S.O.S.

That stands for Stupid, Obstinate, & Sick…

A few months ago, I had some guest speakers come to my classroom. Those days required a little less prep on my part in the morning, so I figured that I could get to school ~15 min later than usual… but apparently, I need to brush up on my math skills. For some reason, I rationalized that it was okay to go to sleep about 1.5-2 hours later than normal. That became a habit, so I’ve been running on pretty terrible sleep debt since then.

To top that off, I went out of town for 3 weekends in a row. The first trip was the fabulous snowboarding trip mentioned in the previous post. The next weekend, I traveled up to SF for a reunion in SF w/ some of my summer teammates. Although it was supposed to rain the entire time (there was even icy snow on the 280!), Saturday ended up being a gloriously beautiful day!

(we tried this shot so many times w/ a timer... and sadly, this is our best one. haha)

We touristed a bit, ate a WHOLE bunch of great Chinese food, and attended a prayer meeting for our M organization. But the most exciting & encouraging part was hearing how God used our experience this past summer as a launching point for each of our relationships w/ Him. God touched us in a way that has made us want more of Him…and while that desire is expressed in different ways, He has stretched our faith and we are all still growing. =)

here are 5/6 girls from our team. i chose this pic b/c like 75% of all our team pics, my eyes are closed... arg!

Then this past weekend, I thought I was on my way to another amazing snowboarding weekend, but my sleep-deprived body had other plans. I started feeling sick on the way up to Mammoth on Friday, but I just couldn’t resist the lure of the mountains. This is where the “stupid” part comes in…I decided to go boarding despite my sore throat, runny nose, and headache. The frugal side of me also didn’t want to back down after paying the full price of the ski-lift ticket… But by 1:30pm, I was freezing and no amount of soup or hot cocoa could warm me, despite my fever. So finally, I had to concede my defeat. Although I spent all of Sunday resting, I slept most of Monday and Tuesday away. Irresponsible teacher!

(at least i got to enjoy the view... Mammoth is so pretty)

Sickness sure does bring up all sorts of weaknesses, physical, spiritual, and emotional. And while I’m still at the mercy and whim of my “feelings”, I’ve been learning just how God always uses vessels of weakness for His glory. I still feel inadequate, but I’m learning to go to Him for help and depend on His strength for whatever He places in front of me or asks of me.

I have whiplash…

But it’s not from the car accident – or at least I wouldn’t be able to tell if it is b/c most of the damage came from the snowboarding trip I took this weekend!

Last weekend, I bought a board, bindings, and boots. It was a spontaneous purchase, which is completely out-of-character for me, but there was a BIG sale…so what could I do? I did ask for the return policy and rationalized that I had 90 days in which to return everything. I walked out convinced that I wouldn’t go again this season and would find myself carting all the equipment back to the store in a few weeks.

But midway thru the week, I was randomly invited to join a trip to Mammoth…and I said yes! Considering the criteria w/ which I bought all my gear (how well everything matched… what do I know about boards?), I got fairly lucky b/c I ended up *loving* everything… esp. my Flow bindings!

So this was my 4^th time snowboarding… and can I brag a little? I’m pretty good. =) Don’t let the black-and-blue bruises on my arms and legs fool you, nor my puffy left eye (from punching myself in the face twice while falling). Ignore the sprained ankle that I got from slipping on the ice at the chairlift; incidentally causing the lift to stop for 3 long, embarrassing minutes b/c the lady had to slam on the emergency stop button. Okay, so I’m not THAT good… but I’m excited to say that I no longer feel like I’m faking it. I went on a few black diamonds and carved a lot this weekend. Even when I was falling, falling, falling, I kept pushing myself to practice, and I (miraculously) had enough stamina to board two full days!

The biggest factor in my improvement (and how much I absolutely *love* snowboarding now) were the people who kept motivating me by sticking w/ me all day and guiding me to various lifts. If I had known where they were leading me, I might not have followed b/c I ended up at the VERY top of Mammoth, w/ 40-70 mph winds, ice chunks pelting my face, and several signs that said “NO EASY WAY DOWN!” haha… but I made it down in one piece…and kept right on going. =)

I feel such a sense of accomplishment b/c my boundaries were pushed beyond anything I imagined (c’mon, y’all know how utterly unathletic I am!). I put this into practical application today b/c w/ all the rain, I was panicking about driving the 17 miles to see the insurance adjuster about my rear-ender on Friday. Unfortunately, this new accident caused a renewed wave of fear, but I forced myself to keep driving… I plowed thru it all and ended up safe at home afterwards. The ultimate application and goal now is to trust God enough to push the limits of my feeble faith… I’m so excited to see where that might lead me… hopefully beyond anything I’ve ever imagined!

I didn’t update this, but my car got hit earlier this year. Luckily, it was while I was parked, but the damage was not small – at least the person who hit me was honest enough to come find me and give me all her info! I mention this now only b/c I find it incredibly odd how many times I can have car drama… I got hit *again* today!! The slippery rain prevented the lady behind me from stopping completely until she launched my car forward several feet. This time at least, the damage is minor (but I might have whiplash?). That’s how many vehicle-related incidents in the past year and a half?

On a much happier note, here’s my hiking update...

yes, i've actually kept it up! woohoo! =) it's been pretty cool to "get away" from the hustle and bustle of the city and hide in these pockets of nature for a few hours. on a side note, part of my original intent was to exercise and be a bit more fit...but i think it created a huge spike in my appetite b/c i've gained something like 10 lbs in the last 3 weeks! eeeek!

On President's Day, we headed out a little further than usual (over near Arcadia) to see one of the prettiest waterfalls in socal. What was supposed to be a 4-mile hike ended up being closer to 12 miles because the road up to the trailhead was blocked off. That darn road was a bit longer than we anticipated! But it was worth it... the nature-y sections (which made up only ~20% of the hike) were really charming.

pretty!

ubu (my fearless small grp leader), my faithful hiking partner, and me. surprisingly, none of us were sore afterwards!
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This past weekend, the hike (Santa Ynez Falls) was rather easy so we kept veering off the trail to explore different areas…

we went up, over, and under a lot of miscellaneous things on our path.

--------- you can't tell, but i'm wearing a google shirt and was asked during the hike whether i worked there. haha, i wish!

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and on a completely different but even happier note, I've had a wonderful time growing in my prayer life recently. =)