tiring but fulfilling week...

so what've i been doing since i have all the time in the world now?? mainly, running around like a chicken w/ my head cut off! like the pic? (that, by the way, is a "chicken head" referred to in my May 9th post)

most of my time has been spent helping pick things like:

not mine, of course... but beautiful, huh? =) bridesmaiding is fun!

On another afternoon, i moved:

all the junk from my classroom - soooo many boxes!

thank goodness for freakishly strong small group member w/ truck! Sorry ladies, he’s taken – unfortunately, not by me. =)

into my new classroom! it's gonna take me *days* to organize...

Driving all around town, i got to listen to my new nano. My music collection was so ridiculously small that i've been accepting donations... and i found out that of all the cd's, my favorite so far has been "Gloria's Country Chicks." I wish I could blame it on the Texan in me, but i think it's just 'cause i'm such a sucker for CHEESE! (yes, i watched and cried during Cars - did you expect any differently?)

Which leads me to a list of Ways I feel very loved:
-when you ask me for help & make me feel useful - unless you're asking me to plan something...then, i'll take it as a sign that you hate me. =)
-when you help me stop bad habits (like biting my nails!)
-when you surprise me
-when you teach me something very patiently
-when you drive me some place
-when you tease me (about anything except my driving...)
-when you comment on my blog or write to me while i'm out of the country (hint hint!)

Hope (my friend since 7th grade who loves me very much) mentioned to me that I sound more like myself than i have in years. I've been contemplating what that means... who have i been these last few years? Well, whoever i was, I think, ultimately, that it's a result of the fact that my identity wasn't wrapped around Christ. Not to say that i'm successful now because i fail daily, but at least I'm actively trying to place all of my identity in Him...and ironically, i end up w/ an amplified, very happy "me."

my first day of summer vacation
t-13 days till departure...

outside: i just heard the most heart-stopping thunder (in LA of all places!) followed by such delicious-sounding rain.

inside: i'm finally realizing what paul meant when he said rejoice always (philippians 4:4).

when i've had troubles or worries, i didn't rejoice... but what i've been learning recently is that these "awakening troubles" bring me closer and closer to God. they make me aware that i'm not depending on Him entirely - that i could be so much more.

i am thankful and i do rejoice.

Summertime!

despite the recent june gloom over LA and the fact that school is still in session, i've embraced summer early this year since i'll be gone for 6 weeks of july and august. other than eating McD's 49 cent ice cream cones 3 days in a row, rollerblading at the beach, and wearing skirts as often as possible, I've been enjoying:

Dodger game (w/ GREAT seats!) - first live game in a long, long time...

swimming! no one else at the pool party besides joe jumped in b/c it was COLD...but i *love* being in water. i was actually in a bikini for the first time ever, but nobody saw me b/c i was in the pool before anyone arrived and stayed there until everyone left!

(why do i keep doing that w/ my hands? weirdo...) hiking @ Griffith Park. i'm camouflaged - haha.

crazy, clear view of LA

hiking @ Malibu Creek State Park - breathtakingly beautiful

the hike at Malibu was incredible. with each turn up the hill, we glimpsed a bigger and bigger view of the valley. and then i made the oh-so-profound statement, "It's like God!" What i meant was that He just seems to get so much bigger as I get older and grow in my relationship with Him. I've been amazed recently by His..."big-ness" (esp. in my OT studies). His great love, intimate care, and sovereignty. and yet, i seem to only find more and more of myself that I have still to abandon to Him. I have so far to go in surrendering completely.

I'm hoping that this coming summer's experiences will get me a bit closer. Little by little on this journey...

News:
*I'm at 3/4ths my support! Wow!

*I ran into a student from my very first year of teaching. He's graduating high school! And just as he's moving on, so am I. I'm taking a position as a science teacher at a private elementary school next year. I'll be teaching 2nd-6th graders. Lots more work but a great learning experience for me.

*I've somehow become a gadget-girl. I own a (very cute) pink razr phone w/ a bluetooth headset - both of which i got for free! and as of today, I also own a black ipod nano - which was definitely not free. *sigh* the effects of materialism??

*I just received the title to my car! My banged up little corolla is all mine now. =)

it's waaay too late and i still have 1.5 weeks left of school! g'nite!

A day of ungracefulness

Just a few minutes ago, I fell onto the floor…I went to go sit in my chair and completely missed! Ka-plop! My bum and my wrist hurt now. Oh when oh when will I cease being clumsy? At least it provides some amusement to me (and usually others).

And today, I walked into a crowd of students and they completely stopped talking and stared. I wish I could say it was my stunning beauty, but it was the exact opposite. At least this, I did on purpose. It was “mix & match” spirit day at school and I went all-out and wore the ugliest combination of clothes I could find and even two different shoes. Unfortunately, none of the students remembered it was a spirit day so I looked like a clown all by myself. A lonely clown. silly…
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Actually, what’s been really exciting is that I haven’t felt loneliness in a really long time. For the first time in my life, I’ve been discovering this fascinating thing called my “introverted side.” Yes, it’s amazing – but I have one! =) It’s the strangest feeling for me to crave alone time, but many a-nights I’ve spent in my own company and really enjoyed myself doing odds-&-ends. How weird.

Other things that surprise me in my 27^th year of life:
-I’m still making NEW life-long friendships!
-I really love leading worship and bible studies for small grp
-I still have acne! arg…

Some recent treats in my life:
-On Monday, I had two guest speakers in my classroom. They both had HIV/AIDS, and I was sooo blessed by their stories. The man was very promiscuous when he was younger, contracted HIV, knew it, but still continued to sleep around for the next 6-12 months w/o a condom. He was just scared and desperate for affection. Now, he’s survived 20+ yrs and quite aware of the miracle of his life. He’s really knowledgeable about current health issues and so open about his story so that kids are aware of people like him who might not be honest.

-The woman who spoke came from an abusive home and was put into foster care because her mom wanted to get revenge on her dad. This way, her dad could never find her. Despite that, she became driven to succeed after a middle school teacher nurtured and cared for her. She, herself, became a teacher but had to quit working when she became HIV+ from her fiancé who never told her that he was infected. She quickly left him and many years later met a man who didn’t care that she was sick, and they were married 2 years ago. Since then, she became a believer and has such hope and encouragement about this life. We had such a wonderful talk during my conference period!

-The last story has to do w/ my China trip. There, I’ll be working at an orphanage for the first week and then helping out at an orphan summer camp for the second. Our program director gave us most of the information we needed to know through conference calls, and during one of them, one man asked a question about a little boy to a teammate who’s already in China working at the orphanage. I was a little annoyed that this guy was taking our conversation off-topic, but he was actually asking about the boy he’s adopting! It was so neat to hear the love & joy in his voice. It’s going to be so neat to be around people like that!