photos and a story

Praise the Lord! I have internet again! Is it wrong to praise the Lord for internet? I am truly thankful for how my internet was restored to me - it involved a long conversation and much overdue conversation with an old friend. Praise the Lord!

Why does my access to the internet have any significance for you? You will now get to see some pictures that I could not post before. I will, by no means, put ALL of my pictures up here - but I will just try to pick out a few of my favorites.

Let the pictures and the stories begin!



This is our couch. The picture is so late and so boring that it is almost not worthy of putting up except that it has really changed my life here. You may think I am shallow and perhaps even a "couch potato" but please don't misunderstand me. Since having the couch, two different visitors have made it their bed, I have hosted a theology discussion group on it, and taken one amazing nap. I love that couch.




When Bridgett came to visit, one of the many fun activities we did was go the Museum of Science in Boston. While there we took in a 3-D show on sharks. Since we both have seen "Honey, I shrunk the audience" we were expecting the sharks to attack us, like Jaws. (In "Honey..." there is a snake that strikes at you.) No such luck - it was an educational video. It was still pretty cool, though. This is us before it began - no doubt blinding 12 elementary students with our flash.



One stop on the freedom trail includes the democratic donkey. We have pictures riding the donkey and cuddling up to the donkey. I decided I would make use of the footprints in front of the donkey that say "Stand in Opposition." They had little elephants in the footprints, even. Well, I wasn't content to just "stand" in opposition - so I went head to head with the animal.



I don't think I could tell you who this is supposed to be a statue of - or if it is supposed to be a statue of anyone in particular. I just really thought Bridgett did an excellent job impersonating the stature of the statue.



Moving to the day known nationwide as "Black Friday." We slept in. Then we went to Newburyport to see what we could see. It was difficult, as you can tell by the picture because it was so bright and windy and cold. We did manage to enjoy ourselves in a few little shops including a bookstore. We all decided if we weren't broke - we would have like to buy new bags at a cute shop there.



If you ever wondered - what does it really look like to walk on the freedom trail in Boston? Wonder no more. Nealy captured this candid moment of Emily and I walking in one of the many parks in Boston on our way to the Bunker Hill Monument. Yes, Emily really takes giant steps and I really do walk leaning over to one side.



We love Boston in the fall. Although they missed the pretty leaves changing color on the trees - Nealy and Emily found plenty of enjoyment in the leaves on the ground. There were some other people in the park while we were doing this - I'm sure they were thinking we were crazy tourists. And they wouldn't be all that wrong. They're pretty smart here actually.



This is sort of a strange picture for the last picture but it makes me laugh. We decided to take some pictures where we weren't smiling - just for something different. These leaves kept us entertained for a good 15 minutes. It's not the history that draws us to Boston - it's the giant maple leaves!

Before I sign off I do have one story. You may recall that I hoped I would have a story, and I got one. While Emily and Nealy and I were in Rockport - a coast town near the seminary we were taking lots of pictures. We found a particularly beautiful view of the coast with bright blue water and rocks and boats. While we were taking pictures of the scenery and of Emily being silly (for lack of a better word) Nealy noticed that there were people in the building behind us watching us. Turns out it was a restaurant. That would be only slightly embarrassing because they are just random people that we will never see again. For Nealy and Emily, that was true. Not true for me. I looked in the window and saw the face of my professor staring back at me. He waved hesitantly and I waved back trying to stifle my laughter.

Tuesday I saw him in class and when I went up to hand in my paper, he says to me, "Hey, I saw you. Well, I guess you saw me too. Hmm." Apparently he recognized me from the back of my head and saw me long before I saw him. Let's just say I'm thankful I was too cold to be too silly right then!

Pray for me to be productive!

Deja Vu

Greetings to you all. I survived my visitors.

Bridgett came to visit me during my second reading week. She was here from a Wednesday to a Monday (which is a while) but we had so much fun together. We explored the North Shore, took in a movie, went to a science museum (turns out she's slightly competitive), walked the freedom trail, and hung out at my pastor's house. Overall, a great trip with a great friend.

