anyway, it's all good :) although it's been a hard week, i'm glad that it happened, if nothing else just to teach me. i have a LOT to learn.
anyway...i gotta jet. i'll probably update later today...or maybe not. :) later!
God's taught me a lot this week...a lot about life, people, relationships (not like romantic relationships or anything haha yeah right), PATIENCE, etc. anyway, it's all good :) although it's been a hard week, i'm glad that it happened, if nothing else just to teach me. i have a LOT to learn.
anyway...i gotta jet. i'll probably update later today...or maybe not. :) later!
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
pants today?
my friend billy is awesome. he always comments on the days that i don't wear skirts, which would be one other time this semester. he says he likes when i wear skirts; it shows my character. well...today, i skipped my usual skirt and put on jeans. i didn't feel like dressing up today.
"pants today?"
"yep. it's one of those days..."
i did not want to get up this morning.
correction: when i got up this morning, i did not want to be here.
confession: when i got up this morning, i seriously considered skipping class and flying to cali.
...but my conscience would eat me up...so i put on jeans and went to class :)
old testament actually did me a lot of good.
josh reid is amazing. like really. he makes me laugh all the time. like, if i had to choose an older brother, i'd most likely choose him. he rocks.
meanwhile..in pastor dave's office, we talked as usual. about life. college. arctic puffins.
he gave me some awesome advice and i feel like a million times better.
best youth pastor ever.
then we went digging in the children's resource room for things for the harvest fest!
...and i went out shopping for rubber ducks, soccer goals, darts, etc. for hours
btw....rubber ducks are hard to come by :)
anyway, i'm chillin' at the dorm watching the hills, getting ready to go to d group then church to teach some cool middle school girls and worship at two four. lata
ps: HAPPY BIRTHDAY JORDAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
"pants today?"
"yep. it's one of those days..."
i did not want to get up this morning.
correction: when i got up this morning, i did not want to be here.
confession: when i got up this morning, i seriously considered skipping class and flying to cali.
...but my conscience would eat me up...so i put on jeans and went to class :)
old testament actually did me a lot of good.
josh reid is amazing. like really. he makes me laugh all the time. like, if i had to choose an older brother, i'd most likely choose him. he rocks.
meanwhile..in pastor dave's office, we talked as usual. about life. college. arctic puffins.
he gave me some awesome advice and i feel like a million times better.
best youth pastor ever.
then we went digging in the children's resource room for things for the harvest fest!
...and i went out shopping for rubber ducks, soccer goals, darts, etc. for hours
btw....rubber ducks are hard to come by :)
anyway, i'm chillin' at the dorm watching the hills, getting ready to go to d group then church to teach some cool middle school girls and worship at two four. lata
ps: HAPPY BIRTHDAY JORDAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Monday, October 6, 2008
D NOW 2008
after approximately 11 hours of sleep, richland creek's 524 student ministry's disciple now 2008 is officially in the past. this year's theme was "No. 119" - a study from Psalm 119 on the importance of God's Word and how to hear, read, study, memorize, and apply it. in case you were wondering, d now is just a weekend "retreat" for students to break up into groups of about 7-8 and stay in "host homes" of various volunteers from the church.
in all honesty, i wasn't exactly looking forward to this weekend. so much has been going on with school and my work with the student ministry and teaching at the pre-school that i was hesitant about what was to take place. last year's d now was incredible. dr. reid (pretty much my second dad) spoke and the focus was on evangelism. honestly, i thought nothing could top that. and with another unspoken element, i was concerned that my focus would be off of the Lord and my girls this weekend. but fortunately, God granted me the strength to "just keep swimming." this weekend was the best weekend i've had in a long time!
here's what happened:
Friday
in all honesty, i wasn't exactly looking forward to this weekend. so much has been going on with school and my work with the student ministry and teaching at the pre-school that i was hesitant about what was to take place. last year's d now was incredible. dr. reid (pretty much my second dad) spoke and the focus was on evangelism. honestly, i thought nothing could top that. and with another unspoken element, i was concerned that my focus would be off of the Lord and my girls this weekend. but fortunately, God granted me the strength to "just keep swimming." this weekend was the best weekend i've had in a long time!
here's what happened:
Friday
- in the morning, i filled in for the assistant teacher of the two year old class at the preschool at the creek (the classroom i most likely would have been working in if i had continued with the full-time job process). i love those kids. i've grown quite fond of the infants (peyton, julia, and troy) that i "taught" this past month, but the "twos," as they are called, have a special place in my heart as well. it took them a while to warm up to me...but one beautiful girl, abby, found it difficult to leave my lap after we played on the playground. she had fallen from her chair and hit her head on the table (ouch!). i held her for about 10 minutes while she cried...into my shirt. :) jake was another one that had a hard time leaving my lap; he wanted his mommy real bad! kephas was captivated by the story of david's defeat of goliath and wanted me to read him the story (even though he couldn't really understand the big words) over and over again. before i knew it, it was time to leave :( honestly, i think i regret not following through with becoming a full-time assistant teacher...but that's okay; lesson learned :)
- fast-forward to the actual D Now: after dinner in the fellowship hall, we had our first general session. worship was awesome! josh and tasha via, the brother and sister-in-law of jacob (the communications guy at the creek that looks like chad lister's twin) and jared (my college & career sunday school teacher) led worship and pastor dave preached about desiring the Word of God and how it is vital for the spiritual condition of a follower of Christ.
- after the session, we packed up and drove to our host homes. my group stayed at the kostenberger's house! dr. kostenberger is a prof. at my school and lauren (his daughter) and i have been friends for a while. pause. my girls were: becca (her dad, gary, is the upward basketball director and he went to greece with me this past april), olivia (she was the really tall girl on my upward team last year), avery (also on my upward team), micayla (upward again), stephanie (elizabeth taber's younger sister), miranda (steph's friend), and dre (she's in my small group on wendesday night). i cannot tell you enough about these girls; they are awesome!
