A List Returns...

Really folks.  Really.  I have been completing elements of my 30 before 30 list.  However, one of my parts - blogging about each of my events - has...well...fallen to the wayside.  So I'm pledging to catch up on my adventures.  They have been great!

I have a video but can't figure out how to put it onto the internet.  But if I can figure out a way to scan the picture, then I'll start with my "Superman Bungee" flight!

Advent is a time of waiting - you should be experts.

The List

Grad school is done.
Commissioning is done.
Buying a home is done.
Yet there are so many other experiences in life out there to enjoy.  Inspired from a friend, I decided to compile a 30 before 30 list.  The rules of the said list are: either complete activity by 30th birthday or have plans to complete activity by 30th birthday and make sure to chronicle the events.

Therefore, here are the 30 things that I plan to do before I turn 30:

1. Run a 10K
2. Go on a zip-line
3.  Do the Superman Bungee flying thing (aka Superflyer Extreme)
4.  Fly a plane
5.  Eat a meal from vegetables from my yard
6.  Take a cooking class
7.  Take dance lessons
8.  Publish an article (not online)
9.  Go on a silent retreat
10.  White-water raft the Gauley River
11.  Blog my experiences
12.  Read the Lord of the Rings series
13.  Do a voice and violin recital
14.  Build a piece of furniture
15.  Hang glide or parasail or skydive
16.  Go on a hot air balloon ride
17.  Buy (and wear) a pair of brightly colored shoes
18.  Hike part of the Appalachian Trail
19.  Work on learning Spanish
20.  Visit a new state
21.  Donate my hair
22.  Get a dog
23.  Plan and do a family mission trip
24.  Visit a new country
25.  Host a dinner party
26.  Eat for one whole week from farmers' market food
27.  Tutor one afternoon a week
28.  Find a Spiritual Director
29.  Crash a wedding
30.  Plan a vacation with friends

So there it is!  30 things to do before June 9th.  Guess I better get to planning.

Not All Who Wander Are Lost

It's been a while...I know, I know. Plus, lots of things happened in the past four months. Now that exams are done and the papers are written, I finally have some time to show yall some pictures from the past big events.

My mom sent me a shirt recently with the words "Not All Who Wander Are Lost." I decided to adopt the slogan as my new motto, trekking across the world and attending fun events in my new town - along with my school load and internship at the church. In four days, I leave for the Middle East, spending three weeks traveling around Syria, Jordan, Palestine, Israel, Egypt, and Greece. I'm very excited about all of the places I'm gonna see, the camels I'm gonna get to ride on to the top of Mt. Siani, the hikes I'm gonna take, and the sacred places I'm gonna visit. Once I get back, I will start my Clinical Pastoral Education unit at Grady Hospital. So, the pictures from that trip might take a while to get on the blog...but hey - yall wouldn't expect anything different huh?

In order to update my life, here are two more blogs below from my two big things this semester. Enjoy the pictures!

March Madness

In March, my dad and I went to the Final Four. Unfortunately, the Tarheels didn't make it as they choked in New Jersey (a game that Jean and Brooks went to). The games were fantastic though! It was so much fun to be in the same place as many other basketball fans. The first day of the Final Four people wore all of their shirts from their schools. Each time we passed by Carolina fans, we would start chanting TAR...HEELS! Georgetown fans came up to us shaking our hands and saying how much they thought we would have been there instead of Georgetown. My favorite comment was when a group of folks passed by us and said, "Oh no...you must have bought your tickets with 10 minutes left in the game."

Here are some more pictures from the Final Four weekend...Dad and I did witness history though as we watched the Florida Gators win another National Championship - the third in a year (2 basketball and 1 football).

Dad and I went to Hoop Town and held up the National Championship Trophy, proclaiming our supremacy...especially with our Carolina shirts.

Spring Break to Paris

Over Spring Break, Matt, Candace and I traveled to Paris. The trip was fantastic - filled with lots of laughter, beautiful cathedrals (Chartes and St. Sulpice were my favorite), phenomenal art, lots of walking, and of course, lots of great food! Crepes and chocolate filled croissants really should be found all over the place!


The Seine River...I realized how much I love water in cities. I knew this before from when I lived in Philadelphia but I'd forgotten about how much it is calming to have water run through the city.












The Eiffel Tower during sunset.






During the trip we each had a task. Candace was the translator because she was the one who took French in High School. Our photographer was Matt...he was fantastic and took all of these great pictures. I became our tour guide and navigator - moving so often and living in a bunch of cities apparently worked out well for me!

Pollen...

