I have been fairly stressed out about money issues lately. I work two jobs pretty frequently through out my weeks, but I don't make very much. They are more than able to cover the costs of the things I have to worry about right now (gas, bills, and a little extra for whatever) but still, it always seems that I come up short just at the most horrible time. I'm trying to get everything lined up for my Florida trip on Friday and have just been worrying up a storm about how I'm going to pay for things down there.
Does God not make it so totally clear that he will provide? I have been somewhat ignorant to that promise in the midst of my stress. I tend to ignore the promises a lot, actually, because in the heat of the moment of frustration, stress, irritation, or worry I become quite human and just rely on myself to get myself out of it. Well, that is, until this little thing called my conscious reminds me that I have someone watching over me who will MORE than take care of it.
Anyway, the other day, my mom and I had to switch cars for a little while so that I could take Bernice, my elderly friend, to get her hair done. She has trouble getting into my car. Heck, I have trouble getting into my car. So we swapped. My mom ended up having to leave for work before we could switch back and I remember feeling really bad that I left my car on practically empty, and then I began to stress about the fact that I would need to fill my tank as a result. My mom got home around 8, I hugged her goodbye, and drove off in my car, to see that she had filled it with gas. My car isn't expensive to fill, but it's a gas guzzler getting about 12 miles to the gallon, and right in the middle of a stressful moment where I thought I'd have to shell out forty dollars to re fill, my mom just does that. I was so happy, and so thankful in that moment. First, I called my mom to tell her I loved her and appreciated her a million times over, and then, I prayed and thanked God for the same thing.
Now, this is really weird. I have this wooden shoe box underneath my bed that I keep old cards and notes in. Dusty actually got it for me one year as a birthday present and carved my initials into the side. It's a cool little keepsake, and tonight, for some random reason, I decided to go through everything in it. I'm weird in that I save EVERY birthday card that anyone ever gives me. I know that's weird to some, but I just don't like to throw them away for some reason. I was reading all the notes from birthdays gone by and skipped over the one from my grandparents, mainly because they say the same thing every year. I then immediately felt bad about it, so I decided to go back and read one. And when I opened it, three 5 dollar bills fell out.
What!!!
Alright, so 15 dollars isn't that much, but hey now?! When do I ever sit in bed on a Sunday night at 1:45 in the morning (it's finals week) going through old cards like that? And when do I ever open up one from the grandparents to find a random three bills fall into my lap?
Do you think that God is trying to tell me something? Oh, I dunno... maybe it's "Hey, Case, I really am in control. I know you are stressed about money, but you don't have to worry. I'm going to take care of it."
In my head, that's what I heard God saying tonight. I wanted to give off my joy some how, not to brag about suddenly being fifteen dollars richer, or to brag about having such a wonderful mom, but to totally brag about the fact that I was in need of something bad, and through a little prayer and lesson, God showed me that he would be there for me. I laughed out loud, and then I smiled. God, you just have a way of doing that to me :-)
(PS, I should probably pay my grandparents a visit tomorrow to tell them that story. I think it might warm their hearts, maybe just a little.)
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Lately.
The past couple of days, I have really struggled with being apart from Dusty. Some days are harder than others. I suppose I probably sound like a lame loser to some, groveling over the fact that I am in a long distance relationship. Like some people haven't ever dealt with it before!
In The Odyssey by Homer, Odysseus is apart from his wife for nearly twenty years! This, of course, is if my memory serves correctly, as I am currently taking a class on Greek Civilization, but seriously? Twenty years apart?
In the third Pirates of the Caribbean movie, Orlando Bloom's character, Will, spend seven years apart from his true love Keira Knightley/Elizabeth Swan. Whenever I am having an emotional moment I sometimes YouTube "The Longer the Waiting" by Josh Turner and watch video montages set to the third Pirates movie (Wow, did I just completely throw myself under the bus or what??!)
Soldiers are separated from loved ones, sometimes for years. A friend of mine in the Air Force recently told me that he is going to Iraq this summer and will be gone for 6 months, and he has a girlfriend. She's gonna have to bear with the long distance.
So what do five-six puny little months even matter, anyway? Why am I so sad?
I sometimes blame Dust for all of this hardship. I get angry and defensive that he left. I tell myself that I am not good enough, that he didn't love me enough to stay here, and it sucks giving in to those lies. They are NOTHING but lies. While I can be the first to admit that I still don't completely understand why he had to leave, I will say that I am using this time, to the best of my abilities, to try and see what God can teach me. Find the lessons in it that God wants me (and him of course) to learn. I can't guarantee that there won't still be hard days in this journey, but that's just it... it's all a part of the journey.