- after consuming large quantities of junk food (bad idea #1), we started our first small group session that corresponded with pastor dave's message that night. it was sweet!
- 12 am: elizabeth and i tucked the girls in and told them good night. 2 am: they finally go to sleep :)
Saturday
- i awake at 5 am. it is at this point that i get a small glimpse of what being a mom is going to be like. i wake up the girls to take showers and straighten their hair and to do middle school girl thingsl
- 7:15 am - after my quiet time....i fall back asleep.
- 8:30 am - breakfast and small group session #2.
- 10:30 am - general session #2 about hearing, reading, studying, and memorizing God's Word.
- 12 pm - lunch. i accidently "cut" royce's throat (i unintentionally gave him a paper cut on his neck. don't worry...he's fine. :) haha). he makes me eat grapes dipped in nacho cheese for retribution. it was disguisting haha.
- 1 pm - we drive to jellybeans (the skating rink in wakefield) for afternoon recreation. three of the girls (micayla, becca, and olivia) ride with me. they loved having the sunroof and windows down and turning the music up really loud and singing along haha i love them! i decide not to skate because one of the girls in my small group on wednesday night can't...so i kept her company. this one boy fell right in front of us like three times. it was weird. haha
- 2:30 pm - in need of a break, vicky and i go to wal-mart to get candy for her girls (this was also a bad idea). she was a great encouragement to me as i was quickly fading at this point haha.
- 4 pm - back at the kostenberger's, we sprawl out on the floor in lauren and tahlia's room, unable to do anything but play an intense game of catchphrase.
- 5:30 pm - family dinner with the kostenbergers. we go around the table and introduce ourselves and tell the group our favorite band. dr. kostenberger likes barlowgirl. haha
- 7 pm - last general session on obedience to the Word of God. it was awesome. no, AWESOME! i love that pastor dave is very missions minded. afterall, that's pretty much the point of Christianity...to accept Christ's death on the cross as payment for your sins and to glorify Him with your life and to tell others about Him.
- 9 pm - after snacks (another bad idea), we start our final small group, which was somewhat painful to get through as the girls were really, really tired.
- 12 am - micayla is sick and must go home.
- 12:01 am - sleep!
Sunday
- chocolate again for breakfast (they had other stuff, too haha).
- sunday school & church.
on a side note, dylan became a creeker today! yay!
after church, i came home and slept for about three hours before going back to church to go to overflow for testimonies from d now. i was so totally sad about not being able to go to my biblical counseling class, but overflow was awesome too! then, vicky and i grabbed some starbucks and walked around campus, talking and laughing. i love that girl. a lot!
right now, i'm sitting on my bed, typing this...and, not gonna lie, i'm exhausted (and my hands hurt from typing this)...so, i'm going to bed.
out.
Thursday, October 2, 2008
battles and birthdays.
so. i'm now entering my third month of college. it's been quite a ride. after many cycles of struggle and peace, i finally feel like i'm fitting in here. but i know that there are struggles that lie ahead of me.
i've had a lot running through my mind the past few weeks. i'm kind of tired so i'll give you all the reader's digest version...
1) school: i survived midterm week. i got a 91 on my western civ midterm (i'm not sure if i mentioned that already) and a 94 on my HOI (history of ideas) midterm. we don't have midterms in natural science or english (which is a relief) and my old testament midterm will be two weeks after fall break (which started, for me, at 6:20 pm). natural science is a struggle, as usual...but i'm hoping to play catch up over break. my friend josh helps to get me through class every week. we're actually planning a huge joint birthday party on december 4th (his 19th birthday is on the 3rd and mine's on the 5th)! that'll be pretty awesome!
2) church: dave's had me working on a lot of stuff pertaining to student ministry growth and assimilation. basically, i'm in charge of keeping tabs on every student that comes to richland creek and making sure that they get plugged in. i'm also checking up on all the parents to make sure they're attending sunday school. it's quite a task...i'm using two computers at the same time to work on it all! it's awesome, though; i love it! this week, dave and i were organizing some stuff for D NOW (disciple now) this weekend. it's a mini retreat for the students at home. we spent hours talking about music and college and even boys (hahaha). i'm so thankful that God led him to the creek!
3) boys: (speaking of which) i'm so sick of most of them. being a girl at a southern baptist college/seminary, i'm trying to adjust to being the minority. it's just so hard being surrounded by so much testosterone all the time! honestly...i'm done with it. for now.
4) friends: my favorite twins' birthday was this past tuesday! sam and savannah turned 19 and we had a surprise party for them! i love those girls so much; they're so sweet! umm...let's see...my friend dylan pulled an all nighter two nights ago! i admire his bravery haha. he's pretty cool. amie (my roomie) is working a lot...so i don't really see her too much. i haven't really had much of a social life this week...lots of stuff going on.
tomorrow is the start of a busy weekend. i'm substitute teaching for the preschool at richland creek from 8:30 to 12:30 in the morning. then i'm meeting with elizabeth (who's home from liberty!) at 1 to go over some stuff for d now, and then i'm hanging out with vicky at 3 (she's going to india in october!) and d now starts around 5:30 and lasts until sunday...
i'm loving my biblical counseling class. honestly...i think i feel more called to that than to missions in some ways. i don't know though. dr. catanzaro is awesome. i'm learning a lot.
i really want to fly out to california to see jordan and dee soon! like, i would leave tonight if i had the chance! (hint, hint mom and dad...haha)
well, i guess that's it for now.
later days.
i've had a lot running through my mind the past few weeks. i'm kind of tired so i'll give you all the reader's digest version...
basically, i'm tired of living like i'm trying to impress people. it gets so exhausting. and no matter what, no one is ever happy. basically, i can't do anything right. so. i'm trying this new thing where i actually do what i want to do and try not to care what other people think. it's kind of lonely, but i'll be fine. the way i see it, when you're faced with the truth and it's not where you need to be, you have two options: you can embrace the truth as truth and do something about it or you can ignore the truth and just play games. i've tried the second option. it's not worth it.
so...here's what's been going on:
1) school: i survived midterm week. i got a 91 on my western civ midterm (i'm not sure if i mentioned that already) and a 94 on my HOI (history of ideas) midterm. we don't have midterms in natural science or english (which is a relief) and my old testament midterm will be two weeks after fall break (which started, for me, at 6:20 pm). natural science is a struggle, as usual...but i'm hoping to play catch up over break. my friend josh helps to get me through class every week. we're actually planning a huge joint birthday party on december 4th (his 19th birthday is on the 3rd and mine's on the 5th)! that'll be pretty awesome!
