Happy New Year!

At least it's the new year here!

I know that this is my second post for the day but I felt like I should blog for the new year.

I have been so blessed this past year it is unbelievable. God has taking me so far in directions I never thought I would go. figuratively and literally. ;) 
There are no words to describe or explain how amazing 2011 turned out to be. So, I won't try to capture it all but here are a few things:

• traveled to Florida
• got accepted into U of I
• went to Nashville on a work team
• I turned 20
• I got my wisdom teeth out
• went to the TN sing
• Wyss family vacation
• Metzger reunion
• Ellie got engaged and married
• I moved to Champaign
• I became an aunt
• I was accepted into the India program
• Lastly I am now in India having experiences of a lifetime

Some of my favorite verses this year:
Psalm 48:10 "Be still and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth."

Isaiah 41:10 "Fear thou not for I am with thee: be not dismayed for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness."

Philippians 1:6 "Be confident in this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ."

Have a wonderful new year!

In Christ
~Michelle

Day 3 - hospital visit, temple tour, new year's

Day 3

Today was full of ups and downs.

We toured the Meenakshi hospital. We were greeted again with a rose and a yellow dot for our foreheads. Meenakshi Mission Hospital is a non-profit hospital that is hosting us. It was so cool.  We got to see pretty much everything including oncology, surgery, radiation, ICU, ER and even the Smile Train section for clef pallet surgery. The kids were so cute.

In the afternoon we went to the huge and famous Meenakshi temple.  Again there were women walking around the temple presenting us with flowers and red-teardrop dots for our foreheads.  Really, I don't know the significance of the dots and no one I ask seems to know.  They come off easily though. Which is nice.

The architecture was amazing, the colors spectacular and the stonework was beautiful. But, as I watched people crying out and kneeling before stone figures, waving incense, and dedicating babies I could only feel sick.  All of the hundreds of thousands of people I see in the streets here putting their faith in idols and sculptures is just sickening. With all the grandeur they have created in that temple and many others they still have nothing.

On a lighter note there were a few funny things that happened today.  Everyone has to take off their shoes before they can enter the temple.  So, they are left in piles in designated areas. As I walked down the street I saw a little bow leaving one of these shoe areas caring a pair of huge men’s dress shoes. He took off down the street and was soon lost in the crowd. :) hehe.

While riding in the bus or walking down the street people stare at us, especially the men.  It’s not creepy but it is odd. People here in Madurai drive extremely close to each other and this particular time we were probably only two feet from the other vehicle.  A boy, maybe about 16 years old, looked over at us and his face lit up. American girls! He and all the other guys in the car began waving and smiling at us. It made me feel special. At least someone appreciates me. ;)

Street sellers were sort of a new thing for me and today we saw a lot today. They wouldn’t stop bugging us today. Even if you would say no and look away, they would try to explain why you need it.

The saddest thing to see are the beggars; Women missing arms, men who can’t walk, and starving children. We were told not to give to beggars. Saying no is so hard.

Tonight was our New Year’s party.  The Meenakshi Mission Sunshine Hotel put on a concert/party for us. It was extremely cool but awkward all the same. We ate a traditional Indian dinner and watched a traditional Indian dance on the rooftop of the hotel.  The hotel workers showed of their awesome and hilarious Indian dance moves as well all laughed and clapped along. At midnight they set off fireworks and shouted across the road to other Indian partying on their rooftops.

I don’t drink and I don’t dance.  I realized that this is my first time ever spending a long period of time, alone in a group as a Christian. And it hit me hard tonight.  Never did I want to join them but it is hard to have a really truly good time when you are alone but you can’t get away.

Today has been a long day and I finally have some time to myself. I left them all on the roof top and I’m enjoying the quietness of my hotel room.

In Christ

~Michelle

Day 2- Road Trip

Today we got up early and checked out of our rooms at the blossom hotel. Breakfast was at 8:00 and we loaded the buses around 10. 

The sights along the road to Madurai were like nothing I had ever seen.  It was pouring down rain. There were people riding motor cycles holding umbrellas. The streets were deep with water. They walk or ride motor cycles here and most people don’t wear shoes. They wait under over passes and along the road.   Cows are everywhere as well as stray dogs.  The craziest thing to me is the amount of trash along the road.  Everywhere you look there are plies of trash.

We stopped at a restaurant alongside the road.  The food was amazing.  We ate off of banana leaves with our hands.  There was a pile of rice in the middle and a few sauces around the side. It was incredibly messy especially because you can only use your right hand.