It's not fun to be apart from someone that you love and care about. 6 out of 107. Thats the amount of days I have seen Dust in the last 107 day period. 6 FREAKING DAYS! It completely sucks, my friends. And I want it to be over. I find myself stressing out over the time that we do get to spend together when I prepare to visit because I want to enjoy it to the fullest, but the stressfulness of trying to enjoy it reminds me that its a temporary visit, and I get all the more sad. But... It is all part of the journey.
What can you say when encountering hard times in life? What do you do about it to make everything worth the tough that you went through?
I turn to my dad on this one. He has used the following clip from the movie "A League of their Own" a million times in his classes and football practices, and I think that it en-capsules exactly the answer to what God might say to me if I were to ask, "God, why is life sometimes just so hard?"
What will I say fifty years from now when this season of life is far behind me? Would I trade this time for a different circumstance?
No.
I have grown so close with my roommates this semester, and had more fun with them and my other friends than almost any other semester in college. I have wrapped up classes and done a good job doing so. I have made new friends, deepened my faith, enjoyed every last minute of this time I have in this season of my life. I have grown to even enjoy work more, embrace the time I spend with the elderly, and I have leaned into my family in a way that I never have, and they have fully given back to that in being supportive in helpful when I find myself down. Dust and I work at our relationship a thousand times harder because WE HAVE TO! It's our only choice right now! And it's teaching me things. It's hard, it's so hard to figure it out sometimes, and to just be okay. But it's worth it. The road less traveled is never easy. But it's worth it. I hold on to that hope every day that this will all be worth it in the end.
Thanks for sharing the truth Tom Hanks.
In The Odyssey by Homer, Odysseus is apart from his wife for nearly twenty years! This, of course, is if my memory serves correctly, as I am currently taking a class on Greek Civilization, but seriously? Twenty years apart?
In the third Pirates of the Caribbean movie, Orlando Bloom's character, Will, spend seven years apart from his true love Keira Knightley/Elizabeth Swan. Whenever I am having an emotional moment I sometimes YouTube "The Longer the Waiting" by Josh Turner and watch video montages set to the third Pirates movie (Wow, did I just completely throw myself under the bus or what??!)
Soldiers are separated from loved ones, sometimes for years. A friend of mine in the Air Force recently told me that he is going to Iraq this summer and will be gone for 6 months, and he has a girlfriend. She's gonna have to bear with the long distance.
So what do five-six puny little months even matter, anyway? Why am I so sad?
I sometimes blame Dust for all of this hardship. I get angry and defensive that he left. I tell myself that I am not good enough, that he didn't love me enough to stay here, and it sucks giving in to those lies. They are NOTHING but lies. While I can be the first to admit that I still don't completely understand why he had to leave, I will say that I am using this time, to the best of my abilities, to try and see what God can teach me. Find the lessons in it that God wants me (and him of course) to learn. I can't guarantee that there won't still be hard days in this journey, but that's just it... it's all a part of the journey.
It's not fun to be apart from someone that you love and care about. 6 out of 107. Thats the amount of days I have seen Dust in the last 107 day period. 6 FREAKING DAYS! It completely sucks, my friends. And I want it to be over. I find myself stressing out over the time that we do get to spend together when I prepare to visit because I want to enjoy it to the fullest, but the stressfulness of trying to enjoy it reminds me that its a temporary visit, and I get all the more sad. But... It is all part of the journey.
What can you say when encountering hard times in life? What do you do about it to make everything worth the tough that you went through?
I turn to my dad on this one. He has used the following clip from the movie "A League of their Own" a million times in his classes and football practices, and I think that it en-capsules exactly the answer to what God might say to me if I were to ask, "God, why is life sometimes just so hard?"
What will I say fifty years from now when this season of life is far behind me? Would I trade this time for a different circumstance?
No.