2) church: dave's had me working on a lot of stuff pertaining to student ministry growth and assimilation. basically, i'm in charge of keeping tabs on every student that comes to richland creek and making sure that they get plugged in. i'm also checking up on all the parents to make sure they're attending sunday school. it's quite a task...i'm using two computers at the same time to work on it all! it's awesome, though; i love it! this week, dave and i were organizing some stuff for D NOW (disciple now) this weekend. it's a mini retreat for the students at home. we spent hours talking about music and college and even boys (hahaha). i'm so thankful that God led him to the creek!
3) boys: (speaking of which) i'm so sick of most of them. being a girl at a southern baptist college/seminary, i'm trying to adjust to being the minority. it's just so hard being surrounded by so much testosterone all the time! honestly...i'm done with it. for now.
4) friends: my favorite twins' birthday was this past tuesday! sam and savannah turned 19 and we had a surprise party for them! i love those girls so much; they're so sweet! umm...let's see...my friend dylan pulled an all nighter two nights ago! i admire his bravery haha. he's pretty cool. amie (my roomie) is working a lot...so i don't really see her too much. i haven't really had much of a social life this week...lots of stuff going on.
tomorrow is the start of a busy weekend. i'm substitute teaching for the preschool at richland creek from 8:30 to 12:30 in the morning. then i'm meeting with elizabeth (who's home from liberty!) at 1 to go over some stuff for d now, and then i'm hanging out with vicky at 3 (she's going to india in october!) and d now starts around 5:30 and lasts until sunday...
i'm loving my biblical counseling class. honestly...i think i feel more called to that than to missions in some ways. i don't know though. dr. catanzaro is awesome. i'm learning a lot.
i really want to fly out to california to see jordan and dee soon! like, i would leave tonight if i had the chance! (hint, hint mom and dad...haha)
well, i guess that's it for now.
later days.
Friday, September 26, 2008
update...
so...i've been super busy and haven't had time to write...eek; sorry! here's some random stuff that's happened since i last updated...
went to the park at like 10 pm one night with some southeastern friends as a tropical storm approached. we swung on swings and sang songs while some friends played the guitar. it was pretty awesome. as we were leaving, a few of the guys stopped to share Jesus with two kids who had been there doing drugs. it was pretty sweet!
umm...
me and ryan (the "alabamian" and "first southeastern friend") went to red robin one night after english. it was soo much fun! i love hanging out with him! we went to southeastern's coffee house at night and josh was playing drums with jeff capps, which was awesome! and vicky was there, too :) i love her.
then...
i did a LOT of homework. ALL the time. haha i got a 91 on my western civ midterm. i LOVE western civ...i don't know why haha. everyone else seems to hate it, but it's cool. i miss latin A LOT! which is so weird...but whatever :) umm...i think i did okay on my history of ideas midterm...took that yesterday...so...we'll see :)
oh and did i mention...
I'M GOING TO GREECE!!!!!! :) yes, i'm SO excited! pastor dave told me that i would be his assistant in helping him with world changers in greece next july! i'm soooo stoked! i'll be gone july 4th-16th (i think). he said it'll be LOTS of work...but it'll be so worth it! i miss the tichenors SO much! speaking of which...dave has been working my butt off on student ministry stuff, which is pretty awesome!
umm....
i substituted for some teachers at the preschool at the creek. i LOVE my kids! i had the priviledge of taking care of two beautiful babies (peyton-ryan's old youth pastor's baby and julia) and a pretty cool toddler (troy). i had to take care of all three of them by myself for about fifteen minutes one day and it was choas! it was so hard because i only have two hips and can't exactly hold all three of them at the same time, while feeding one haha :) but i LOVED it! :) they're so cute! :) except...they got me sick haha but i still love 'em! :)
speaking of which...
well right now i'm sick :( i am crusing for another sinus infection :( but...it'll be good :) one of my friends, kyle, invited me to go swing dancing with a group of people from class...but i had to turn it down even though i REALLY wanted to go :( looks like i'm going to be spending a lot of time this weekend doing homework (i have to read a 24 page document for my history of ideas class by tuesday yikes!) and chilling in my pajamas (which is cool with me) :) later days!
went to the park at like 10 pm one night with some southeastern friends as a tropical storm approached. we swung on swings and sang songs while some friends played the guitar. it was pretty awesome. as we were leaving, a few of the guys stopped to share Jesus with two kids who had been there doing drugs. it was pretty sweet!
umm...
me and ryan (the "alabamian" and "first southeastern friend") went to red robin one night after english. it was soo much fun! i love hanging out with him! we went to southeastern's coffee house at night and josh was playing drums with jeff capps, which was awesome! and vicky was there, too :) i love her.
then...
i did a LOT of homework. ALL the time. haha i got a 91 on my western civ midterm. i LOVE western civ...i don't know why haha. everyone else seems to hate it, but it's cool. i miss latin A LOT! which is so weird...but whatever :) umm...i think i did okay on my history of ideas midterm...took that yesterday...so...we'll see :)
oh and did i mention...
