Almost...

I am almost done with school FOREVER!

I have about three papers left to write to finish off grad school.  

I couldn't be happier that soon I will be done with:

homework

reading for class

essay writing

sitting through 3-hour classes

homework

filling out professor evaluations

driving to campus and paying for parking

homework

Did I mention that I can't wait to be done doing homework?!

For anyone still in school...or just about to finish...good luck ending the semester strong!  :)  Yes, I am looking forward to graduating soon, but I also appreciate the time I have had in college.  Don't take it for granted!  It really will be over before you know it.

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End of November

It is now the end of November and I have barely written in my blog.  

Yes, I had midterms, and finals, and papers, but I have neglected the blog yet again.

And so much has happened since the last time I wrote.

On the job front, God has perfectly coordinated my employment from graduation until I find another position.  I can be hired on full-time at the Outreach Center (at least temporarily).  Being a non-profit, funding is always first priority, so we'll see where we are after six months (if I am still there).

Besides the Outreach Center, a position at my "dream job" was offered to me.  I didn't even apply for the position.  But it is perfect and exactly what I was praying about.  God certainly surprises us when we least expect it.  :)

On a different note, I am scheduled for a tonsillectomy on December 20th (the day after graduation).  I was sick earlier this semester and my tonsils were bugging me then.  After seeing a specialist and talking with my parents, I decided to have the surgery to remove my tonsils altogether.  If I left them alone, I would have the same issues the rest of my life (per my doctor's expertise).  

I'm a bit anxious about the surgery.  This is the first time I'm ever having surgery and an IV.  I never had my wisdom teeth out (I have all four in at the moment).  So, I'm a bit nervous, but I'm pretty sure it will be fine.  A tonsillectomy is such a routine procedure, but I think there is always a bit of apprehension with surgery in general, no matter the type.

So, I think that about catches you up for the moment.  Job news.  And surgery news.  

I'm still plugging along until graduation.  I got my cap, gown, and hood in the mail the other day.  I'm excited for December 19th to come...no more schoolwork for the rest of my life (I hope!).  P.S.  In case you noticed, my surgery is THE DAY AFTER my graduation.  I have to be at the hospital at 5:15am.  No celebrating of graduation on the night of the 19th for me!

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving.  Enjoy the rest of your weekend and I'll try to post again sooner than last time.  :)

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Oh, tonsils...

On Friday I go to the Ear Nose and Throat doctor to check out my tonsils.

I'm taking a guess that I'll soon be going in to get my tonsils taken out.

If this happens, it will be my first surgery ever.

I'm a little nervous, but God is good.

We'll see what happens Friday.

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Tears on Wednesday

Today just felt like one of those days when everything was getting on my nerves.  It was awful.  I got fed up about the smallest things.  And this lasted for about half my day.  

The worst part was that I was at the Outreach Center today, so I was frustrated while I was supposed to be an example of God's love with our clients.  Instead, I was just frustrated with the situations I was handed.  One client showed up 1 1/2 hours late for their appointment and still wanted to be seen.  Another client showed up an hour early and wanted to be seen.  And I just got fed up.  I felt awful.

But, as I worked with both clients and talked with them about our Phoenix Life Skills program, it occurred to me that both clients showed up right on time - it was just God's timing, not mine.

One of the clients I met with told me that he felt a "wonderful spirit" in our Center and that he was really encouraged after our meeting.  This was the same guy that showed up 1 1/2 hours late for his appointment.

After that, my second client showed up an hour early.  She is about to be kicked out of her home and has no place to go with her children.  After speaking with her briefly and telling her that God has a plan for her life and that she was created for a purpose, she broke down.  Just started crying.  She told me that she really needed to hear the words I said, just at that very moment.  

Once all was said and done, I knew that nothing I had said really made a difference.  What happened was that the Lord touched the hearts of the clients we served today.  And that was really encouraging!  It's amazing to be a part of God's work in the city.  Even though I don't know how long I'm supposed to be at the Outreach Center, I appreciate the time I have there now.  No matter where life takes me, I hope to always do work in ministering to others.