I have grown so close with my roommates this semester, and had more fun with them and my other friends than almost any other semester in college. I have wrapped up classes and done a good job doing so. I have made new friends, deepened my faith, enjoyed every last minute of this time I have in this season of my life. I have grown to even enjoy work more, embrace the time I spend with the elderly, and I have leaned into my family in a way that I never have, and they have fully given back to that in being supportive in helpful when I find myself down. Dust and I work at our relationship a thousand times harder because WE HAVE TO! It's our only choice right now! And it's teaching me things. It's hard, it's so hard to figure it out sometimes, and to just be okay. But it's worth it. The road less traveled is never easy. But it's worth it. I hold on to that hope every day that this will all be worth it in the end.
Thanks for sharing the truth Tom Hanks.
Monday, December 6, 2010
I'm back, don't you worry
Alright, I sincerely apologize to whoever has been wondering or waiting for a post on here... as I have been lost in the busyness of school, papers, quizzes, life, and football games. Bethel football made it into the semi-finals after defeating St. Thomas this past weekend! My family has obviously been really busy following the team all over the place for games. Over the weekend of Thanksgiving break, I got to road trip down to Chicago to watch Bethel play Wheaton in the second round of playoffs. My friend Betsy actually lives in the Chicago area, so Katie J and I were able to stay at her house, meet her awesome parents, and have a great time touring the city of Naperville! Maddie and Randi (two of my other roommates) were able to join us for a couple of hours and we had such a fun time. The downtown area of Naperville was all decorated for Christmas and it looked so cute.
After Bethel played Wheaton, and WON, I had a lot to get through school wise (hence the absence from blogging). I am happy to announce that my Senior Seminar paper is COMPLETE- all 32 pages, done and turned in! The next phase is to prepare a presentation that will be given in front of ALL the history professors at Bethel. Oh, no, it's not intimidating at all, in case you were wondering. And in case you are really still wondering, I'm being sarcastic. I'm confident that it will be fine, and finals will go smoothly afterward.
OH! And Thanksgiving, I didn't even get to recap about that! I had a great time with friends and family. We all gathered at my Uncle Bob's house in North Oaks and had a great time. I especially love the time I get to spend with my grandparents at every holiday. I'm very fortunate that both sets of my grandparents are actually very good friends... of course every holiday we miss Grandpa John, but I'm so glad that my Grandma Bev has always been welcomed at every single family gathering with my mom's side of the family. It's also fun to have new babies around at holiday celebrations! All my cousins are starting to have kids, which is a lot of fun. How adorable is this picture....
My cousin Drew's daughter Malaina planted a sweet kiss on my cousin Brittany's daughter Olivia. Adorable.
The game this past weekend against St. Thomas was unreal. Definitely one of the most exciting sports moments of my life! St. Thomas was our only loss in the regular season, and so it was a pretty huge win for Bethel. My dad was pretty nervous all week leading up because the winner goes on to semi finals... in other words, the winner of the game would be one of four teams in the whole country continuing with practice this week! Pretty insane! It was such an incredible game. Both defense and offense played so great and held St. Thomas for a full sixty minutes. If you are curious to hear more about it, here are some great articles written up in the paper about the whole game between the Royals and the Tommies:
http://kstp.com/sports/stories/S1867247.shtml?cat=7
http://www.kare11.com/sports/sports_article.aspx?storyid=887297&catid=24
And of course, an amazing picture that I stole from the Star Tribune website of the victory:
It was honestly such an incredible weekend. To make it even more special, Friday night (before the game) we had "roommate night" at our house. The night was filled with delicious food: Gouda cheese covered with croissants, Brie cheese and raspberry chutney sauce, crackers, and Mediterranean chicken pizza. A-MAZING. Plus, chocholate chip cookies for dessert. We had an awesome time being together. I love those girls. It's never a dull moment with them around.
Sunday was a very relaxing day. I recently discovered the most amazing blog that is full of fun ideas for homemade crafts. I spent the day making a gift for my mom based off an idea I got on their DIY page. If you are looking for fun gift ideas, especially for Christmas, make sure you check them out, I LOVE this website! http://www.designspongeonline.com/category/product
Once I am absolutely positive that my mother has not been keeping up with my blog, I'll post the gift that I made and would LOVE to hear feedback on what you think about it! :)
As for this week, I am ecstatic to be able to go to Ohio this weekend to watch Bethel play Mount Union in the FOURTH ROUND of playoffs! Can't wait! Next week I have three finals, then I am off to Florida to visit DUSTY!!!!! For seven days! And then we have three days apart before he FINALLY gets to come home for Christmas. I just can't even wait.
WHEW!!! What a lot to catch up on. I'm so glad I finally have a few days to rest and not have ANY homework to worry about. That will surely free up some time to keep writing on here. MISSED YOU ALL!