I'M GOING TO GREECE!!!!!! :) yes, i'm SO excited! pastor dave told me that i would be his assistant in helping him with world changers in greece next july! i'm soooo stoked! i'll be gone july 4th-16th (i think). he said it'll be LOTS of work...but it'll be so worth it! i miss the tichenors SO much! speaking of which...dave has been working my butt off on student ministry stuff, which is pretty awesome!
umm....
i substituted for some teachers at the preschool at the creek. i LOVE my kids! i had the priviledge of taking care of two beautiful babies (peyton-ryan's old youth pastor's baby and julia) and a pretty cool toddler (troy). i had to take care of all three of them by myself for about fifteen minutes one day and it was choas! it was so hard because i only have two hips and can't exactly hold all three of them at the same time, while feeding one haha :) but i LOVED it! :) they're so cute! :) except...they got me sick haha but i still love 'em! :)
speaking of which...
well right now i'm sick :( i am crusing for another sinus infection :( but...it'll be good :) one of my friends, kyle, invited me to go swing dancing with a group of people from class...but i had to turn it down even though i REALLY wanted to go :( looks like i'm going to be spending a lot of time this weekend doing homework (i have to read a 24 page document for my history of ideas class by tuesday yikes!) and chilling in my pajamas (which is cool with me) :) later days!
Thursday, September 4, 2008
one month anniversary!
i just realized that it's been one month today since i moved out of rolesville and into southeastern! yay! :)
me in my dorm, taking a break from studying (notice the glasses haha)
our "lounging area" and my desk. we finally have curtains! yay! :)
...and we have yellow carnations! :)
my bed. hasn't changed much...except i hung one of jordan's paintings above it!
lounging area...that chair is pretty comfy! :)
amie's side of the room/closets/door; my bed and our curtains! :)
me chillin' in the chair by the windows!
so in honor of this celebrated anniversary, here are some pics of life in the dorm since then!
me in my dorm, taking a break from studying (notice the glasses haha)
our "lounging area" and my desk. we finally have curtains! yay! :)
...and we have yellow carnations! :)
my bed. hasn't changed much...except i hung one of jordan's paintings above it!
lounging area...that chair is pretty comfy! :) amie's side of the room/closets/door; my bed and our curtains! :)me chillin' in the chair by the windows!Monday, August 25, 2008
an update. in a few sentences.
it has been brought to my attention that i haven't quite been on top of my blog postage (thanks la la :) )...so...here's an update of what's been going on in the life of college girl lauren in a few sentences...
i had my first day of class and loved it! (i have so many books i don't know what to do with them all!)
God's growing me exponentially (which is mostly why i haven't been writing; i've been having to process a TON of stuff)...sometimes i wish He would choose someone else to pour His infinite knowledge into :)
there's been some boy drama, but God knows what He's doing so i'm giving up and letting Him do His thing.
i got 100's on my first two quizzes (one in old testament, the other in history of ideas).
i was offered an unpaid internship for the student ministry at my amazing home church, richland creek! i start wednesday! i'm leading discussion for the middle school girls' bible study! i'm sooo excited! especially because i'm working with dave; he's an awesome man of God...but pretty awkward :) haha
got so frustrated with college and life in NC that i seriously considered getting on a plane to california and just going to live with jordan and dee... :)
vince has been putting up with my constant complaints and need for advice.
i had lunch with one of my friends, josh today; he's one of the prof's sons here at southeastern. we have old testament together. he kind of stepped in as my "big brother" and gave me some advice about college and such, which was quite an encouragement.
and right now i have awoken from attempting to go to bed at 8 due to a headache (which i probably owe to all the stress i've been under recently)...but after a few hours of tossing and turning, i had to finally admit defeat and get up to call my mother. so, i'm almost positive that this blog contains so many grammatical errors that i will probably look back upon this tomorrow and cringe. :)
basically, i started off college in great shape, got a bit sidetracked, but now i'm back at it. :)
but, there you have it. an update. in (more than) a few sentences.
i had my first day of class and loved it! (i have so many books i don't know what to do with them all!)
God's growing me exponentially (which is mostly why i haven't been writing; i've been having to process a TON of stuff)...sometimes i wish He would choose someone else to pour His infinite knowledge into :)
there's been some boy drama, but God knows what He's doing so i'm giving up and letting Him do His thing.
i got 100's on my first two quizzes (one in old testament, the other in history of ideas).
i was offered an unpaid internship for the student ministry at my amazing home church, richland creek! i start wednesday! i'm leading discussion for the middle school girls' bible study! i'm sooo excited! especially because i'm working with dave; he's an awesome man of God...but pretty awkward :) haha
got so frustrated with college and life in NC that i seriously considered getting on a plane to california and just going to live with jordan and dee... :)
vince has been putting up with my constant complaints and need for advice.
i had lunch with one of my friends, josh today; he's one of the prof's sons here at southeastern. we have old testament together. he kind of stepped in as my "big brother" and gave me some advice about college and such, which was quite an encouragement.
and right now i have awoken from attempting to go to bed at 8 due to a headache (which i probably owe to all the stress i've been under recently)...but after a few hours of tossing and turning, i had to finally admit defeat and get up to call my mother. so, i'm almost positive that this blog contains so many grammatical errors that i will probably look back upon this tomorrow and cringe. :)
basically, i started off college in great shape, got a bit sidetracked, but now i'm back at it. :)
but, there you have it. an update. in (more than) a few sentences.
Friday, August 8, 2008
a light for my path
"Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path." psalm 119:105
i think Scripture is best "digested" one word at a time. at least, instead of quickly skimming a verse or two here and there, i think it's best to, first and foremost, read the passage in context with the surrounding (and the rest of!) Scripture, and, secondly, to meditate on each word individually, gradually strringing them together (as one would string beads upon a necklace) to create meaning, and eventually viewing the words (and their meanings) as a whole. much like putting together the pieces of a puzzle - you examine the piece at hand individually before you can find what it matches with (and i'm sure that analogy breaks down at some point).
what's interesting about this particular piece of Scripture (psalm 119:105) is the word "light." the hebrew word for "light" here ("Your word is...a LIGHT to my path...") denotes a certain kind of light - a dim light.
imagine this: you are standing in the middle of a black abyss. you feel nothing but the ground beneath your feet. you see nothing but a dimly lit patch of light that shines (dimly :) ) on your feet. there is just enough light to see the ground that you're standing on; not enough light to look behind you to see where you came from and not enough light to see beyond your feet to know where you are going.
we are each on a path. a path to somewhere. we have no choice in the matter. and this path? it's the Light that determines it; it's the Light that carves your path out of the otherwise directionless soild. so, you have three options:
1) you can stand there, in your path. motionless. hopeless. doubtful of the Light. too scared to try. after all, the Light can hurt you. and standing there may feel good for a while - knowing that you can't possibly get hurt by standing still. but, in the end, standing still gets you nowhere and the adventure of your path (all the ups and downs) is no longer a path, but rather an ending in itself.