I fell asleep after that and I don’t remember much else of the drive.

We made it to our hotel in Madurai around 8:00pm. Here we were greeted by a woman who marked our foreheads with red paint and then we were each presented with a garland around our necks. 

The hospitality and service here is incredible. They do everything for you.  It gets kind of frustrating because I'd rather do it myself.

Its only my second day but it feels like I've been gone a for a week already.

In Christ

~Michelle

India Day 1

The day was spent in Chennai sightseeing and shopping. We started the day out with a traditional Indian breakfast.  There were two different pancake looking dishes one was extremely spicy and the other bland. They had donut shaped things that were also spicy. Since I forgot my water and we aren’t supposed to drink tap water I didn’t eat much. 

We went to a local bazzar shopping center thing and all of the girls bought Saris to where on New Years.

We then went to the St. Thomas church where the bones of the disciple Thomas are supposed to be buried.  It was cool.  We took our shoes off to go in.  It was strange walking around a large cathedral barefoot, but it definitely made the experience really interesting.

From there we drove to the beach. Supposedly there is a cyclone rolling in and the waves were huge. Because of the cyclone, it rained most of the day.   

It’s strange here. Every one stares and the kids beg for pictures. They are so cute.  At the beach there was a man videotaping our group and laughing at us. We must look extremely odd to them.

I got to take a long nap in the afternoon. I feel so much better.

Things I have learned:

• How to tie a sari
• The honking has a purpose- they don’t have lanes so they honk whenever they are going to pass someone or need to merge.
• Indians really don’t follow a time table. The come and go whenever. I’m so not used to it. Everything is a hour later and it’s perfectly normal.

Anyway, things are going fine. I'm not adjusted to the time zone yet but hopefully it will come. The food is good but I can't take much of it at a time. I'm very thankful for the granola bars I brought.

Tomorrow we are traveling to Madurai where we will stay for the rest of the time.

In Christ
~Michelle

I've Arrived

After 24 hours I have safely arrived in Chennai, India.  I am completely exhausted.  The first flight was around 8 hours long and the second almost 10 hours. We had a 5 hour layover in Frankfurt in the early morning. 

We were greeted with flowers at the airport. 

I’ve maybe had 10 hours of sleep in the past 48 hours. :P

A few things about India so far:

Everyone honks like crazy late into the night

They drive on the other side of the road

Its rain y right now

The showers don’t have curtains

The power cuts out

So, far so good. There haven’t been any major problems yet.  But I’m having fun! :)

Thanks for your prayers

In Christ

~Michelle

GLORY!

Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will towards men. Luke 2:14


Christmas is here and once again it has arrived suddenly.  With all the  craziness around buying presents and getting ready for India it kind of snuck up on me.
But, it's here and I'm feeling all giddy :)


I love every thing about Christmas. Especially how the each time I hear the story something else seems to jump out at me. It never changes but its never the same. :)

~~~~~

In Christ alone! who took on flesh
Fulness of God in helpless babe!
This gift of love and righteousness
Scorned by the ones he came to save:
Till on that cross as Jesus died,
The wrath of God was satisfied -
For every sin on Him was laid;
Here in the death of Christ I live.
~~~~~

For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6

Merry Christmas! :)

In Christ

~Michelle

Friends and Cousins

Just a bit over due on this one.

The other week I got together with my 'school' friends for Christmas. We exchanged gifts and spent the rest of the evening and into the night just talking. We don't see each other much so we have a lot to catch up on.

All together :) I love these girls.

Since I will be gone for the big Wyss Christmas, I decided to give my gift early.  I had Carli's name and she had asked for a fun day out with her friends. So, I took 7 girls out to each at Avanti's and then ice-skating.  It was a lot of fun. I haven't been ice-skating since last winter.

Well, other then that not much has been going on, except for a few set backs with my India trip. I'm trying to remain calm and patient. Prayers are definitely appreciated.

I  leave in 4 days!

In Christ

~Michelle

Not much

I made it through finals.
Social workers don't really have finals we just have 10-15 pages papers as our finals. This semester I wrote over 80 pages of research papers. I thought I was smart and I used the same topic for all 80 of those. But after writing five different papers on human trafficking, it got extremely depressing.  

I've been off school for almost a week now. I am completely loving it. Its so nice and relaxing to not think about anything...Ha.
So far, I've spent break shopping, trying to figure out what is still wrong with my eyes, Christmas caroling, cleaning, making lists, making plans, packing for India...but other than that I really have had a lot of down time.

