We are all temporary

In the spring of 2001 I went on a mission trip to L.A.

24 hours on a bus, one way. One of the couples on the trip was Eric and Brie Gomez. They were newly married, and were very much in love. I didn't spend a whole lot of time getting to know them, but in just a few minutes of speaking with Brie, especially, you knew she had a very sweet spirit and loved the Lord ferociously.

Brie passed away early today, leaving behind a 6 year old, a 22-month-old, and a baby boy that was delivered in an emergency C-section at 30 weeks. I didn't know Brie and Eric beyond my year spent at FBC Lubbock, but my heart is heavy today with her loss.

A mutual friend remarked that while this is was a shock to all, this was not a shock to God. And no matter what life is like on earth, nothing compares to being present with the Lord. This loss is another reminder that none of us are guaranteed a long life.

How lovely is

Your dwelling place

Oh Lord Almighty,

For my soul longs

And even faints

For You

Oh, here my heart

Is satisfied (is satisfied)

Within Your presence

I sing beneath

The shadow of

Your wings

Better is one day in Your courts

Better is one day in Your house

Better is one day in Your courts

Than thousands elsewhere

Better is one day in Your courts

Better is one day in Your house

Better is one day in Your courts

Than thousands elsewhere

(Than thousands elsewhere)

One thing I ask,

And I would seek,

To see Your beauty

To find You in

The place Your glory dwells

(One thing I ask)

One thing I ask

And I would seek,

To see Your beauty

To find You in

The place Your glory dwells

Better is one day in Your courts

Better is one day in Your house

Better is one day in Your courts

Than thousands elsewhere

Better is one day in Your courts

Better is one day in Your house

Better is one day in Your courts

Than thousands elsewhere

(Better is one day)

Better is one day in Your courts

Better is one day in Your house

Better is one day in Your courts

Than thousands elsewhere

Better is one day in Your courts

Better is one day in Your house

Better is one day in Your courts

Than thousands elsewhere

(My heart and flesh cry out)

My heart and flesh cry out

To You, the Living God

Your Spirit's water to my soul

I've tasted, and I've seen

Come once again to me

I will draw near to You

I will draw near to You

To You

morning Glory to God

Tonight, we had a roommate dinner and went to see "Morning Glory". We did it minus one roommate, who is out of town, and said roommate does not like to watch movies in the theater. I think this stems from the fact that she believes watching movies, when you can't do something else at the same time, is in fact a waste of time. No judgement here, but the rest of us in the house do enjoy a brief respite from reality.

In tonight's feature, we saw a young woman achieve her dreams (dream job, dream man) by merely staying positive, working tirelessly, and never giving up, all in one hour, 42 minutes. Great huh? She even managed to look prettier as time went on and her work stress increased. Incredible. What a role model for us young women out there. She's 28. I'm 28. According to this movie, if I give my heart and soul to my job, show up early, leave late, I will find great satisfaction in my job, and most likely will meet a great guy, who just happens to be rich, handsome, and pursues me before he even knows more than my name. Perfect.

Can you taste my sarcasm through your computer screen? Don't get me wrong, it was a cute movie, no regrets about spending $10. A nice escape from reality. BUT, it is merely an escape, not reality. You cannot always find satisfaction in your job by working tirelessly. Actually, I've found, in the short 3 years I've been a professional, that being the first one at work, and the last to leave, actually decreases my job satisfaction. And if you look for a great guy, you may not find one. And if you don't look for a great guy, you may not find one. And if you oscillate between looking and not looking, you may not find one. And no matter how much your mom prays, you may not find one... Alas, your reality may be working with people you don't like, in a job that doesn't pay what you want, and the only person you share your bed with is a cat. (Not that I know anything about this) However, if this is your life, then God says we should glorify Him in it. (1 Cor. 10:31) I guess there's just not room in Hollywood tales for glorifying God.

Overstuffed Suitcases and Dominoes

The good thing about being a poor suitcase packer is that you have plenty of experience to draw from when the airline checking attendant informs you that your suitcase weighs too much..."Three pounds? That's it?" Once, when ending an 8-week stay in PA, I was 12-lbs over and was forced to carry around multiple pairs of shoes in a laundry bag in the Philly airport before I boarded. Not my finest hour I'll admit, but I didn't have to pay the required $50 for overweight baggage. So three pounds is nothing. I knew exactly what to go for: shoes and books.