2) or, you could trust in yourself. but wait. "yourself" has no control over this Light. It has a mind of It's own. undoubtedly, many of us would try to remove ourselves from the situation, claiming, "it's too hard! i can't see where i'm going! this isn't fair! why me, o Light?!," and thus make a failed attempt to back-track in the darkness, back to wherever it was you came. but, how would you know when you got there? it is dark, remember. even if you managed to walk succesfully, without the Light, you'd probably end up walking around in circles without even knowing it. or you could try to rush ahead and just get where you're going! but, you might run into something because you wouldn't be paying attention to the dim light just beyond your toes.
3) finally, you could take a deep breath, putting your trust in and having faith in the Light, and take a step. and then another. slowly, but surely, you'd make your way to wherever it is the Light may take you.
you make the choice who you put your faith in. it's either going to be nothing, you, or the Light. there are no in betweens.
each of our lives are different. we aren't the same and therefore, the Light does not give us identical paths. maybe the Light takes me over rocky path, maybe even mountainous at times, while the Light permits your path to be straight and smooth.
and even the best of friends may have different paths. the Light may take one low and It may zig-zag him about, making him wonder and worry about whether the Light knows what It is doing afterall. his companion, however, may find joy in wakling the path that the Light gives him, which is "smooth sailing," but he is apt to encourage the first that perhaps the Light will eventually even his path out...and, even if It doesn't, the Light knows what It is doing. or maybe even the best of friends seem to have the same paths - they rejoice when the Light has broughten them together over solid ground and lament together (with hope) over rocky soil.
and sometimes the Light allows our paths cross other's paths. maybe briefly or for but just a moment. maybe, just maybe, you'll be lucky enough to find a handful of people to whom the Light has given paths are parallel to yours, headed, side-by-side, in the same direction. you may not be able to see them (it's dark and there is only a dim light illuminating each step you take, remember? :) ), but, somehow, the Light assures you that they're there.
and there will be times where others reach the end of their paths that the Light has given them, and you'll reach yours, too. a few will reach the end of their paths and, by some glorious miracle, will rejoice in their final destination, knowing that the patches of rough terrain were all worth it, and remembering with fondness, the joy of the level terrain. they will thank the Light and enjoy It forever.
most, however, will come to their path's end realizing that they somehow ended up in the darkness, separated from the Light, never to be found again. selfishly thinking they deserved better than the Light could give them, they had rebelled against the light and chose not to follow it, or maybe even stumbled about in the darkness just to spite the Light.
regardless of who we are, we have all, at one point, rebelled against the Light. it's the few of us who eventually figure out we're wrong that joyfully follow the Light and reach the glorious end.
perhaps the ones who rebelled and chose not to follow the Light in the end go around the rocky parts that would have gotten them closer to where the Light wanted them - closer to the glorious end.
but, all's fair. a choice is a limitation, afterall. if you choose one thing, you're choosing to forsake the rest. good or bad, we each chose the outcome of our own path. we can chose to wrecklessly follow ourselves, instead of the Light (afterall, It's only there to help us; It is illuminating and knows the way to the glorious end; we do not), or we can chose to walk in the dimness of the only Light we do have - there is no other Light; there is no other way to salvation from the darkness.
i think Scripture is best "digested" one word at a time. at least, instead of quickly skimming a verse or two here and there, i think it's best to, first and foremost, read the passage in context with the surrounding (and the rest of!) Scripture, and, secondly, to meditate on each word individually, gradually strringing them together (as one would string beads upon a necklace) to create meaning, and eventually viewing the words (and their meanings) as a whole. much like putting together the pieces of a puzzle - you examine the piece at hand individually before you can find what it matches with (and i'm sure that analogy breaks down at some point).
what's interesting about this particular piece of Scripture (psalm 119:105) is the word "light." the hebrew word for "light" here ("Your word is...a LIGHT to my path...") denotes a certain kind of light - a dim light.
imagine this: you are standing in the middle of a black abyss. you feel nothing but the ground beneath your feet. you see nothing but a dimly lit patch of light that shines (dimly :) ) on your feet. there is just enough light to see the ground that you're standing on; not enough light to look behind you to see where you came from and not enough light to see beyond your feet to know where you are going.
we are each on a path. a path to somewhere. we have no choice in the matter. and this path? it's the Light that determines it; it's the Light that carves your path out of the otherwise directionless soild. so, you have three options:
1) you can stand there, in your path. motionless. hopeless. doubtful of the Light. too scared to try. after all, the Light can hurt you. and standing there may feel good for a while - knowing that you can't possibly get hurt by standing still. but, in the end, standing still gets you nowhere and the adventure of your path (all the ups and downs) is no longer a path, but rather an ending in itself.
2) or, you could trust in yourself. but wait. "yourself" has no control over this Light. It has a mind of It's own. undoubtedly, many of us would try to remove ourselves from the situation, claiming, "it's too hard! i can't see where i'm going! this isn't fair! why me, o Light?!," and thus make a failed attempt to back-track in the darkness, back to wherever it was you came. but, how would you know when you got there? it is dark, remember. even if you managed to walk succesfully, without the Light, you'd probably end up walking around in circles without even knowing it. or you could try to rush ahead and just get where you're going! but, you might run into something because you wouldn't be paying attention to the dim light just beyond your toes.