After Bethel played Wheaton, and WON, I had a lot to get through school wise (hence the absence from blogging). I am happy to announce that my Senior Seminar paper is COMPLETE- all 32 pages, done and turned in! The next phase is to prepare a presentation that will be given in front of ALL the history professors at Bethel. Oh, no, it's not intimidating at all, in case you were wondering. And in case you are really still wondering, I'm being sarcastic. I'm confident that it will be fine, and finals will go smoothly afterward.
OH! And Thanksgiving, I didn't even get to recap about that! I had a great time with friends and family. We all gathered at my Uncle Bob's house in North Oaks and had a great time. I especially love the time I get to spend with my grandparents at every holiday. I'm very fortunate that both sets of my grandparents are actually very good friends... of course every holiday we miss Grandpa John, but I'm so glad that my Grandma Bev has always been welcomed at every single family gathering with my mom's side of the family. It's also fun to have new babies around at holiday celebrations! All my cousins are starting to have kids, which is a lot of fun. How adorable is this picture....
My cousin Drew's daughter Malaina planted a sweet kiss on my cousin Brittany's daughter Olivia. Adorable.
The game this past weekend against St. Thomas was unreal. Definitely one of the most exciting sports moments of my life! St. Thomas was our only loss in the regular season, and so it was a pretty huge win for Bethel. My dad was pretty nervous all week leading up because the winner goes on to semi finals... in other words, the winner of the game would be one of four teams in the whole country continuing with practice this week! Pretty insane! It was such an incredible game. Both defense and offense played so great and held St. Thomas for a full sixty minutes. If you are curious to hear more about it, here are some great articles written up in the paper about the whole game between the Royals and the Tommies:
http://kstp.com/sports/stories/S1867247.shtml?cat=7
http://www.kare11.com/sports/sports_article.aspx?storyid=887297&catid=24
And of course, an amazing picture that I stole from the Star Tribune website of the victory:
It was honestly such an incredible weekend. To make it even more special, Friday night (before the game) we had "roommate night" at our house. The night was filled with delicious food: Gouda cheese covered with croissants, Brie cheese and raspberry chutney sauce, crackers, and Mediterranean chicken pizza. A-MAZING. Plus, chocholate chip cookies for dessert. We had an awesome time being together. I love those girls. It's never a dull moment with them around.
Sunday was a very relaxing day. I recently discovered the most amazing blog that is full of fun ideas for homemade crafts. I spent the day making a gift for my mom based off an idea I got on their DIY page. If you are looking for fun gift ideas, especially for Christmas, make sure you check them out, I LOVE this website! http://www.designspongeonline.com/category/product
Once I am absolutely positive that my mother has not been keeping up with my blog, I'll post the gift that I made and would LOVE to hear feedback on what you think about it! :)
As for this week, I am ecstatic to be able to go to Ohio this weekend to watch Bethel play Mount Union in the FOURTH ROUND of playoffs! Can't wait! Next week I have three finals, then I am off to Florida to visit DUSTY!!!!! For seven days! And then we have three days apart before he FINALLY gets to come home for Christmas. I just can't even wait.
WHEW!!! What a lot to catch up on. I'm so glad I finally have a few days to rest and not have ANY homework to worry about. That will surely free up some time to keep writing on here. MISSED YOU ALL!
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
On thankfulness.
Sorry for my absence on here. I have been so busy over the last week that I just haven't had the time to even think, it feels! Plus, I think that I have had a little bit of blog-writer's block. And okay, also, I got a twitter (As I posted last time) and I'm going to be honest, it kind of took over my life these past few days. I had no idea what to write about on here in the midst of busy days with school, working both my jobs, and trying to get organized for Thanksgiving. OH! And going out of town to Iowa to watch the Royals defeat Wartburg in the first round of playoffs last weekend! WOO HOO!!
But anyways. I was reading one of my favorite blogs today and was totally inspired to write about something that I am extremely thankful for. And you might think its silly, I think its special and awesome and amazing. This post is going to be
All
About
MOSES!
My dog!
Going back to said favorite blog... I read this quote which I believe to be totally true:
"Dogs are such wonderful animals and are basically magic wands of happiness"
How could this not make you happy?
Our family has had Moses for over two years now. He's an adorable spunky but loving lab and I just can't express how much I love this dog. Moses is such an obey-er. He loves to please his family members by being obedient and does a pretty darn good job of it. He is playful and SO CUTE and he brings me so much joy!! I love him.
