December

I'm on break from school, which is a nice mental break if nothing else. It hasn't exactly been relaxing, but it's all good. A was super sick over Christmas but at least we didn't have any hospital trips this time so that was nice. TC did punch my nephew in the face on Christmas Day and loosen his tooth, so I win for parenting the Worst Redheaded Kid Ever, ughhh. Classes are cancelled over the holidays but I'll be having a conversation with his instructor when we go back to martial arts in the new year. I think a lecture from him will have more impact on TC than mine did.

I finished the fall semester with a 4.0, which is pretty surreal to me. I hold no illusion that I'll keep that up in the long-term, but it sure felt nice to start off so well. My next class is a Bible one and then in the second half of the semester I'm taking my next Psych class which is Intro to Research. Can't say I'm looking forward to it, but as Kate pointed out, at least I don't have to go to the library and hunt stuff down to photocopy, since the LU library is all online.

I'm still sick with stomach problems and finally made an appointment with a gastroenterologist. I'm really looking forward to that, because I'm sure he's going to want to do the test I've been putting off for about ten years. Tim Hawkins has a nice song about it that I'm sure I'll be humming that day. I'm assuming he won't find anything wrong, since every test I have ever had done has shown nothing, but it will make Tom happy if I go. He's tired of me being sick & cranky I guess???

So today's the last day of 2012 and I can say mostly good riddance. The good always outweighs the bad, but this wasn't my favorite year to say the least. I am thankful though, that I can still say that it is well with my soul.

November

I noticed that I've blogged maybe once a month this fall. I think you can tell that I've gone back to school.  I don't see this changing anytime soon, as school has taken up pretty much any and all free time that I used to have. I also discovered, much to my joy, that being an online student means you don't get days off for holidays. I had work due on Thanksgiving day, oy.  I'm more than halfway done PSYC 210, and then I'll be off for about a month before the spring term starts. Looking forward to seeing daylight again!

Black Friday

First World Problems

Go watch this:

First World problems read by Third World people

Your day just got better, right? Mine sure did. I have nothing to complain about.

Recovery Walks! 2012

Today was Recovery Walks!, a walk to "raise awareness that drug and alcohol addiction is a public health concern; overcome stigma; put a positive face on recovery; provide hope that people do recover; honor the people and organizations that provide services for the recovery community; show solidarity; and honor those who have not survived this disease."

Because I have 11 years of continuous sobriety, I got to be in the Honor Guard (for 10 years & up).  Being in the Honor Guard feels a bit like your birthday. People make a little fuss over you, give you a sash with a numbered badge on it, make you all stand together for a group picture, and then have you lead off the Walk. I'll be honest, it feels pretty awesome.

I volunteered for Pro-Act this year, so I was at the registration table for a three hours before the Walk began. Once it started I joined the Honor Guard at the front and off we went. There were 6 or 7 people carrying the Walk banner right in front of me, and after a minute I realized that the man right in front of me was Ted Williams, also known as The Golden Voice.

If you aren't familiar with him, this video gives a synopsis of his story. It's really incredible.

We walked for several blocks, and then one of the men carrying the banner turned around and said he was going to step back and I should take his place. I was surprised but said ok. I got to chatting with the men on either side of me. The man on my left introduced himself as Dave, and asked where I was involved. I told him where I was from and that I was currently a homemaker but going back to school in the hopes of becoming a substance abuse counselor. He said he thought that was great and that he loved hearing what different people were doing to get involved. I then asked what he did. He told me that he was the Deputy Director of Demand Reduction for the White House's Office of National Drug Control Policy (David Mineta). I'm not often speechless, but this came pretty close. I also chatted with the man to my right, who introduced himself as Gary. It was a delight chatting and walking together. After I got home I discovered that Gary is actually Gary Tennis, Secretary of Pennsylvania's Department of Drug & Alcohol Programs. I'm pretty sure by tomorrow I will find out that the other man walking with us was the Pope. It was absolutely humbling, amazing and surreal.  (And something else that's amazing; if you watch that video and you see Ted's sober living coach, Eric? He took this picture for me; how cool is that?)

I love this Walk, and everything it represents. And being blessed to walk with people who have the power to truly make a difference in the lives of people seeking treatment was beyond words. And the funny thing was that as I walked with them, I felt like we could be equals. I realized that as I was driving home, and it brought me to tears. For eighteen years I have regretted that I didn't stay in school and get my degree. My disease of alcoholism took that from me. I never really thought about trying to finish because I believed myself unworthy of a college education. I wasted the chance I was given. But now I'm doing it, finally doing it, and I can walk tall on this journey, and know that it's ok to believe in myself, and to imagine that I can help people find long term recovery.

Recovery has given me many gifts, and I love that it continues to surprise me. Plus, I get to wear the super cool sash, which I really think I need to wear on grocery store trips or when I'm picking up the kids from school.