3) finally, you could take a deep breath, putting your trust in and having faith in the Light, and take a step. and then another. slowly, but surely, you'd make your way to wherever it is the Light may take you.
you make the choice who you put your faith in. it's either going to be nothing, you, or the Light. there are no in betweens.
each of our lives are different. we aren't the same and therefore, the Light does not give us identical paths. maybe the Light takes me over rocky path, maybe even mountainous at times, while the Light permits your path to be straight and smooth.
and even the best of friends may have different paths. the Light may take one low and It may zig-zag him about, making him wonder and worry about whether the Light knows what It is doing afterall. his companion, however, may find joy in wakling the path that the Light gives him, which is "smooth sailing," but he is apt to encourage the first that perhaps the Light will eventually even his path out...and, even if It doesn't, the Light knows what It is doing. or maybe even the best of friends seem to have the same paths - they rejoice when the Light has broughten them together over solid ground and lament together (with hope) over rocky soil.
and sometimes the Light allows our paths cross other's paths. maybe briefly or for but just a moment. maybe, just maybe, you'll be lucky enough to find a handful of people to whom the Light has given paths are parallel to yours, headed, side-by-side, in the same direction. you may not be able to see them (it's dark and there is only a dim light illuminating each step you take, remember? :) ), but, somehow, the Light assures you that they're there.
and there will be times where others reach the end of their paths that the Light has given them, and you'll reach yours, too. a few will reach the end of their paths and, by some glorious miracle, will rejoice in their final destination, knowing that the patches of rough terrain were all worth it, and remembering with fondness, the joy of the level terrain. they will thank the Light and enjoy It forever.
most, however, will come to their path's end realizing that they somehow ended up in the darkness, separated from the Light, never to be found again. selfishly thinking they deserved better than the Light could give them, they had rebelled against the light and chose not to follow it, or maybe even stumbled about in the darkness just to spite the Light.
regardless of who we are, we have all, at one point, rebelled against the Light. it's the few of us who eventually figure out we're wrong that joyfully follow the Light and reach the glorious end.
perhaps the ones who rebelled and chose not to follow the Light in the end go around the rocky parts that would have gotten them closer to where the Light wanted them - closer to the glorious end.
but, all's fair. a choice is a limitation, afterall. if you choose one thing, you're choosing to forsake the rest. good or bad, we each chose the outcome of our own path. we can chose to wrecklessly follow ourselves, instead of the Light (afterall, It's only there to help us; It is illuminating and knows the way to the glorious end; we do not), or we can chose to walk in the dimness of the only Light we do have - there is no other Light; there is no other way to salvation from the darkness.
Thursday, August 7, 2008
r-r-r-red robin: yum-m-m :)
this morning encompassed about two hours of shopping, dispersed between the mall and walmart. i got little "dorm warming" gifts for my room mate and my suite mates and misc. stuff for the dorm (such as an ill-fitting spring tension rod for our bathroom).
in the afternoon, i met one of my suite mates, winter. she's very nice and also a missions major! :) she's a college transfer so she's either a first or second semester sophomore, depending on which of her credits counts here at southeastern. my other suite mate, chelsea, has been here...but i don't think she's here currently. winter told me that she was a missions major, too...so it's pretty neat that four missions majors are sharing a bathroom :) winter went home for the night (back to ashboro), just like i suspect chelsea did.
around 2 i went home to eat some lunch and i ended up crashing on jordan's bed for about two hours :) when i woke up, i headed back to the dorm. my RA, cristy, had told me that it had been one of the girls' birthday this past tuesday and that her room mate was throwing a surprise birthday party for her at seven...so i went to that. cristy and i were the only ones to show up besides the lori (the birthday girl) and her room mate, jacqeline (i think that's how you spell it :) ). we all went to red robin and, despite more than a handful of awkward moments, it was fun! :)
so now i'm sitting here in my dorm, waiting for vince to get off of work at his new job at rocco's italian grill...to blog again another day!
in the afternoon, i met one of my suite mates, winter. she's very nice and also a missions major! :) she's a college transfer so she's either a first or second semester sophomore, depending on which of her credits counts here at southeastern. my other suite mate, chelsea, has been here...but i don't think she's here currently. winter told me that she was a missions major, too...so it's pretty neat that four missions majors are sharing a bathroom :) winter went home for the night (back to ashboro), just like i suspect chelsea did.
around 2 i went home to eat some lunch and i ended up crashing on jordan's bed for about two hours :) when i woke up, i headed back to the dorm. my RA, cristy, had told me that it had been one of the girls' birthday this past tuesday and that her room mate was throwing a surprise birthday party for her at seven...so i went to that. cristy and i were the only ones to show up besides the lori (the birthday girl) and her room mate, jacqeline (i think that's how you spell it :) ). we all went to red robin and, despite more than a handful of awkward moments, it was fun! :)
so now i'm sitting here in my dorm, waiting for vince to get off of work at his new job at rocco's italian grill...to blog again another day!
"make new friends but keep the old; one is silver and the other's gold"
when i was in girl scouts (way back in the day... :) ), we would always close out our meetings with interlocked arms, singing the words to the song in the title of this post. upon the conclusion of our song, which was quite pitchy, i might add, as is often the case for pre-teen girls :), we would try to spin out, still interlocking arms to see if we could keep our tight-knit circle in tact. as i'm sitting in my dorm, alone, at 1:40 in the morning, i'm reflecting on the now previous day...
as i was approaching the door to my dorm (i had gone home in the morning to shower and pack clothes :) ), i had a surprise waiting for me, hanging from my doorknob! :) my good friend, elizabeth, who is going to liberty in virginia with mandy next week (she's also the daughter of one of the seminary housing staff that hooked me up with an awesome room!), had baked flower shaped cookies for me! (the cookies literally match the flower on the card!)
not wanting to be alone (and with lolley hall practically a ghost town...save the random noises which i cannot so much as hazard a guess as to their origin), i hung out with vince! we went to bojangles, my new food obsession, and talked about life, love, family, missions, and God. it was awesome! i'm so glad that he moved from new jersey to wake forest of all places just to be my best friend! i don't know what i'd do without him!
