What? I need to go to bed.

I'm back in the land of the living. For the past few weeks I've been reading a fantasy series but this morning I finished the last of the books I have (there is one more out, but I don't have access to it at the moment, plus she is writing another one so I may as well stop here rather than go to the trouble of obtaining the next book, reading it, and yet still be left hanging). It's been glorious and frustrating at the same time (as always) - I love having another world to immerse myself in.. especially fiction because I know it's not real and completely frivolous (somehow the fact that I know it's frivolous makes it less so... my thought process is something like "this is my unproductive act for the day" so, knowing that, the rest of the day is spent attempting to be useful). Now when I read it will almost always be for academics - which is, of course, just as stimulating and actually more interesting - but it's so much harder. When reading fiction I just skip the parts I don't want to read... when the description of the landscape goes on to long I skip to the dialogue... if a battle goes on for pages I skip to the end and just find out who won. When I'm reading about Plato's vision of a functioning political society (of beauty) I cannot skip a word or else I'm floundering in a sea of incomprehensible terminology. Philosophy just takes so much focus! It's easy enough paragraph by paragraph but pages upon pages continuous dense material is certainly challenging Oh well, it's what's good for me - and why I came to college. That's what learning is right? and there's hardly a greater blessing than that opportunity. But just like the above, knowing that this (this meaning learning/scholarship/erudition - gaining not only knowledge but the ability to think... and the second part is the hard part) is important makes it hard. Eh, I'm just complaining - having books to retreat into is beatific (new word learned at least, so that's good) while they last but then the end inevitably comes and you're left wanting it to continue. Luckily (well, mostly luckily) I know it can and will continue in the future, so I know it's not the end. Plus, since I've been constantly reading for a month I'm a bit tired of it (almost 6,000 pages would get anyone right?). And I actually like (well, I think I like) all of my classes and will enjoy, or at least appreciate spending the time studying. Plus all friends are back in place and I need to spend time with them all.

Wow talk about your rambling. I debate actually posting this.. but why not? It's only other people's opinions of me and my craziness that I'm putting on the line right? Let's see if I can find a picture that equals the above strange bundle of words.

Perfect. I have no idea what that is. Yet it's almost calming too. How interesting.

Black Violin

It's late, but I have time for one short post:

Tonight Maryville College hosted a group called Black Violin and they were amazing! They mix their classically trained violinist selves with hip-hop beats and songs. They are awesome - I love seeing truly talented people. Anyways, check out their website (blackviolin.net) so you can see what I'm talking about: greatness. Good-night!

A Good Day

Today was a good day. I woke up this morning, finished my homework before class. Stepped outside to go to class - and found that the sidewalks were frozen! Dangerous, but funny as we slid to class on the ice. Contributed in class (always a triumph for quiet little me). Ate lunch with friends discussing class and a bit about the Bible. Came back and actually began my homework, cleaned my room and just took care of business in general. I began practicing a piano piece I will be playing this semester - and I love it! it's going to be a lot of fun to play. Later, Sarah cooked us all spaghetti and cookies. Then more friends came over and we played rock band together (Rachel, I can now play the drums on medium). A good productive day with plenty of friends and fun. And, though most people would say the weather today was dreary - for it was gray and wet and rainy all day - I loved it. It was cold but not freezing and tonight it is sprinkling so lightly that it's almost mist and it is just a bit foggy accross campus. Beautiful. Just the kind of atmosphere to spur one's imagination.

(Something like this - only imagine it's dark and the lamp post is giving off a soft yellow glow)

Africa overview

Once I heard someone say that once you experience Africa it gets in your blood and you always want to go back. Not having ever been particularly interested in Africa, I really didn't expect that to happen to me. Interestingly enough, I think it has. All of my stray thoughts seem to turn back to my visit there. And I keep doing little things that they do in Africa - like walking on the left side of the sidewalk instead of the right and I've said things like "even me" or "for me" before a sentence. Needless to say, I am very thankful to have had this opportunity to go to a place I may not otherwise have ever visited. Thanks Rachel!

Still I don't have many pictures to share yet but here we are on our way to the Temple in a matatu - a taxi (and taxis in Africa are small 15 passenger vans that you cram into and they are more like a bus system than taxis that take you anywhere you want to go). Even though both of us look quite tired in this picture I think we both look happy so that's good enough for me.