Mo's REAL parents belong to two family friends of ours who happen to be neighbors. His brother also happens to be the dog of one of my good friends at Bethel, so its fun to have connections. One thing that I love is that Dust was around to see us get our adorable new puppy two years ago.
The thing I love is that the day after we got Mo, Dust and I started dating! So that holds special memory for obvious reasons. Moses is such a great companion. He makes a great pillow, is always good for some love, and never lets me down.
It is kind of crazy to think that a simple animal could make such a difference to somebody, but dogs really do that! They are so intuitive into human feelings. Its kind of crazy, I think. Remember the post I wrote about the night I broke down over how much I missed Dust? Moses put his paw right up on my leg as I was in tears, and it was like he just knew. I love that about dogs! They just love you, no matter what.
Here's another thing. You can't know my dad without knowing how much he adores this dog. He doesn't go a day without saying "That dog loves me!" or "I really love Mo." That dog does everything with my dad. He follows him while he mows the lawn. They run miles to Bethel together (without a leash, obedience remember?). They snuggle together at night while watching ESPN. Wanna know a secret? I think Moses has been a remedy to my dad since my sister and I are both away at college. Granted, he still has my brother, but they both have kind of adopted Mo as another member of the family and he does a pretty awesome job at keeping them happy with my sister and I not living at home right now. Don't tell my dad I said that :) He might be too tough to admit it.
I'm thankful for MO, in the spirit of Thanksgiving. Of course I'm thankful for a host of other things, but I have read recently about dogs that have passed away, or dogs that have become new members of the family, and I think that its pretty cool to see just how special those little pets can be. They are the best.
Do any of you have dogs or other pets that have made your life happy? If so, feel free to chat with me because I am a sucker for a great dog story!
I LOVE MO!
Just for fun, check out how hilarious and hysterical my dog can be below...
But anyways. I was reading one of my favorite blogs today and was totally inspired to write about something that I am extremely thankful for. And you might think its silly, I think its special and awesome and amazing. This post is going to be
All
About
MOSES!
My dog!
Going back to said favorite blog... I read this quote which I believe to be totally true:
"Dogs are such wonderful animals and are basically magic wands of happiness"
How could this not make you happy?
Our family has had Moses for over two years now. He's an adorable spunky but loving lab and I just can't express how much I love this dog. Moses is such an obey-er. He loves to please his family members by being obedient and does a pretty darn good job of it. He is playful and SO CUTE and he brings me so much joy!! I love him.
Mo's REAL parents belong to two family friends of ours who happen to be neighbors. His brother also happens to be the dog of one of my good friends at Bethel, so its fun to have connections. One thing that I love is that Dust was around to see us get our adorable new puppy two years ago.
The thing I love is that the day after we got Mo, Dust and I started dating! So that holds special memory for obvious reasons. Moses is such a great companion. He makes a great pillow, is always good for some love, and never lets me down.
It is kind of crazy to think that a simple animal could make such a difference to somebody, but dogs really do that! They are so intuitive into human feelings. Its kind of crazy, I think. Remember the post I wrote about the night I broke down over how much I missed Dust? Moses put his paw right up on my leg as I was in tears, and it was like he just knew. I love that about dogs! They just love you, no matter what.
Here's another thing. You can't know my dad without knowing how much he adores this dog. He doesn't go a day without saying "That dog loves me!" or "I really love Mo." That dog does everything with my dad. He follows him while he mows the lawn. They run miles to Bethel together (without a leash, obedience remember?). They snuggle together at night while watching ESPN. Wanna know a secret? I think Moses has been a remedy to my dad since my sister and I are both away at college. Granted, he still has my brother, but they both have kind of adopted Mo as another member of the family and he does a pretty awesome job at keeping them happy with my sister and I not living at home right now. Don't tell my dad I said that :) He might be too tough to admit it.
I'm thankful for MO, in the spirit of Thanksgiving. Of course I'm thankful for a host of other things, but I have read recently about dogs that have passed away, or dogs that have become new members of the family, and I think that its pretty cool to see just how special those little pets can be. They are the best.
Do any of you have dogs or other pets that have made your life happy? If so, feel free to chat with me because I am a sucker for a great dog story!
I LOVE MO!
Just for fun, check out how hilarious and hysterical my dog can be below...
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