Saturday, January 28, 2012

Maybe One Day.....

A while back, I saw a post similar to this from Jen. So while I mull over upcoming posts, I thought I would share my list of places I dream of visiting. Because what does it hurt to dream? What can I say, the travel bug has bitten!

Central America:
Guatemala
Honduras
Costa Rica

South America:
Ecuador - Yes Emily, Equador is first on this list. :)
Peru
Columbia
Brazil
Argentina

Antartica

Australia
New Zealand
Papua New Guinea

Europe:
England
Ireland
Scotland
Iceland
Netherlands
Germany
Austria
Switzerland
Poland
Denmark
Norway
Sweden
Finland
Czech Republic
Hungary
Croatia
Bosnia
Serbia
Italy
Greece
France
Spain
Portugal
Romania
Moldova
Ukraine
Cypress

Middle East:
Pakastan
Afghanastan
Saudi Arabia
Turkey
Lebenon
Israel
Jordan

Asia:
Mongolia
India
Nepal
Bangladesh
Myanmar
Thailand
Sri Lanka
Malaysia
Indonesia
Cambodia
Laos
Vietnam
Philippines
China
Japan
Russia

Africa:
Kenya
Tanzania
Ethiopia
Nigeria
Morocco
Zimbabwe
Madagascar
South Africa
Swaziland

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Word of the Year

Let's face it:
- Not every desire will be met.
- Not every encounter will end well.
- Not every event will go off without a hitch.
- Not every choice you make will choose you back.
- Life throws us curve balls.
- People make bad choices.
- Our words can slip out sharp and harsh.
- Our hearts are broken.
- People let us down.
- We take on too much.
- We hold in too much.
- We don't say enough.
- We say too much.
- We don't let go.
- We overanalyze, overreact, and get overwhelmed.
- And life is hard.

But sometimes.....
- The way things don't work out are better than if they had.
- Our realities are better than anything we could have ever dreamed up ourselves.
- People we least expect come though in big ways.
- The thing we feared the most becomes a source of strength.
- Our tears of sorrow become tears of joy.
- When we've been stretched until we fear we will break, we see that in reality, we've grown.
- And as hard as life is, it is a beautiful thing too.

My focus word for 2012 is hope. Not the silly, idealistic hope that Cinderella wakes up singing about or stubborn false hope that can't let go or face realities. It is the hope that:
- at the end of a good day, tomorrow will follow suit.
- at the end of a bad day, that mercies are new each day.
- after things didn't go quite as you planned, maybe one day they will.
- gray clouds have silver linings and our realities aren't as gloomy as we thought.
- disappointments will turn to joy.
- our tears will dry and even turn into laughter.
- in the end, it won't just be good. It will be beautiful.

We all need it - especially me. Here's to 2012 - a year of hope.

Saturday, January 14, 2012

2011 Retrospect

One of the things that I received many comments on when I was in the states was that I needed to update the blog more often. Message received. So two weeks into the new year and I haven't done my obligatory "Year in Review" post. I've been planning on not doing one because, let's face it, I'm two weeks late. Then I ran across Amanda's blog. And since I can't seem to bring much creativity to this table, I'm going to follow in suit. So here are 27 questions about 2011:

1. What did you do in 2011 that you'd never done before?
Spend time on three different continents - North America, Africa, and Asia

2. Did you keep your New Year's resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
I don't think I made any resolutions so, therefore, I didn't fail. For this year, my resolution is to invest in people more and put action to my beliefs.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
My dear friends Jill and Michelle bookended 2011 by have sweet little boys!

4. Did anyone close to you die?
I don't think so. I'm really sorry if you remember some that I've forgotten.

5. What countries did you visit?
Moved to Egypt (not really a visit), Singapore, and America

6. What would you like to have in 2012 that you lacked in 2011?
No debt! Thank you AISE!

7. What dates from 2011 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
June 24, 2011 - accepting a job to move to Egypt
August 21, 2011 - Flying away from my home and family to a whole new life.

8. What was your biggest achievement for the year?
Adjusting to such a different place without any major breakdowns or regrets.

9. What was your biggest failure?
Not staying in touch with people better

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
I had the flu pretty badly and then a nasty case of pink eye. Oh the life of a teacher.....

11. What was the best thing you bought?
Place tickets to new and exciting places.

12. Where did most of your money go?
Relocating to Egypt

13. What did you get really excited about?
Getting to see my family after four months of Skype and facetime.

14. What song will always remind you of 2011?
Constant by Charlie Hall

15. Compared to this time last year, are you:
-Happier or sadder?
Happier!

-Thinner or fatter?
Thinner - I now know why so many Americans are obese!

-Richer or poorer?
Richer - in SO many ways! The Lord is providing a way out of debt, a new family of friends, new experiences, and a deeper knowing of him!

16. What do you wish you'd done more of?
Serving those with greater needs than me.

17. What do you wish you'd done less of?
Eat

18. How did you spend Christmas?
Mom, Dad, and I went to worship and then lunch. After a quick nap, we picked up the grandparents. We took them to Dennys and visited back at home. We then joined a friend to see We Bought a Zoo. Great day! About everything important - family, friends, and fun.

19. What was your favorite TV program?
Kept the same old ones - The Office and NCIS; Picked up some new ones - Once Upon a Time, New Girl

20. What were your favorite books of the year?
The Help, Beautiful Outlaw


21. What was your favorite music this year?
Hillsong United, Schuyler Fisk, and Matt Wertz - with a few days of Willie and Wynonna thrown in along the way

22. What were your favorite films of the year?
Midnight in Paris, Moneyball, We Bought a Zoo

23. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
On my 31st birthday, I had an amazing birthday dinner with my girls and a sister date with my Erin

24. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
It was a good year. It was everything God wanted it to be. It was everything I needed it to be.

25. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2011?
Moving to Egypt would make anyone dress more conservatively.

26. What kept you sane?
Knowing that no matter what happened or came my way, I was not the first one to go though it. People experience things every day that I was going through and not only survived it but flourished through it. Nothing new under the sun......

27. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2011.
Our perceptions of the world are not always the realities of the world around us. In order to know what life is like for others, we need to experience life with them. Only then can we make honest thoughts and beliefs of the world around us. Only then can we honestly love.