Remembering

I'm at my sister's house waiting for my parents to come here (it's five minutes until midnight). They are over at my aunt's place (30 minutes across town). Most likely it was my 85-year old grandma that kept them over there so late (she loves playing card games and insists on playing as many games as possible--sometimes keeping the family up until 1 am).

I'm sitting here at my sister's place listening to dryer and remembering. Seven months ago I sat at this same computer writing about the unknown in front of me. And now the mostly known is in front of me. I can fill in the general lines of my near future. I know where I'll live. I know where I'll work. I know where I'll attend church.

I came back to the states saying that I was going to fight for my future. I was determined to find a job that would give me the time I needed to work on my dreams. I was sure that the best job would be at a community college and yet God has given me so much more than what I was fighting for. I was just hoping for decent hours and decent pay, but it looks like I'll be getting decent hours, decent pay, a city with a large Adventist community, and a mission to boot (working at a school where I can be open about my faith!).

I feel so grateful for the gift God has given me. I still shake my head. This job did not come on my schedule. And yet the delay was a gift. God used this waiting time to draw me closer to Him. In some ways the last couple of months have been tough and yet in other ways the months have been blessed. I have been dependent on my parents and struggling every day to work at a job that I feel inadequate for. And yet God has taken my "bitter waters" and sweetened them with His presence.

I'm sleepy as I write this. It is now 12:15 am. My parents should be home soon. I'll let them in the door and then crawl into my sleeping bag in approximately the same place I slept seven months ago. At that time I fell asleep listening to the quiet of the walls (no geckos, no tokays!) and wondering about my future. Tonight I'll fall asleep wondering about my future still. I'll be wondering what plans does God have for me in Florida? What gifts and struggles and joys and growth does He have ahead for me?

I'm blessed.

Beaus

Tuesday I drove three hours to spend time with a friend and meet her beau.

This entry has really nothing to do with my friend, my trip, or her beau. But it has everything to do with the word beau. Who uses the word beau anymore? It's such a delightful word. Where did it go?

Words. Words. Words. I love them all. I love them so much that when a friend says a word I especially love I might stop her and ask her to say the word again. If some people are foodies, I'm a wordie. I just want to savor the taste of a word.

I think about words a lot. I love finding new words. Earlier this year my students were discussing "goat heads" getting stuck in their shoes and I had to tell them I'd never heard of stickers being referred to as goat heads. But who cares if I have to learn new words from 8th graders; any time I hear a new word or an old word aptly used I get a shiver down my back. Today my "new word" for the day was "pestiferous". It was in the following context: "Every cad's paradise! Paternity without strings! No pestiferous pangs of conscience!"*

Not only do I love learning new words. I love teaching new words. I purposefully use "big" words when I teach my 8th graders just because I hope my students will learn them. For example, they are in the habit of asking me if they will get points for certain class activities and I typically respond with, "No, but you are gaining my approbation." I enjoy being more direct and just telling them about words too. Recently they learned the words anarchy and depreciation. Oh, and they learned that compromise is not pronounced: "com promise" but "com pro mise".

I could talk about words forever, but I'm depriving myself of sleep to write this.
So as to my friend and her beau and my trip to see them. We had a good time. We ate some good Indian food and talked a lot (another yeah for words!).

PS Here is just a small list of some of my favorite words:

tarmac
diaspora
assuage
behoove
balmy
assiduously



*The quote is from 10 Books That Screwed Up the World: And 5 Others that Didn't Help (Nice book, horrible title).

Lima Ranch

One of my favorite places to walk is Lima Ranch. It is a park near my home with three seperate trails. The trails wend their way by two ponds and through open spaces with breathtaking views of the mountains. There are also always a gaggle of geese at the ranch. (Photo credits to my mom. She has been obsessed as me in catching all the beauty of this fall.)

Ten Things I'm Thankful For

This week I'm thankful for . . .

1. The student who said with excitement, "I didn't know that before!"
2. Accidently running into the one of the few people I know in this town at an icecream shop only a little while after wishing I could talk with someone besides my parents. She sat down and chatted with my mom and I for a hour.
3. Being able to talk with my parents.
4. My parents' generosity (My mom got up early just to make me lunch!)
5. Cold weather.
6. That God gave me courage when I needed it.
7. That God gave me a good job (coming soon!)
8. Life's little detours (even my current detour)
9. For discovering that one my hardest students to deal with wrote for her goal this year, "To be good."
10. For being ready for Monday's class tonight (Thursday night) so I can relax and enjoy the weekend coming up with my extended family in St. Helena.