after i ate (vince is a yankee and doesn't appreciate the finer things in life, such as the combination of fried chicken, buscuits, sweet tea, and seasoned fries :) ), we played frisbee at southeastern and were later joined up with by my "first southeastern friend," ryan. this was the first time, admittedly, that i met the alabamian ryan...but he was very nice...and talkative! haha then we went to happy hour at sonic and all was right with the world :)
i was reluctant to head back to my dorm because i didn't want to be sad and alone...so within ten minutes of dropping vince off at his house, he selflessly agreed to hang out with me...again. i don't know how he puts up with me, but he does! we went to falls dam and talked. he gave me quite the pep talk; vince is always good for that kind of stuff.
this is a night light that vince made for me from a trash can :) it's supposed to scare away my room mate if she ever acts crabby to me :) haha
my palm tree and my glowing trash can night light :)
luckily, i had plans to go see the sisterhood of the traveling pants 2 with some friends that graduated high school with me. it was a really good movie; the right mix of comedy, romance, and inspiration to put me in an optomistic mood about things :) although, it did make me "homesick" for greece, being that the last scenes of the movie were filmed in santorini! i can't wait to go back with my church this summer! hopefully, i'll be bringing vince with me, too!
i went home for a while to finish some laundry (and mooch off of my parents for dinner!) and catch up on facebook :) and i've been cleaning and organizing my dorm...including decorating amie (my room mate) and i's message board on our door and our mirrors :) i can't wait until she comes on friday!
anyway, i'm going to bed soon...i'm hanging around the dorm tomorrow to see if i can meet some new people! (that is, if they ever decide to move in! :) )
my friend ashley, who's going to wake tech (so i'm glad she'll be sticking around :) ), gave me a flip book of index cards with Bible verses and quotes and stuff and this one really sticks out to me, so i figured i'd share it...
"let no one ever come to you without leaving better and happier. be the living expression of God's kindness: kindness in your face, kindness in your eyes, kindness in your smile."
-mother teresa
ah, words of wisdom. the world could use a lot more kindness.
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
here, there, and everywhere
confession: i am not a cook.
apart from measuring ingredients (which is quite a reach in itself) and pouring them into a bowl or container of some sort, i am completely clueless when it comes to preparing food...that's edible. i mean, when mandy and i made pasta yesterday, i had one job to do: heat up the rolls. unfortunately, the tops of the rolls came out a little singed :) my lack of cooking skill is the reason why i chose to forgo making dinner by myself last night - at least until some odd hour way past dinner time when i could go down to the kitchen and stumble my way through heating up a lean cuisine frozen dinner :) (i don't think the public that is all of the occupants of lolley hall are ready for my solo cooking debut :) ) taking pity on me, mandy invited me over to her house for dinner...where we had a very healthy mix of chicken strips, buscuits, and fries...from bojangles :)
it's nice living in wake forest...especially because my two best friends live there (one, not for much longer :( ) and i would venture to say that my place is almost exactly half-way between the two, which makes it convenient to "house hop." :) oddly enough, i recently found out that the two of them both share the same house number, 2801. but anyway...i love my two best friends. they've been very understanding and compasionate about my moving from (insert a semi decent adjective here) rolesville to wake forest, taking me in and giving me a "home away from home." also, i can (and do) show up in my pajamas :)
after eating bojangles last night at mandy's (which i think just may become my next food obsession...goodbye, chicken taco salad!), i went to the casbarro house to play guitar hero and watch wipeout with vince. after vince beat me (surprise, surprise) in a few rounds of GH, we watched a pretty disappointing episode of wipeout (basically, a recap of the season so far).
then we went to goodberry's for ice cream and ran into anthony, my thirty something friend from the greece trip. anthony makes me jealous, plain and simple. :) he's been all over the world (mexico, india, israel, greece, and coming soon...brazil!), sharing the free gift of salvation in Christ. he also informed me that dr. catanzaro, team leader and biblical counseling professor at southeastern, who has lived in brazil for a few years, told the team that brazil is the most beautiful place you will ever see. anthony also told me that the brazil team has one open spot because someone dropped out...making me envious of the lucky guy or gal that takes their place. i had a dream about a year ago, while i was taking intro. to missions at southeastern that made me think about going on this trip...but that's a story for another day. :)
right now, i'm at home, washing clothes, and getting ready to shower. the shower in my dorm is not so desirable :)
apart from measuring ingredients (which is quite a reach in itself) and pouring them into a bowl or container of some sort, i am completely clueless when it comes to preparing food...that's edible. i mean, when mandy and i made pasta yesterday, i had one job to do: heat up the rolls. unfortunately, the tops of the rolls came out a little singed :) my lack of cooking skill is the reason why i chose to forgo making dinner by myself last night - at least until some odd hour way past dinner time when i could go down to the kitchen and stumble my way through heating up a lean cuisine frozen dinner :) (i don't think the public that is all of the occupants of lolley hall are ready for my solo cooking debut :) ) taking pity on me, mandy invited me over to her house for dinner...where we had a very healthy mix of chicken strips, buscuits, and fries...from bojangles :)
it's nice living in wake forest...especially because my two best friends live there (one, not for much longer :( ) and i would venture to say that my place is almost exactly half-way between the two, which makes it convenient to "house hop." :) oddly enough, i recently found out that the two of them both share the same house number, 2801. but anyway...i love my two best friends. they've been very understanding and compasionate about my moving from (insert a semi decent adjective here) rolesville to wake forest, taking me in and giving me a "home away from home." also, i can (and do) show up in my pajamas :)
after eating bojangles last night at mandy's (which i think just may become my next food obsession...goodbye, chicken taco salad!), i went to the casbarro house to play guitar hero and watch wipeout with vince. after vince beat me (surprise, surprise) in a few rounds of GH, we watched a pretty disappointing episode of wipeout (basically, a recap of the season so far).