Yesterday afternoon I met up with my good friend Barbara, who befriended my parents through the Officers Christian Fellowship when we were living in Connecticut in the early 80's. Real early 80's. Like, before I was born 80's. Barbara is an independent, well-traveled, 70-something-yr-old mother and grandmother, who has never met a stranger. We took an hour+ long hike through the woods where I saw the Pennsylvania forests in their last minutes of changing. The trees were looking forward to being dormant for awhile. They told me.

We had dinner at her condo: Barbara, myself, and Andre, her downstairs neighbor. Barbara and Andre are quite a pair. When Barbara first told me she had invited her downstairs neighbor for dinner I imagined an older man, probably in his 50s or 60s, who was quiet, a bit of a homebody, and a diligent worker who was looking forward to retiring in Florida. Couldn't have been more wrong.

Andre is a 36-yr-old single, college-educated, African-American, former male model who appears to be anything but a homebody. Barbara treated him like a long-lost-son, listening diligently to him share his frustrations regarding his parents and dating, and offering sage advice when appropriate. In return, Andre teased her about: being a "cougar", her hearing, and him being able to hear her get up to use the bathroom in the middle of the night. The three of us played Mexican Train dominoes until about 1am. It was a strange juxtaposition of backgrounds, finding fellowship over a game of dominoes. I loved it.

I'm now awaiting my flight back to Austin, with a layover in Tampa, carrying my bag full of books, and of course, a pair of shoes.

Vacay

I'm on vacation this week. Where does one go on vacation, with limited funds, at the end of October, alone? Idk. But I traveled to see my aunt and uncle in PA.

Today's highs:

Catching up with old friends. Today I drove about 20 miles to see the couple who used to babysit myself and my siblings after school, and before school, and my brother all day. They are very salt of the earth type of people. I don't really know what "salt of the earth" means, but the title seems to fit them. They have worked hard every day of their lives. And their days are probably longer than most. mine for sure. They raise chickens, and rabbits and they grow all sorts of produce and sell it at a roadside stand of sorts. When I pulled up, Mrs. K. didn't recognize me. She was behind the shed, and she heard the phone ringing, so she came running, in her rubber work boots, waders, and puffy vest, in the awkward sort of run that only a 72-yr-old farmer lady can do. I said, "Mrs. K.! It's me! Emily!" and her eyes got big and she opened her arms to give me a hug, and I did the same, and at the same moment we both recognized that a hug wasn't a possiblity... I had caught her and her husband in the middle of butchering chickens and she was covered in chicken blood and guts. Now, butchering chickens was always a fascinating process for my brother and I to watch as kids. Maybe that's why we don't get grossed out at stuff like that, because we were introduced to it at a young age. So I stood on a small rock, giving the nearby tree a side hug, as I watched them process the chickens from live animal to ready-to-eat. It wasn't gross, because this was their livelihood. And it felt so familiar, watching the routine I had seen so many times before. After the last chicken was finished, I watched them strip the messy, gory waders and vests off, like kids who had been playing in the snow and were now ready to go inside, but didn't want to track the wet snow in with them. We wandered inside only to find that the lemon-lime linoleum in their kitchen looked exactly the same as it had 20 years ago. And that was comforting.

I also ran into a family friend who has kept up periodically with my family through the last 20 years. And she gave me some really good advice. Essentially, she said that everyone has to learn at some point how to stand alone with only God as your support. Some people, like herself, learn this the hard way after their spouse passes away at too early an age. Other people, like myself, learn this as they wander through their 20s being single. The latter is definitely the easier way, and I should be grateful to God that He continues to allow me to learn how to lean on Him exclusively. She also said that for God, connecting two people is easy for Him (I mean, duh, He created the Universe and all that is in it!), so I shouldn't worry about it. Good words.

Today's lows:

I realized today that my camera and iPod are missing from my suitcase. And its been in my possession the whole time, except when I checked my bag in Austin, and picked it up in Philly. And the airlines "is not responsible for electronic items". too bad. Its just stuff, I realize this, but at some point, I paid for these things, (or in the case of the iPod, my parents did for my birthday), and being the stickler of finances that I am, its a hard pill to swallow.

