"And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose." - Romans 8: 28 [KJV]
and hey, KJV, happy birthday!!! you'll always be my fav!!!
moving on...
So I took my extended vaca, and I'm back in the swing of things now. But I got to do some deep thinking first. Here goes:
1. I am very stubborn. Even when things don't go my way, I will do everything I can to see it through. Case in point: I originally scheduled this trip with the intention of seeing a friend while I was there. I ended up spending the entire week solo. (Or at least without anyone I already knew.)
2. Before I try something new, or am faced with a great task, I feel paralyzing fear. But once I'm pushed out of my comfort zone to the point of "no return" I'm fine. I thrive and am completely at ease. Case in point: flying 1,000 miles to rent a car for the first time and drive around a state I hadn't set foot in for 22 years. (If you can't do the math, the last time I was in Florida I was only four.) (FYI: I got into a fender-bender in my rental, handled it on my own, and lived to tell about it. Take that adulthood!)
3. Sometimes I get God. In the weeks prior to my trip, I became aware that things with my friend might not come together. As the last window of opportunity to see my friend came to a close, it was heartbreaking because I knew I had allowed the friendship to become a distraction. I knew I had put more active energy into that relationship than into my relationship with Christ. I knew what would happen; I think part of me wanted it to happen. Such a morbid display of human kind reminds us of the eternal good that is found in Christ. Even while I was intrinsically melancholy, I also knew that it was a necessary outcome and would ultimately bring me to a better place. (See Romans 8: 28 above)
4. When I am in between a rock and a hard place, I can fly! (See #2) I was, for whatever reason, terrified about getting my passport, about pulling everything together for Africa. Even though I had a feeling I would not see my friend on my trip, and was feeling a bit down about that, AND feeling nervous about planning for Africa, I made myself get my butt in gear. On Halloween, the day before I left for my trip, I applied for my passport and clearances. One clearance was back before I even got home. My passport was in within 10 days. The last clearance came in today. Less than three weeks. God is so good.
5. I'm a glutton for punishment. And I love it. I went on one run in each of the first two weeks in October and didn't run at all the rest of the time before the race. That's three weeks without any running at all. Five weeks with two measly runs totaling less than 7 miles. Followed by a 13.1 mile run in one morning. As my very wise friend said to me that morning, "but you'll make it, your thrive on destroying yourself." He was right. I do, and I did. Somehow everything is faster during a race. My sprints are faster. My mile pace is faster. Seriously! A month sans running and I still hit a new half-marathon PR!!!
6. Sometimes I'm too hard on other people. I forget that they can surprise you, if you let them. I ran with two remarkable ladies. I came home and had a fund raiser for my Africa trip. I was overwhelmed with all of the love and support I have received so far. I even discussed my trip with one of my managers at work and she took the idea of me being gone much better than I had anticipated. God is so, so good.
7. I really like driving. (I just wanted to put that out there.)
8. I am a "capital T" T-U-L-I-P, for all you Calvinists out there, and I should be. The man upstairs has been looking out for me. I planned a few specific adventures for this trip. But then I thought I was just going to an aquarium, because it seemed like a fun way to kill some time, and it turned out it was the aquarium from Dolphin Tale. Winter, the dolphin the movie revolves around, is really there and really tale-less. My parents took me to Sea World, in Ohio, every summer up, until it was purchased by Geauga Lake. This experience was beyond cool in my book!
Oh, and I pet some stingrays, too!!!
9. I adore my family. The experiences of the past few weeks have allowed me to become aware on a different level of the bonds we share. Including taking my "baby" brother shopping for the first time. At Old Navy. We got into credit cards, rewards points, and credit scores... they grow up so fast! (touche, but true)
