i only see you when my sight is lost

Well. I've now spent a week back in Nashville, and it's been good so far. Trying to reconnect with friends has been its own job....it's not always easy to just drop yourself back in the middle of people's lives and get caught up on what's happened in the past 10 months or so. But I've been blessed with some good and gracious friends, who are being patient and supportive.

I don't start work until February 2nd, but I'm renewing my CPR for healthcare providers this week. I just picked up the book from work, which I've started going through and been reminded of what's it's like to study, just a little bit. All I have to say about that is...gross. And, wow I've gotten lazy.

Favorite story of the day: My friend Sheila is an ESL teacher for a public school system in Mississippi. Today I got a text from her that said, "I asked my first graders if they could tell me who our new president was, and Julio announced that it was Broccoli Obama. And the rest of the class agreed wholeheartedly."

I know these posts have not been that interesting....but I'm definitely enjoying a couple weeks of boring before work starts!

But here's a little excitement for you:

For your husband is your Maker
Whose name is the Lord of hosts;
And your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel,
Who is called the God of all the earth.
(isaiah 54:5)

Lift up your eyes on high
And see who has created these stars...
(isaiah 40:26)

tennessee, january...

everything is ordinary....

I'm officially moved into my apartment in Nashville. I start work in a couple weeks, and I've had Baja Burrito, so things are definitely going back to normal.

Now that I'm actually getting settled and working on reestablishing a life here, it's finally started to sink in that I'm really back- my time at home wasn't just a break, I'm really not going back to Lily, and I'm starting a new season. I've already seen how quickly I can fall back into old habits and ways of thinking, and how hard it is to carry over some of the things that I learned while I was gone. It's going to take some serious discipline and prayer to not waste the things God let me see and experience in Africa.

On a random side note, I just finished reading a book called The Ridiculous Race. I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in a) the world, and b) laughter. It was written by two friends, Steve Hely and Vali Chandrasekaran, who raced each other around the world in opposite directions without using airplanes. Some of my favorite chapter titles included, "My Parents Prefer Safety Over Awesomeness" and "Susie, the First of Many People I Encountered Who Thought I Had a Learning Disability". It made me laugh out loud, a lot, and also had a lot of interesting stuff about the different places they both traveled. I would let you borrow my copy, but it's in a box on its way to Ben (who I promised I would mention in this blog, and who I'm going to see again in 5 months), so you'll have to get your own copy!

you're unlike anything I see...

football.

Yes, I am ready for some, thank you for asking!

I went to my grandparents' house in Baton Rouge this Monday and the drive down gave me time to do some deep, contemplative thinking- namely about why I hate the Florida Gators. This topic came up because I read an article in the paper that morning about Tim Tebow, and it had a big section about his faith and how important it is to him. I have to say, it kind of took the wind out of my hating-the-Gators sails. I mean, I would still dislike them, but Tebow kind of put a damper on all the fun.

Now, I hate Ole Miss. And I hate Ole Miss for solid, specific, and eternally unchanging reasons. Yes, Oxford is a charming Southern town Square Books William Faulkner blah blah blah. It doesn't change how much I dislike you and want you to lose, Colonel Reb. But when I started to think about it, my reasons for disliking Florida were vague and harder to pinpoint. (It reminded me of when I couldn't resist taking a 'What Kind of Tom Brady Hater Are You?' quiz on MSN sports; it informed me at the end that I was a 'shallow, uninformed Tom Brady hater'. "That's RIGHT!" I said.) I finally decided it was mainly due to Steve Spurrier, who is no longer there, so that wasn't a great reason. It might also have something to do with the fact that they continually insist on defeating LSU, but I try not to think about that.

So, in summary, I will be cheering for Florida in the BCS National Championship game. I mean, I'm just glad that once again the SEC has a team playing for the national championship. (I feel that here is where I need to remind certain individuals that some conferences, such as the PAC 10, have NO teams in the national championship game.) In any case, I'm just excited to see some NCAA football again. Then I can fully devote myself to basketball season!