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November Wishes

Today, I found myself spending a lot of time in prayer.

Prayer about resting and dwelling in the Lord.

Prayer for my family, who are both mourning and celebrating life circumstances.

Prayer for continued trust in God's plans.

Prayers of praise for who God is.

Prayer for contentment in the present moment.

As I spent time in prayer, I was reminded (once again) at how big our God is.

I am also reminded, and humbled, that God cares enough to listen to my prayers.

Yes, I praise God for who He is and all that He has done.

....For being faithful and loving me.

....For sending His Son, Jesus Christ, to take on all the World's sin and seal our salvation.

....For never leaving my side or going back on His promises.

But many times, I turn to God only in my times of need.

In times when I doubt what His plan is for my life.

When I'm scared about my future, or try to take back control.

In moments when I sin and feel guilty.

I wish I would praise God in all circumstances, consistently.

That I would praise Him, without thinking, in both good times and bad.

So, that is my new mission.

To learn what it looks like to genuinely and sincerely praise the Lord in every moment of every day; regardless of the situation at hand.

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Not quite busy

It's funny how even though my school schedule has been pretty relaxed lately, I still feel busy and haven't posted to this blog.  So many things have happened in this past week that I want to post about, but I haven't found the time to upload pictures and actually write.

Last weekend, our church held an event called Love4Haiti.  We recruited 1,000 volunteers to come and pack 285,000 meals for people in Haiti.  It was an amazing event and very powerful.  Our church partnered with Impact Lives to put on the event.  One of the Impact Lives staff explained to everyone at the event that the food that we send is a matter of life and death.  If the people of Haiti don't get food soon, they will die.  Yikes...what a reality check.  So often, I take for granted the fact that I have a roof over my head and food to eat.

Since the event recruited individuals from all over the community, this was also a neat outreach to people who may not belong to a church or know who Jesus is.  It was great to be part of this awesome event.  I'll post pictures a little later.

On a different note, I called a hospice around here yesterday to inquire about volunteering.  I'm taking a death&dying class (if you've read my blog previously you might have noted that) and I'm interested in seeing what hospice care is like.  To be honest, I'm both excited and terrified.  People in hospice have a prognosis of 6 months or less to live.  On the positive side, I am looking forward to developing relationships with the individuals in hospice and spending time with them.  But, I'm a bit apprehensive of what to say to someone who is dying.  I've never been around a person who is actively dying before and the thought scares me a bit.

My mom asked me why I'm even going to volunteer if I'm scared about what it might entail.  I responded by saying that if I never volunteer and find out what it's actually like for myself, how will I ever know if it is actually a passion of mine?  If I never try to volunteer with people who are dying, the thought will always scare me because I've never had exposure to it.  So, I'm willing to give it a shot with the hope that I'll love it and that I will learn a lot about myself and the people who are at the hospice.

I'll keep you all posted on how that goes.  I have to call the volunteer coordinator back today to find out more information about the program.

I hope you have a wonderful Thursday!  :)  I'm having dinner with a few friends after class tonight and am really excited to see them!  I'll post more later.

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RE: 10/10/10

Finally, I have some pictures from our 10/10/10 Apple Holler trip.  Lisa took most of the pictures, so I had to wait until she posted them to update the blog site.

A few unfortunate details about our trip:

1.  It cost $58 per bag to go into the apple orchard and actually pick our own apples....so, we didn't actually pick apples.

2.  It ended up costing more overall to get into Apple Holler and buy food and drinks.

3.  The entire park was definitely tailored to young children, which made the whole day fun, but corny.

So here are some pictures!  :)

From left to right:  Emily, Elizabeth, me, Kelly, and Lisa

With our pumpkins.

Elizabeth, Kelly, me, and Emily

In the Apple Holler cutout.

Elizabeth, Alex (on top), Corey (under Alex), me, Lisa (on top), Kelly (under Lisa) and Emily.

Lisa got this awesome picture of the Alpaca.

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