Graduation is Coming!!

It's true... May 7th... Graduation is Coming!!! It totally has me excited/freaking out/wow...

Yep..

It also has me quite nostalgic so I'm pretty sure my next post will reflect that.. Watch for it!

Hoppy Easter!!!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter!!! What a fantastic day to celebrate :) I completely overdosed on chocolate.. it was totally worth it!

At my internship with FUEL Marketing we had a festive day in the office. This is my friend Mallory and I rockin the bunny ears. I wore mine pretty much all day and forgot I had them on.. I wondered why people seemed a little odd when they came to my desk to ask me something..

The Woes of a Blogger

A blog should not have the ability to make you feel guilty.. However, I have been such a slacker!!! I feel guilty for not posting here for literally MONTHS!

Life has been busy and exciting. SO much has happened and changed since my last post (in September.. hence the guilt!). I promise I will be back to blogging soon. In the meantime, I have school work, job hunting/graduate school decisions to pre-occupy myself ;)

Thanks for your patience blogger..

I remember..

It has been over three months since I was in Swaziland, Africa and I can't believe how fast time has flown.

I remember my heart before the trip. I longed for Africa.. I wanted to be there and serve and learn more than I had wanted anything.. It was almost tangible.. I could taste my desire to be there.

The summer before, I was able to study abroad in Tours, France and travel through much of Western Europe over the course of three months. I remember this distinct moment one night in Nice; we had just taken the train from Paris and it was dark but lively as we set out to explore the town. There was live music and the culture was drastically different from the streets of Paris, just a train ride away.

The farther South you go in France, the more immigrants from Africa you'll find and the culture has been influenced accordingly. From music to cuisine - it's fantastic. We kept walking in the direction we figured the beach must be and passed groups of teens playing music and dancing in the street when we finally came to a set of concrete stairs leading down to the smooth-rocked beach. White/grey rocks led to smooth white sand. We took off our shoes.

Tip-toeing toward the waters edge, looking out across the black Mediterranean Sea, I cautiously waited for a wave to make its way to my feet. Cold water rushed between my toes and around my ankles. I had one thought..

Africa. Right on the other side of this water. Africa. It waits. It calls for me. I have to be there..

One year later, I answered that call (just a little farther South..) I spent some amazing time in Swaziland and will never forget my first Africa experience. I loved, loved, loved it!

I have been thinking about Africa a lot recently and know that I need to go back.. It's just a matter of when and for what purpose. I have a heart for that blessed land (ya i know.. sounds corny.. but I said it!).

Africa, Africa, Africa. I remember you.

The REDvolution!

It's Homecoming Week 2009!! Yes!

This week is so fun! Yesterday was house decorating, Saturday was Legacy of Lowell service day, tonight is Songfest and the Pep Rally, Friday is the Scholarship Scramble Golf Tournament, followed by the Homecoming Dance at The Depot, and Saturday is the 5K and Homecoming game against Louisville!

This year is particularly fun because I get to be part of the 2009 Homecoming Royalty - I am the first attendant! YAY! I am so honored to hold this position and have already had a blast this week and there is so much more to come! A good friend of mine, Erica Sellers is the queen and together, we always have a good time. It couldn't be better :)

I'll post more about how this fun week turns out soon - for now.. GO UTES!!!

This photo is from the Legacy of Lowell service day.

GO UTES!!!

Home away from home..

As I may have mentioned, last April I was diagnosed with Celiac Disease. It has not been the easiest thing to deal with... but I have been feeling better and transitioning as well as I can.

We are still running all sorts of crazy tests almost weekly. There's clearly more going on in my body than just the gluten-intolerance but we have yet to discover exactly what it is..

I have however developed a new home away from home... LDS Hospital.. Weird? I know.

You know you are there too much when you know everyone by first name, they know you before you even check in and get 'in the gown' - which is awesome. AND - you know where the warm blankets are and have permission to grab one whenever you feel like it. yep - I live the good life!

Hopefully they'll figure out what ever else is going on in my body apart from anemia and celiac disease and my new friends and I can maintain a more... long-distance relationship! Until then though - I'll like another warm blanket please!!

Swaziland, Africa

I made it! Much to the delight and surprise of my worried mother, I made it back from Swaziland, Africa safely and healthy. What a blessing. My trip was a complete success; though I should confess it’s very likely I learned more about love from the children with whom I worked than I could have ever shown them. They have the most amazing hearts.

Working at the Mkhombokati care point was a truly humbling and breathtaking experience. I was able to work with over 100 children and pre-teens, (most of whom have lost one or both or their parents) every day. It was truly inspiring. We were able to host daily bible school lessons for the young children as well as teach them songs and games. We also held life skills classes in the afternoons for both the young ones as well as the older kids who would come to the care point from school.

We taught the group how to sew and mend their clothes, basic hygiene and health, as well as some carpentry. Through these classes each child left with a new outfit, a personal hygiene kit and the care point has new shelves in the classroom. We also planted a garden to supply the care point with lettuce, onions etc. for more complete meals. The ‘makehs’ sp? (MAH-KAYs) or mothers who volunteer their time every day at the care point will look after the garden and harvest all the growth. Currently the meals at the care point prepared daily by these makehs consist of cornmeal and rice. Just a glimpse at these children and the malnourishment is apparent. Luckily, we have the opportunity to change that.

I will no doubt be writing more about this amazing adventure soon. Thank you all for your love and support through this fantastic journey.