India is coming up really fast. I can hardly believe it. Ten days to go!

My rabbit is no more. I've had it for ten years at least. I never named it. It bit me so I never really liked it.  I was not aware of it's demise until I saw the cage was empty. It was not of natural causes.
Needless to say, I shed no tear.

It was Jenny's birthday today so, she and Bob and Cecily came over. Cecily is so funny. Her facial expressions are priceless.

Tomorrow marks a week until Christmas. Six shopping days. Let the people go crazy.

In Christ
~Michelle

Well, that wasn't awkward at all

I just had to give a short persuasive speech in front of class on why I would make a good date.

Needless to say no one was convinced.
Thank goodness :)

Everyone had to do it too, and there were some absolutely hilarious ones.

"It will be a good time with a lot of things we will laugh about later..."
"It's ok though, I live in Kansas you can always avoid me later."
This one must be read in a Chinese accent- "If your tired of seeing Americans I'm the one to date." :)

Oh, my.

In Christ
~Michelle

Group work

I strongly dislike group work.

1. I'm the only one who ever seems to remember when things are due.
2. I'm the only one who ever seems to remember what we are supposed to do.
3. I then somehow become the one they blame for confusing them.
4. I'm the only one who ever initiates a group meeting.
5. I'm one of the 50% that actually shows up.

arg. So, I saw this on facebook and it totally made me laugh:

Yup. This is my life right now.  We social workers are supposed to be people persons ...but these group projects are definitely making me realize how much I enjoy working on my own. :)

In Christ

~Michelle

Making a scene

What have I been up to?

Oh...not much accept having way too much fun with crime scene tape. hehe.

The Upper Room used crime scene tape to create a pretty cool Christmas card. We climbed out on our small roofs and leaned out windows to tape it up. It probably looked quite scary. Not an opportune moment for your landlord to walk by. Well, he did and he laughed. a lot. I think I have a pretty awesome landlord.

Anyway...

The Upper Room Christmas Card Tries:

Smiling

Crazy

 

Final Product :)

So, what do you do with left over crime scene tape when you are a college student and you have reason to believe all members of a certain household will not be home?

Crime scene up their front porch :)

  (too bad it was dark out...the picture doesn't do it justice)

And then...hide in the darkness and wait to see their reaction :)

As we were waiting we decided to add to it. So, Katie and I took up street corners to keep a look out and Laura added a chalk man to the scene. We had to keep it nice because obviously we weren't doing this anonymously and we really don't want any great retribution.


I have successfully pulled my first prank...ever.
fun times


In Christ
~Michelle

Getting there

Slowly but surely the semester is winding down.

I only have about a week and a half and all this school craziness will be over.  Only about twelve pages left to research and type. Only one more speech. Only three more finals and I'll be done.

India is also slowly taking shape. This has definitely been a patience building experience. As of now,  everything is on track ...so far.  Its been quite crazy with doors opening and closing all over the place. But, God truly has purpose in it and it has been amazing to see how He has worked everything out.
I am extremely grateful for this opportunity and I am so excited to travel to India. I may (the Lord willing) even be able to visit my compassion  sponsor child. This still is all dependent on when my group will be returning to Chennai. But, thankfully for once I have learned not to worry. God is in control of this too as He had been for every other aspect of this trip.

Other than all this excitement and school stress, life has just been fun. :)
Thanksgiving break was wonderful. I got a lot done, caught up on my sleep and ate way more than I probably should have. 
My little niece is getting cuter by the day. :) Such a little dolly...sometimes. She makes the most hilarious faces and grunts all the time. hehe.

The other evening I spent some time with Brooke and a bunch of other girls for her birthday. It was a lot of fun. We baked and decorated Christmas cookies and played a lot of games. We were going to play football but sadly we were rained out.
And this is it for November.

Bring on the Christmas lights and music, some eggnog by a Christmas tree, and all the shopping, gatherings, and craziness that will come this December. :)

In Christ
~Michelle

And another one down...

sigh...
all my friends are getting married.


Yup. I'm getting to be an old maid at the age of 20.
Alas.
What shall become of me. :)


Last night I leaned that one of my old high school bunch has bit the dust and is ENGAGED!


                                      
                                                    senior year...this seems so long ago!

 all together again for the big news...

ahhh!! :)

Congratulations Katie and Reilly! They are already cute and I haven't actually seen them together! :)


I still can't believe I'm old enough for this.

