Hello... I have returned to earth. I know, I know I haven't written anything in over a month. The only good excuse I could come up with is that I have been working on my book - honestly- and I have made pretty good progress. School begins for me next week so this will be my final blog for Summer Bloggin. Nevertheless, you will be proud to know that my summer has been filled with a few lessons that I would like to share with you:
1. Don't leave the house in the summer with the central air turned off longer than 2 days without taking out the garbage filled with chicken, fish, etc..- you'll only return to find 2 generations of magets that have moved in and refuse to leave! Lesson Learned: Take out the garbage everyday!
1. Don't leave the house in the summer with the central air turned off longer than 2 days without taking out the garbage filled with chicken, fish, etc..- you'll only return to find 2 generations of magets that have moved in and refuse to leave! Lesson Learned: Take out the garbage everyday!
2. Don't sit on the patio in the heat- majority of the summer I sat on my patio during the day and talked on the phone - since I was the only person I know without a job- and repeatedly felt ill. Reason being? I am glad you asked because the air quality is so bad in Atlanta that it wasn't healthy to breathe longer than 1 minute a day. Lesson Learned: STAY INSIDE!
3. Bug Off - I have realized that insects - indoor and outdoor- have a natural attraction to me. I have been bitten/attacked so many times this season that I thought about getting tested for West Nile. Lesson Learned: Bug repellent doesn't work on me anymore!
4. This summer I have been working on my book and dealing with some personal issues that I have never truly confronted. The writing process has given me the courage to be candid about some issues that have been ashamed to admit. When I finally decided I wouldn’t hide my issues any longer the end result was very positive. Lesson Learned: Honesty and transparency frees you!
5. Without going into details, this summer I met someone who made me think about the benefits of being in a loving relationship. I have learned a lot from him. I realized that I didn’t always consider the possibilities of love. Lesson Learned: Love is possible for me.
6. Besides romantic relationships I believe that this summer has allowed me to evaluate my friendships. My friends have been my anchors through a lot of life challenges. This summer I have had to depend on my friends in ways that have been very uncomfortable for me. I had to open up about things that I had never talked about and relied on their support in ways that was hard for me. Lesson Learned: True friends are custom made gifts from God that are given to challenge you to grow.
7. I have a lot of decisions to make about my future. The pressure and competition to get into a PhD is overwhelming. I don’t have a perfect GPA, nor can I speak fluent Greek coupled with the limited New Testament slots each year. I don’t always think I will pull this off. Then I realize that I am focusing on the obstacles not the opportunities. Lesson Learned: There is nothing impossible for God.
8. I have been told, on several occasions this summer, that I have unrealistic expectations of people- including myself. And when these unrealistic and inhuman expectations are not met then I am devastated. Lesson Learned: Give people, including myself, the room to be less than perfect!
9. I left United Way in June to take some time much needed time off. During this time I have been faced with a lot of financial, business and personal issues. Some days I felt that I should just throw in the towel because things weren’t going as smoothly as I had planned. My natural inclination to plan out every single detail of my life for the next 10 years was backfiring on me. One day I opened up my bible and began reading about story of Moses leading the people of Israel out of Egypt to the Promised Land. And during their journey to the Canaan God provided fresh food (manna) to them every day. The food provided could only be consumed for the day. The people could not eat more than what they needed. And then the next day God would provide fresh food. I then realized that every day God would provide. Lesson Learned: God’s provisional care is given to us everyday
10. I start school on Tuesday. Lesson Learned: Enjoy everyday of summer because before you know it school is back in session!