We didn't actually do a whole lot... like tour Africa and see elephants or gorillas and all that... but we had a lot of fun together. I think I probably preferred it this way - it was a completely relaxed trip for me rather than focusing on getting a lot of things done. The first few days were spent going to the office where Rachel finished up some reports - and we went to parliament to drop off some materials for their library - and then heading to the Temple afterwards to see it and hang out with the youth there. Later days were spent touring Kampala and seeing the local sights and going to some of the markets to buy Ayyam-i-Ha presents for the family. And the final days were spent at an international youth conference held in a town called Mbale that is about 3 1/2 hours away from Kampala. Hows that for a skeleton of an outline?

Meanwhile, we visited the Temple almost everyday - amazing. The House of Worship is absolutely beautiful. The pictures do not do it justice. The colors of the outside are specatular and the sound, the way it echoes, on the inside is just awesome. It is so simple and so wonderful. Plus, I didn't realize this, but the Baha'is own the entire hill, so there is so much land! The grounds are really quite expansive. So, in short, amazing.

In addition to the temple, we went paintballing (unfortunately my team lost, but I did "kill" three people who almost reached our flag and so saved our team from losing that much more quickly), we saw the source of the nile, we participated in some traditional wedding events - the introduction and the engagement ceremony, I learned some drumming (can't remember it now, of course), once tried the traditional ugandan dance.. but gave up very quickly, had choir practice and subsequently sang in the Temple during the Sunday service (wow is all I can say about that), rode boda's (motorcycle taxis), drank tea!!, had a birthday, beat some boys at pool, lost at table tennis (Aqsan, really you are great and I'm impressed), watched fireworks on New Year's eve, but the best part was meeting all the amazing people in Africa. I genuinly loved all of Rachel's friends. Oh, and of course, sharing all of these experiences with Rachel - truly a blessing.

I'm back for the final time

I'm certainly in a rather melancholy mood at the moment. I have arrived back to the Maryville College Campus to begin my last semester in college. (how and when did that happen?) None of my roommates are back yet... soon it will be loud and fun and we'll all be sharing stories from our different breaks... but at the moment I am just thinking about all the people I'm missing and in a few short months even more people I will be missing.

I miss my family in Huntsville who I saw for a total of 3 days this winter break - so totally not enough time with them. But I will see them soon enough.

I miss Rachel. I had such a wonderful time in Uganda - I loved spending almost every minute with my sister. We had plenty of fun adventures... and one or two rather frightening ones ;)... and some simply annoying experiences... some completely African... some closely resembling an outing here in the states -- and they were all spent with amazing people. I'll expand on these stories another day... soon, I'm sure, but another day.

I miss my brother in Haifa, who I haven't seen in way over a year. I miss my other friends who have been in Haifa even longer.

How much I am missing. And yet, honestly, how could I change my life? I wouldn't want to keep from living my life; and I wouldn't want to keep others from living their life just so I could have them always with me. Oh, "if wishes were wings."

I had a rather different new year's evening this year, and thought about making a resolution but since there was no one to share it with I passed it off to be done at another time. I have just thought of it -- because I am missing so much, and will soon be missing more as my undergrad experience ends, my new year's resolution is to learn how to keep in touch with everyone I care about. I am notoriously bad at correspondence.. but that is what I will work on this year. I have enough people to practice with. Of course, this is one everyone can help me with :).

Last day of Class!

Yay! but wow. It's starting to sink in that I am a senior in college. Goodness - how did that happen? Some of my friends (and one of my roommates) are graduating this semester.. and others are education majors and will be student teaching next semester... so this was their very last day of class. In celebration of that, in one of my classes (where at least two students will never take another class here at Maryville) we played a prank on our professer. Dr. O'Gorman has a very strict rule about cell phones and will take up (and answer if he can) your phone if it rings in class. So, we got friends from outside our class to call at different intervals, starting out slow and leading up to several going off at once. Much fun.

It is finally cold here in east Tennessee.. not the unbearable kind of cold but the crisp and clear kind of cold that is uninviting (and cold!) but still, walking to and from class you can't help but appreciate the weather. The point is: today would be the perfect day for a cup of hot chocolate, a good book, and a fire in the fireplace. That would be lovely. Sadly, I don't have any of that here - not even the hot chocolate! But that's okay - only one more week to go and I'm home! Granted only for two nights... but I am certainly not complaining! I will get to go see little sister (who's now more worldy than I with her office job and, you know, the little part about living half-way round the globe!). How exciting.

However, I still have a paper to write, a lab to finish, and exams to study for so I'd best get to it. But let's be serious, first things first: Nap Time!

oh, and ps: My Thesis is Finished! (unless I made some grave error that the editor cannot let slide - but hopefully that won't happen)

short and sweet:

Happy Birthday Daddy!