In Christ
~Michelle

Let All Things Now Living

There is so much to be thankful for. I don't even know where to begin. God has once again brought me a very long way since last year.  My parents, my family, and all of my friends are all so amazing. U of I has been such a wonderful experience. I get the opportunity to go to India I have a house, I warm bed... and on and on. I love Thanksgiving. It definitely makes you think.              ~~~ Let all things now living A song of thanksgiving To God the creator Triumphantly raise. Who fashioned and made us, Protected and stayed us, Who still guides us on To the end of our days. God's banners are o'er us, His light goes before us, A pillar of fire Shining forth in the night. 'Til shadows have vanished And darkness is banished As forward we travel From light into light. His law he enforces, The stars in their courses And sun in its orbit Obediently shine; The hills and the mountains, The rivers and fountains, The deeps of the ocean Proclaim him divine. We too should be voicing Our love and rejoicing; With glad adoration A song let us raise Till all things now living Unite in thanksgiving: "To God in the highest, Hosanna and praise!"

In Christ
~Michelle

Getting Used to It

I spent the weekend in Belvidere with Troy and Ellie.  It was an absolutely wonderful weekend.

Wendi, Larissa, and Brooke met at my house and we drove up Friday night. I love road trips. I got to catch up on all the happenings back home.

Ellie's apartment is really cute. We had a lot of fun that night just sitting around and troy taught us to play the tongue drum. Its a really cool African sounding wooden drum. I think I want one. :)

Saturday morning Darcy joined us and we took the train into Chicago.

waiting for the train

We sat in the upper deck of the train and watched the scenery and people. It was a nice calm ride compared to driving into the city.

passing another train.

brooke, darcy, wendi, me, larissa, ellie :)

Chicago! :)

While we were waiting (for an hour and a half) for the Cheesecake Factory, Brooke, Darcy and I walked to the lake.

too bad the water was probably freezing cold. :)

The Cheesecake Factory was amazing. It was definitely worth the wait. It is Darcy's birthday this week so Troy had them sing to her. 

We actually didn't do much shopping. It was a Saturday and the stores were really packed and we had to get back before the train left.  We did get a nice tour of the city though.

 It was really sad walking around. There were so many homeless people begging for food and money.  Some of them would walk up to you while others wouldn't even look at you.  They all looked so cold, dirty, and lonely. I never know what to do when I see things like that. You can't help them all and you don't know their motives. But, still I feel bad just walking past.   

After a beautiful day in the city we made our way back to the train station. Thanks to Darcy's amazing memory and the help of a homeless man who was walking by we made it to the train on time. Needless to say we gave him a gift card to McDonald's.

Brooke and I sharing some really good chocolate coconut cream cheesecake on the train. :)

Then we headed back to T and E's where we ate pizza, or at least tried to we were so full of cheesecake.  We were all tired from walking around chicago all day so we went to bed early.

To Troy's surprise all four of us girls got ready in the bathroom with no problems and we made it to Belvidere church on time. We left right after church and headed home.

That was such a great weekend. (Thank you Troy and Ellie for putting up with us!) I had so much fun and it was wonderful just to be able to hang out with some of my friends. After a stressful week at school, it was so encouraging to spend time away with wonderful people.

So, I'm finally getting used to the fact that Ellie is an old married woman. :)

In Christ

~Michelle

I just want to sleep

The weekend was crazy.

 I began the weekend with only 4.5 hours of sleep and I don't think I added too much to that number.


Friday was spent rushing around so that I could make it home in time to run to the courthouse to get another passport because it turns out that my passport wouldn't work to get my visa which I need to get before I can go to India....


Yah, and then I went home and did home work and got ready for the weekend. This weekend was our huge yg invite. I think it went well considering the stress level of all of those in charge.


Saturday morning we all met at church to start cooking the Lasagna. It went really well but it took forever and we ran out of cheese twice. So, we showed up at the FH an hour late but we still had plenty of time to get everything in order.

Cooking away...

  

aprons make the job so much more fun :)

The Lasagna ended up being really runny but everyone said it was good and they came back for seconds. :)

I spent the night at Emily's because my house was overrun by men. We had a lot of fun with our company and probably stayed up way too late.

Sunday we stormed the church with about 200 extra guests.
Food went well in the evening, thanks to the adults who came to help. I actually got to talk to people after supper, which was really nice considering the whole weekend was for fellowship. :)

There were so many people that I haven't seen in so long. It was wonderful. I got to see my cousins, TroyandEllie, all the oakville girls and a lot of my friends from back home that I don't see enough.