Two days after she left Nealy and Emily arrived. I was ill prepared for the amount of energy required to host visitors for an extended period of time. However, their visit was also a lot of fun. We spent thanksgiving with a family from the church I attend here. We also explored the North Shore and walked the freedom trail (however, I did not climb the bunker hill monument with them). So, as my title alludes, I basically had the same weekend twice, but what a great weekend to repeat!

If you would like to see pictures, I will do my best to get them up somewhere online. My internet has been spotty lately which has prevented me from doing much on it. If I fail to do that before Christmas, I will bring my computer home and would be happy to share pictures with whoever was interested.

School is going well. I have a lot of research ahead of me. Let's just say the only man in my life from now to Christmas is a dead Swiss theologian named Karl Barth. Let's hope we can get along!

What I am really excited for is that this coming Sunday is the beginning of Advent. I think I enjoy advent more than I enjoy Christmas. There is something right about the church in preparation for the coming savior. The church I attend is doing a book study for Advent. The book is The Great Omission by Dallas Willard. I am excited to read it and to share it with others.

I pray that you all spend a little time this advent to reflect on the coming savior. :)

Study and Cram

It can be very difficult to update a blog when you don't feel like you've done anything worth telling anyone. I'm currently in my second reading week. Reading weeks are probably the best thing about seminary - seriously. This is coming from a girl who loves school and loves to learn - but sometimes you just need a break from the classes.

This weekend I ventured to TJ Maxx with some friends. It was fun to just get out and do something other than discuss theology or classes. We also went to the Cheesecake Factory. We definitely need to get one of these at home! Their menu is pages upon pages and don't even get me started on the cheesecake menu. It was a fun night out with the girls - much needed and much appreciated. So those of you who worry that I never do anything fun - rest assured that I do.

Actually, I'll be having more than my fair share of fun because starting tomorrow I'm going to have visitors from home for about 2 weeks. It's really amazing and I'm so looking forward to spending time with them. However, that means I have been cramming on some homework. Usually, reading weeks are so we can get caught up on stuff - but instead of a week - I only have a few days. Today is the last day of super cramming - so hopefully I will get much done.

I will update with pictures next time and hopefully some great stories! -The last time I said I wanted a great story I ended up walking in mud for 2 miles... so I'm saying that with caution.

November Already?

As I drove to Beverly today, admiring the last of changing leaves and the multitude that have already fallen, I began to ponder all the changes I have experienced since moving to New England. The landscape has changed the most, going from the lush green of summer to the vast array of reds, yellows and golds the fall season has to offer. While "peak weak" has past, many trees are still clinging to their vibrant leaves making my route to work a scenic route.

I began to think about the changes in relationships. I have been so blessed to find a church that I can be a part of. My relationship with the pastor of the church has become so valuable to me. Being a Gordon Conwell graduate and from the Midwest has allowed her to understand so much about what I am going through. Her and her husband have really engaged me - both have lent me a number of books. One I am currently reading, Dakota, is from an author who lives in Lemmon, SD. It is a book I think I could only truly appreciate now that I do not live in SD. Sometimes it takes leaving a place to appreciate it, and I do. I appreciate where I am from.

I thought about the changes and challenges to who I am: my theology, my personality, my goals for my time here. Some of you who read this are well aware of my theological challenges since I have been here (esp. my wrestling with Calvin). I am grateful for the wrestling - sometimes great things come from wrestling. Jacob wrestled with the Lord and although he remained injured for the rest of his life, he was also extremely blessed by the Lord. Not to equate Calvin with the Lord - but sometimes it good to wrestle with minds greater than our own.

This is such a minor note that I probably shouldn't even waste space on my blog by mentioning it, but I am so excited about it: I got netflix this weekend. That means I will be getting DVD's in the mail - just one at a time. I also get so many hours of instant viewing online every month. I love to watch movies and have been neglecting that love since being here. Watching a movie is so refreshing to me - and I'm always in a better mood after watching a good movie. So, that little luxury is going to be a wonderful blessing and probably a curse in that it will further enable my procrastination. Oh well - take the good with the bad!

My immediate goals:
1. Get stuff done prior to Bridgett's arrival in 9 days.
2. Enjoy the company coming - the friends who are giving of themselves, time and money to visit.
3. Finish the semester so I can come home for awhile and see my family and friends. That is as far as I am willing to look in the future at the moment. And this is all I am willing to write.