then we went to goodberry's for ice cream and ran into anthony, my thirty something friend from the greece trip. anthony makes me jealous, plain and simple. :) he's been all over the world (mexico, india, israel, greece, and coming soon...brazil!), sharing the free gift of salvation in Christ. he also informed me that dr. catanzaro, team leader and biblical counseling professor at southeastern, who has lived in brazil for a few years, told the team that brazil is the most beautiful place you will ever see. anthony also told me that the brazil team has one open spot because someone dropped out...making me envious of the lucky guy or gal that takes their place. i had a dream about a year ago, while i was taking intro. to missions at southeastern that made me think about going on this trip...but that's a story for another day. :)
right now, i'm at home, washing clothes, and getting ready to shower. the shower in my dorm is not so desirable :)
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
officially a "college girl"
after a long day of coming back from tanning and vacationing at myrtle beach in south carolina and moving into my new home at southeastern yesterday, i went to sleep around 2:20 this morning :)
my "first southeastern friend," ryan (a freshman from alabama, who i actually have not met yet...but he seems nice :) ), put it best when he asked me last night, "what you got planned tomorrow as the first day as a college girl?" then it hit me. i am now officially a "college girl!" :)
so, for my first night in my dorm as a "college girl," i did the "college girl" thing...i stayed up to see the coming of the next day :) after enjoying some much-needed time with the family at my grandfather's birthday party, i quickly re-visited my house to pick up a few things essential to not only survive, but to thrive in the night at hand...namely, my miniature palm tree with christmas lights :)
around 9, vicky came over to help me carry in enough groceries to feed a small army...or enough to completely conceal the backseat of my car :) after dumping said groceries (carefully) on my room mate's vacant bed, we headed off to chick-fil-a for dinner...at 9:17 pm, thus providing confirmation that i am, indeed, now a "college girl." :)
after vicky left, i spent a good amount of time talking to mandy, one of my best friends since the third grade, and vince, one of my "newer" best friends. i had to practically force myself to get off the computer to start making preparations to go to sleep. after all, it was about 2 am and i knew i had to wake up early the next morning to make the oh so long travel home to shower and pick up a couple other things i'd left behind...
my "first southeastern friend," ryan (a freshman from alabama, who i actually have not met yet...but he seems nice :) ), put it best when he asked me last night, "what you got planned tomorrow as the first day as a college girl?" then it hit me. i am now officially a "college girl!" :)
so, for my first night in my dorm as a "college girl," i did the "college girl" thing...i stayed up to see the coming of the next day :) after enjoying some much-needed time with the family at my grandfather's birthday party, i quickly re-visited my house to pick up a few things essential to not only survive, but to thrive in the night at hand...namely, my miniature palm tree with christmas lights :)
around 9, vicky came over to help me carry in enough groceries to feed a small army...or enough to completely conceal the backseat of my car :) after dumping said groceries (carefully) on my room mate's vacant bed, we headed off to chick-fil-a for dinner...at 9:17 pm, thus providing confirmation that i am, indeed, now a "college girl." :)
after vicky left, i spent a good amount of time talking to mandy, one of my best friends since the third grade, and vince, one of my "newer" best friends. i had to practically force myself to get off the computer to start making preparations to go to sleep. after all, it was about 2 am and i knew i had to wake up early the next morning to make the oh so long travel home to shower and pick up a couple other things i'd left behind...
my bed (i had to switch sides of the room because my room mate wanted the bed near the wall, which works out because i secretly wanted the bed near the window, but i wanted to be nice and give her what i thought was the "best bed")
my fuzzy blue rug at the foot of my bed
my desk
our dresser (i'm kind of taking over while my room mate's not here; she moves in on friday)
our closets; mine is the first one on the left
the view from our window
the mirror on the back of our door has a bible verse written on it; lamentations 3:22-23:
"The unfailing love of the Lord never ends! By His mercies we have been kept from complete destruction. Great is His faithfulness, His mercies begin afresh each day!"
but the most memorable thing about my first night in my dorm? i had an awesome time praying and reading my Bible between 2 and 2:20 this morning. despite the occasional, resounding shutting of a door (the walls are paper thin here...and i do live with about fifty other college girls that, likewise, do not grace the bed with their presence until 3 am) it was quiet and peaceful; enough to calm my nerves and quench my anxieties about starting a new adventure in my life.
i woke up a little before my alarm went off obnoxiously and promptly at 8 am to the rays of the rising sunshine peeking in through the blinds of my window and the gentle hum of wake forest commuting to work. i threw on some clothes and went home to shower and transfer more of my belongings from my old home to my new home.
mandy came over around 10:30 to admire my room (she's going to liberty in lynchburg, virginia, where everything closes at nine, the dorm rooms are smaller, and one recieves reprimands for attending dances). we made lunch; some sort of italian butter and herb noodles and rolls! i sent pictures of this miracle to my mom and to my doubtful best friend, vince :) of course, it was in the process of cooking that i realized i had no big metal spoon to stir the pasta with...so we made due, rotating between a small plastic spoon and a tablespoon on one of those rings with all the different sized spoons :) we had lots of left-overs...so we gave them to vince, who, being a teenaged boy, we can always trust to dispose of large quantities of food in a heartbeat :) unfortunately, vince had already eaten lunch and didn't exactly like the plasticity of our now cold (and sculptable) pasta :)
chef mandy in the kitchen, cooking pasta! she burnt her finger stirring the pasta and i burned my lip taste testing :)
our creation!
vince and i spent the afternoon praying at binkley and hanging out. he surprised me with a moving in present - a fuzzy yellow blanket from his sweet mother...and a night light that he made out of a trash can, serving to scare my room mate when i find it necessary :)
and now, i'm sitting in my dorm, typing this...about to have my quiet time and go to vince's house at 7:30 to play guitar hero and watch wipeout :) tomorrow i'm going to see the sisterhood of the traveling pants 2 at the movies with some good friends from high school and thursday, i'm thinking about going shag dancing with some southeastern friends in the master's program.
though it's been fun, it's been a very tiring day...i think i am going to become a coffee "college girl" very soon... :)
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