After Sunday night clean up I hurried home and packed up all my stuff and headed back to Champaign.

I love invite weekends.

In Christ 

~Michelle

Anniversary

Yup. That's right.

I've had this blog for one whole year.

A lot has changed in a year.


I don't go to ICC any more, I took a ton of trips, met a lot of great people, I quit my job, my best friend got married, I moved to U of I, I became an aunt, and soon I'll (Lord willing) be on my way to India. :)

And there's so much more to come...but I have no idea what. :)

               ~~~~~~
The Road goes ever on and on
Down from the door where it began.
Now far ahead the Road has gone,
And I must follow, if I can,
Pursuing it with eager feet,
Until it joins some larger way
Where many paths and errands meet.
And whither then? I cannot say.

Roads go ever ever on
Under cloud and under star,
Yet feet that wandering have gone
Turn at last to home afar.
Eyes that fire and sword have seen
And horror in the halls of stone
Look at last on meadows green
And trees and hills they long have known.

The Road goes ever on and on
Out from the door where it began.
Now far ahead the Road has gone,
Let others follow it who can!
Let them a journey new begin,
But I at last with weary feet
Will turn towards the lighted inn,
My evening-rest and sleep to meet.

-- J R R Tolkien

It's been fun. Thanks for reading! :)


In Christ
~Michelle

All the colors of the wind

Monday night we had trick-or-treater's. It was so fun. I don't remember ever having a trick-or-teater at home.

It is so beautiful here in Urbana.

Most of the trees still have their leaves. There are Reds, yellows, oranges, purples, browns, and there's still some greens.

My walk to class and back is lovely.

The weather has been lovely as well. :) So, I've been doing homework on the front step in the sunshine. Its wonderful.

Sigh...why does winter have to come?

In Christ

~Michelle

Craftiness

Our apartment is kind of bare. So, on the weekends I head home and make stuff to fill the empty shelves and walls. It's been fun. 

scarf rack - I think it's pretty cool

I'm not really sure what you would call those two...whatever, I like the way they look :)

I had a really cool ballet calendar last year. I cut it up and now I have pictures for my wall.

This has been a while ago but it's finally filling up with pictures.

It was an old window I found in the shed.

Next project is to find something to go above my bunk bed and get some curtains.

In Christ

~Michelle

procrastination

I stayed up until 12am* the morning a paper was due...but that's not procrastination.

Procrastination is the kids who will skip their first class so that they can start their papers. :)

Here at U of I I'm an overachiever and I'm still drinking coffee. :)

*to those of you who are scoffing at such an early finish- I do realize 12am is not that exciting.

In Christ
~Michelle

leggings rant

ok. Girls.

Yes, I know leggings were the most amazing invention for freezing cold days. But, worn appropriately! I wear leggings. In fact, this week I've been wearing two pairs at a time- under my skirts.

Wearing just leggings on a 30 degree day is insane. Not to mention that they are completely and unquestionably one of the most immodest articles of clothing.
Seriously, I don't know how they can even feel comfortable wandering around in their thin little long-johns.

Oo. And just because they look like jeans doesn't mean you should wear them as such.

Also under the inappropriate attire section (That I did view today)
Flip flops! I'm not even kidding.
Very low tops. I wonder if they realize that the reason they are cold is because half of their shirt is missing.

Arg! Its so frustrating. Except for that ridiculousness, they all look cute with their anthropologie sweaters, adorable boots, and northface jackets and here I am. My only consolation is that I am probably one of the only girls on campus who is actually warm. :) This is one good instance where modesty actually is most practical. Yay, for being modest!

Really, though. If  I wasn't so nice I'd deck some people in the fashion industry over the head. But...I'm too nice for that. :)

In Christ
~Michelle

World Traveler

Well, It's really going to happen.


I'm (Lord willing) going to India!!!! :)

I'm studying abroad with the Social Work program this winter.
I will be visiting:

-          a leprosy asylum – a community for people with Hansen's disease and their families;

-     the Mahasemam Trust of Madurai a microfinance organization

-          an organization that works with sex workers and provides a HIV/Aids prevention program;

-    The Meenekshi Mission Hospital has 43 specialties including pediatric oncology, palliative care and hospice, Telemedicine, and health camps for poor children.