Senior College Student

{best of the senior college student memes here}

I started college twenty years ago this month, and I love that God timed it so I would start again now. When I applied to college the first time I was looking for an education, but what I wanted in the short term was Christian community. I chose a small, Presbyterian school that I had visited during some missions conferences, and was thrilled to be accepted. I had always wanted Christian friends and craved those kinds of relationships. I was sure this was finally going to be where I found a circle of friends that I could pray with, be real with and grow with in our faith.
It didn't take long to realize that I had made mistake, and there was really no Christian community to be found there. My roommate was a believer, but she turned out to be a complete psycho who wanted me out of the room. (She eventually moved out.) There was one tiny club for Christians but it just seemed nerdy and there wasn't anyone there I thought I could connect with. I gave up on Christian friends and just tried to make any friends I could. This was the beginning of my problem drinking, downward spiral, etc. In hindsight it's easy to see that I should have left and gone home, or applied elsewhere and tried to transfer. But at 18 I didn't think I had a choice, and assumed I was stuck there. I did what I could to fit in, somehow still always being alone and isolated, my faith fading.
So twenty years later, I am starting over and I get my first message from one of my new professors. She went over some basic information for the course, and then closed with this:
"I can't wait to see what God has for us together this term. I am looking forward to meeting each of you and getting to know you. I am already praying for you, but if you have specific prayer requests that you would like to share with me, I would welcome your emails. I like to be able to pray for you with specificity. I pray that God will bless each of us as we work together, learning and strengthening our daily walk. I look forward to hearing from you.  I urge you to commit yourself to live out this verse: The plans of the diligent lead surely to plenty, but those of everyone who is hasty, surely to poverty.  Proverbs 21:5"
I cried when I read that. I never thought that I would be able to go back to finish my degree, and I certainly never even sought to find that Christian college community again. To get my first message from a professor and read about prayer and scripture was just overwhelming. I love that God gives us gifts like this. I'm excited for this new chapter, and feel so blessed that I can do it the way I wanted to twenty years ago.

Women of Faith

I can't stop singing this! It was one of the finals songs we sang at Women of Faith this weekend, and I can't describe how it moved me. If you've never gone to an event like this, please do. There is nothing else like it; the experience of worshipping our Lord with 11,000 other women is so moving, so powerful. It is like a tiny glimpse of what Heaven must be like, praising Him together. There were many speakers, in particular women like Christine Caine, who have such a painful & beautiful testimony of God's love and redemption.

Oh, and also, there's this:

Like my tiara?

Random Things

A, 8th grade (last year of junior high)

E, 5th grade (last year of elementary school)

TC, Kindergarten

Kids are back to school, and TC started Kindergarten yesterday. I spent the afternoon crying. It's super hard to let him go after having him home with me for nearly six years. He isn't a kid I usually need a break from either; he's generally easy and affectionate and hilarious, so I'd really rather keep him at age 5 forever. I took a bunch of pictures, and waved at him bravely, and waited until I got in the car to fall apart. I don't know that I'd ever be ready for him to go. This year has kept me in a raw emotional state, so it doesn't take much at this point to get the tears rolling. I just didn't know that dropping the last child off for Kindergarten would be this much harder than the first.

I am all registered for school and my first textbook is on a UPS truck somewhere right now. My first class starts on the 17th, which is coming up quickly.

My mother, who has Parkinson's Disease, is having brain surgery next week. Specifically she is having Deep Brain Stimulation done. I'm pretty much wigging out about this and trying not to think about it much or do internet research. The surgery takes six hours, and she'll be awake for the first two. That's pretty much all I want or need to know at this point.

Hell Sucks

About 90 seconds on why hell sucks and why we've done a poor job of marketing heaven.

10,000 Reasons

This song has been on the radio lately, and I can't get enough of it. It just fills me up with such joy, praising God and thanking Him for all the '10,000 Reasons' in my own life. They don't play it enough on the radio so I'm thinking I need to go buy the CD.

I've been getting all my ducks in a row for college, and today went to my old high school to request my transcripts from TWENTY years ago. I gave the secretary the fax number for the college, and she said she would fax them over there today. One more little step that just feels HUGE to me. I can't say enough that this is GOD moving in my life, because I really could not do this on my own. I am terrified about doing this. I am not an anxious person and have really never been a fearful person, but every time I face another step in this process I can feel panic rising in me, and I get super agitated. So I just keep plowing forward, trying not to dwell on all my fears, and all of the reasons why this will clearly not work, and how I'm going to waste our money, and never have time to study raising three kids while Tom is working 75 hours a week, etc etc etc. I am not exaggerating when I say that I cannot see how in the world we are going to make this work.

When I left the district offices today I felt a bit lighter, one step closer. I got in the car and the 10,000 Reasons song came on and I just burst out laughing and crying. I sang it loudly (aren't you glad you weren't in the car with me?!) and then listened as the DJ talked afterward. She said sometimes we just need to be reminded that God will do what He has said He will do. That we sometimes need to think of our own 10,000 reasons to be thankful and remind ourselves of all that He has already done in our lives. And that whatever we may be facing, He has promised to care for us and watch over us. I'm telling you, I swear that woman was only talking to me. God definitely led her to speak to me, because I needed to hear it. I keep feeling so discouraged lately with my health, and as much as I try to be optimistic, it has been near impossible to believe that I am ever going to feel better. I really needed that encouragement today, thank you Lord.