RIP Rudolph "Rudy" Valentino. (My aunt and uncle's dog that bit me on my second day here.) Don't worry, I wasn't the sole reason for him being put down. The scars of previous bites were evidence of that.

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On Sunday at church, I was asked by a very nice lady if I was of "voting age". That's 18 for those who aren't up to date on their 26th Amendment...

Jealousy

"There's a truth you can't deny, a fact as sure as fate. There are things that can't be hurried, and things that just can't wait."

This verse was scripted at the bottom of a painting that hung in our bathroom growing up. It showed a little kid, bored, sitting on the toilet, and on the other side of the door, you saw a kid doing the potty dance. It was the 80's. It worked for our family.

There are some other truths out there you can't deny either. I was reminded of this the other day when out with some friends and ran into an acQUAINTance. She's tin-y. Like, her leg is the size of my arm. And she comes up to just above my shoulder. And she's very pretty. And she could wear a paper bag and still look nice. But, when I talk to her, I feel like I'm talking to a 12 yr old. She's nice, but just kind of lacking. I can't quite put my finger on it.. something.. However, the truth of the matter is, the truth I can't deny, is that she will always attract the attention and pursuit of a guy first because, a) she is so tiny (i.e. feminine), b) pretty, and c) has mastered the oh-so-powerful art of flirting. And no matter what size I am, I will always look like a horse in comparison to her (no need for an intervention, I know what size I am really, but relatively speaking), and I will never master the art of flirting, because I like to be genuine, and I don't feel genuine if I feel I must give false-flattery in order for a guy to feel good.

In reality though, I'm just jealous of how tiny she is, how pretty she is, and how easily she catches the eye of all gentlemen in the near vicinity.

And jealousy is not pretty. That's a fact.

Neighborhood pests

Dear Mosquitoes,

Find some tree bark, land on it, and get yourself covered in some sap, so you can sit on said tree and be discovered millions of years later, with the story turned into a made-for-tv Lifetime movie about the vast amounts of blood you drained out of me while I peacefully sat on the front porch trying to read.

Your local universal donor

E

All work and no play makes jack a dull boy. or jane in this case.

In just a little over 2 weeks I'll be celebrating my one year anniversary at my job. In those 12 months I've had no increase in pay, I've been given more responsibility, and I can honestly say I enjoy my job more today than I did my first month there. Pretty great huh? That doesn't mean I don't need to take a vacation from my great job every now and then. In the next month, I'll be traveling to an unlikely vacation destination. Central Pennsylvania!

I'm hoping to catch the peak, or perhaps just past the peak, of the fall foliage in Pennsylvania. Fall foliage + a week away from the job, typical routine, stress = a good vacation. Plus, I'll get to see two of my favorite people on the east coast: my Aunt Kathie and Uncle Steve a.k.a. my east coast parents. :)

I plan to not do much for that week, except read, take pics of fall foliage, visit old friends, and explore some sweet small towns.

Speaking of work:

A confused Croatian man told me the other day I look like a young Nancy Reagan.

A very upset patient told me the other day "You are SO annoying me right now!"

Last week, I encountered a grumpy old man. He was recovering from an abdominal surgery and wasn't doing much moving. In the middle of our first session, as he was walking backwards (his choice) to his chair (a whole 5 feet), he said, "whaddya do that for, dingbat?" I wasn't in the mood, so I replied, "Are you talking to yourself again? Why'd you call yourself a dingbat?" He said "I called YOU a dingbat for moving that chair backwards." I am not above moving a chair so a patient will have to walk farther, however I always tell the patient what I'm doing. The man accused me of lying and called me a dingbat again. 5 minutes later, after a firm talking to, with me laying out the ground-rules for physical therapy (i.e. no name calling, no lying, etc...) I got three apologies from him and from then on we've gotten along great. except for his annoying "high tech nursery rhymes" he insists on telling me... don't ask...

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I can't write a blog post without honorable mention to my friends Erin and Chris who are planning their upcoming nuptials. They've been dating for over five years and it's been wonderful to see their relationship mature to this point.