-          Habitat for Humanity houses built for Mahasemam clients and their families;

-          The Aravind Eye Hospital whose mission is to end unnecessary blindness with a focus on the poor

-          Thalir Thiran Thittm (Aparajitha Foundation), which has developed a life skills education program for children in the 7^th through 12^th grades

Eek :)!!!  I'm extremely excited but also very nervous.  It's going to be a lot of work and I'll see a lot of poverty. 

So that's my exciting news for the day.

In Christ
~Michelle

Prayers are appreciated

College Weekend

This year ICC hosted and each college yg was invited to Washington church. I went with U of I.  It was an extremely strange feeling. I was a visitor in my own church. I didn't have to be incharge of anything or help with anything or even pretend to know anything. :)


I had a great time. I got to see a lot of people that I haven't seen in a very long time.  U of I was the smallest group there, but definitely the coolest ;). I mean who else plays nerdy hang-man  during group song practice time?


For some reason the U of I yg has a fascination with baptismal tubs and  Washington has a very special one. It fills from the bottom.  So, I led a sneaky tour to the back of the church to view the tub. they were all impressed. yes, we are strange. We admit it. :)
 The whole weekend was great. The topic was walking in  the Spirit. It was encouraging and strengthening to listen to the talks and spend time with old friends.

This I say then, walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. Galatians 5: 16

In Christ
~ Michelle

Good Weekend

I went home this weekend. It was wonderful.

I stayed down in Champaign late on Friday for a cookout and hay rack ride. It was a great night complete with a discussion on the difference between hay and straw and whether the ride should be called a straw ride or a hay rack ride. The stars were out and the weather was lovely. I have decided that if it weren't for the coming of winter, fall would be my favorite season.

On Saturday I met my niece. :)  Little baby Cecily ...

aw. the poor girl...Matt gave her that onesie.

the best picture we could get.  but she is a cutey :)

That evening I got to hang out with Kendra, Wendi, and Troy and Ellie! :) That was good. It seemed just like old times.

Sunday, I went to Washington for the first time in six weeks! It was nice to be back.

Oh, and congratulations to Breana! She's engaged! :)

In Christ

~Michelle



Seven Times

I'm starting to feel old.


I've been to Apple River seven times now. The yg has changed drastically since then.
I did some random counting:
I've been in the yg with 80 different people
and our yg normally has around 40 people at a time
out of that 80 there are only 10 of us who have lasted these past 7 years.
I've seen 70 people come or go. That's crazy.
No wonder I feel old.

the yg in 2006

now

Anyway...Though I 've been there done that, I still thoroughly enjoy spending time with the yg and going to apple river.  This year was really good. I love the apple cider and carmel apples, the great conversations, the fun, the encouragement, and walking around in beautiful nature.

oh, how I love little white churches

Apple river :)

Some of the girls

I went from being one of the youngest people on the trip to being semi-responsible.  I remember my first trip. I thought my room-moms were so old and mature. I think that I am older now than they were.

Oh, the times they are a changin'

In Christ

~Michelle

I think I might have been Hazed...

Into the U of I yg :)


I went on a tomb run yesterday or should I say today.
(tomb run- delivering food from the empty tomb food pantry to people in need)
Yesterday, we showed up at the lady's house but she wasn't there. So, after a few emails back and forth we set up a time.


Jake and Laura came with me. The lady was deaf and she left us a note to get her attention through the window. So, Laura got the job of getting her attention, while Jake and I waited awkwardly in the hall. It took a while but suddenly there was a  high pitch scream. A few seconds later the door opens and we were let in. The poor lady...Laura had scared her. The only way we could communicate was by writing on paper.  We  didn't stay long but before we left she gave us all hugs...poor Jake :)


We were on our way when we realized that we had left all the meat and bread in the freezer at church. At church we realized we didn't have a church key. So, we called Sarah and she drove over to let us in.
And we were on our way again.


All the lights were off when we got back to her apartment so we left it outside and sent her an email. But, as we went back to the car Laura decided to steal someone's car. Well, not really. She just accidentally got into the wrong car and didn't notice Jake and I standing by my car.  I'm not really sure why that car was unlocked though.


Two hours after we picked Jake up we arrived back at the Shake. Not until after he got a call from his roommate wondering what had become of him.

Well, it's Jake's birthday so the shake had brown house over for a quartet singing and I made Jake a really cool cake. So when we walked in they began singing "Happy birthday dear Jakey..." :)

hehehehe :)

he was excited about his cake and gallon of mountain dew from the shake. :P

Well, that was quite a night. :) 

In Christ

~Michelle