"Why, you will go home and then you will find that home is not home anymore.  Then you will really be in trouble.  As long as you stay here, you can always think: One day I will go home....You don't have a home until you leave it and then, when you have left it, you can never go back."
(James Baldwin, Giovanni's Room

In church today, Elijah (age 3? 4?) came to sit next to me as the sermon started, and snuggled up next to me.  So we sat there, his head leaning against me, my arm around him.  It was so precious.  And as he sat there, he whispered, "Is Jesus watching us ( Read more... )

My mind is in a million places at once.  It's been a good week, but I'm really anxious about a few things ( Read more... )

I feel like I should update.  Haven't done so for a while.  But I also haven't really felt the urge to.  I've been observing...absorbing...learning a lot.  And I've been talking a lot more...good conversations.  In the past, this journal has been more of a way for me to work out what's in my head, and let others know what's going on.  It's probably ( Read more... )

From a very recent conversation regarding my post-graduate plans:

John Doe: Seminary?  You mean you want to be a...nun?
Me: *explains that I'm not Catholic and I'm going to be a minister of some sort
JD: Oh, yeah, that's a little different
Me: VERY different, haha

Now in no way am I making fun of the person that said this.  Not everyone knows about the ( Read more... )

It wouldn't post here, but I did one of those online quizzes called "How will you be defined in the dictionary?"  Apparently I will be "a person who falls into an outhouse and dies ( Read more... )

Myspace is a funny thing. I'm not a huge fan of it, I prefer Facebook, but it's allowed me to connect with some HS people, as well as (strangely enough) the older 20-something crowd. I mean, when you're standing in the youth minister's office talking with him and the music minister about "pimping out" your page...I don't know, it's kinda funny to ( Read more... )

Sometimes, I just hurt for people.
Sometimes for people as a collective,
but mostly for individuals.
For whatever they're dealing with, going through.
My heart just aches,
even for some that don't know.

So many things that I can't control or do anything about.
How I wish I could make things right for them.
Ease the pain.
Erase the sickness.
Heal the mind.
( Read more... )

So I just went back through a year’s worth of journals…both LJ and my handwritten personal one.  Wow.  A lot of stuff.  I’m trying to put the past year into words…

These were possibly the two most taxing semesters I’ve ever had.  Partially because of academics, partially because of other things.  I came limping out of both of them, more so this ( Read more... )

I sent an email to PASSPORT.  Telling them to take out my application.  Mark replied and said that though they would miss me, I would be crazy not to take this opportunity.  This is it - there's no turning back now.  It's overseas for me next summer, somewhere.  I just have to finish the application and go through the process.  I've taken away the ( Read more... )