....is the southern version of snow. God decided that Southerns should not enjoy the white goodness that comes in the winter time - the snow that gets us out of school, closing down all of the businesses and gives us a great opportunity to find our inner child. Nope. Instead, God gave Southerns pollen, the yellow snow that covers everything in site, gets in your bodies, causes people allergies, and remains around until it rains. I'd rather have snow.

In other news...Paris was fantastic (pictures soon). Dad and I are going to the Final Four this weekend (without my beloved Heels). School is almost over this semester (thank goodness). My brain is done with writing papers...too bad my brain doesn't correlate with the syllabus. I'll be traveling to the Middle East this summer for three weeks, going to Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Greece, Egypt and Turkey. After I return from that trip, I'm working as a hospital chaplain at Grady Memorial Hospital in downtown Atlanta.

Usually I would be a bit more creative in dispersing all of this information...but right now, my creativity is flowing towards my latest paper - 1 Corinthians 11:2-16. It's on.

Pretty soon, it might be time for the Wonder Woman shirt.

The Cycle Continues

"Holy God, we offer you praise for the rigors of your love. As harsh winters enforce silence and rest, your harder demands summon us to that portion of faith usually ignored. Like the disciples with Jesus upon the holy mountain, we realize again the discipline required for prayer, the necessity for guidance from the past to direct the future, the urgency of listening to your voice. All praise be to you, O God, for austere mercies recalling us to the essentials of our faith. Amen."
- Diane Karay

Lent is my favorite time of the liturgical calendar. With my optimistic attitude and spunky nature, it's a tad ironic. However, I think that I love Lent because it's a time that allows me to be still and sit in silence. My friends Matt and Dana told me today that if they ever lived by my schedule they would go crazy...and I thought this year was a slower one for me! Driving home tonight, I got caught in traffic and became frustrated with the time being sucked away from me. Then I remembered - this is Lent. I need to relax, rest and use the time that is given as a gift. Instead of fuming in anger, I listened to music and sang loudly, lifting my spirits from the exhaustion of paper writing. Lent beckons me to sit and reflect on the way I use time.

Lent also invites me into moments of silence. Throughout the year, I attend the Friday Eucharist service at school, a service centered around the reading of scripture, the sharing of communion, and the partaking of silence. Each Friday, I walk into the service craving the short 10 minutes I might receive of a time with others, but without conversation - a time to steady my soul and synchronize the rhythm of my breathing as prayer. Silence is a practice not often used in worship as it makes the congregation feel more vulnerable and worried, nervous as the moments pass without anything to fill the void. However, without silence in my life, there is a void.

So I welcome Lent - I welcome the call to sit, reflect, meditate, and leave the words behind. In my life which is often structured around deadlines, expectations and requirements, Lent is a welcomed breathe of fresh air that centers my soul and rejuvenates my spirit. Reflection is good. Silence is good. Remembering is good.

A Dream Fulfilled

Since I was a wee little girl, I have loved college basketball. During the 1982 National Championship game, when Carolina beat Georgetown, I took my first steps towards the TV. My parents were overjoyed in my love for the game, although they were a tad fearful that I walked because of the loud noise in the house with the victory.
March has always been a special month in my heart, as the madness begins and the ability to watch college basketball from noon until 1am enters into your plans for four days. In middle and high school, teachers gave up teaching during the first weekend of the tournament, turning on the TV for the school to watch the games. This may be part of the reason why North Carolina is ranked in the lower 40s in terms of public education. However, we know our priorities.
I remember when Dook won two in a row, when Gonzaga was a Cinderella team for the first time, when Roy Williams said "Right now, I don't give a F*** about North Carolina" and when two years later he lead North Carolina to another National Championship. I remember Dean Smith's two championships in the Superdome (the other Dean Dome) and the Chris Weber time out. During Carolina's first National Championship, I took my first steps. In 1993 for the Second Championship under Dean Smith, I stayed up late, on a school night, laying on a quilt "acting" like I was resting. For 2005, I sat in a bar with other Carolina alumni in Philadelphia and then screamed during the final moments.
The "One Shining Moment" Montage brings tears to my eyes, as it relieves the wonderful moments of the Road to the Final Four while also proclaiming that it is the end of the season.
This year, the Road to the Final Four leads to Atlanta. I live in Atlanta right now going to graduate school. Therefore, all deductions must lead to the fact that.....
I'M GOING TO THE FINAL FOUR!!!!
My tickets have been purchased, my dad is traveling down for the weekend, and my Carolina gear will be polished. This is a milestone for my 25th year on this earth, fulfilling one of my dreams in life. Now...Roy, Tyler, Terry, Brandon, Ty...work your magic.

Adulthood

The other day I was organizing my laundry and realized that half of my clothes in the basket had special instructions. This is the first time that I had enough nice clothes to make a full load. I guess that adulthood is here now.
Gentle cycle here I come.