Boulevard Nights

Living in a small town presents many challenges. One of the biggest is socializing. Huge challenge. I personally have found it extremely difficult to make friends outside of our very small group. Don't get me wrong, I have found a great group of friends. They are a true blessing in my life. But, I do like having a big community of people my age. I just can't find that here. So, multiple times a month, Nicole and I will drive the 1+ hour it takes to make it to the nearby city's young adults group. It's so fun and so worth the drive.

I love people's reactions when they find out that we drive an hour to get there. It's worth it to us and it's really not that bad. Since we live and work in the same place, we have no commute whereas most people have the average of 20 minute commute to and from work. An hour really isn't that bad to go hang out with a bunch of cool people.

One of our favorite events happens every other month. We all go to Mass as a group and then head over to a local brewery to socialize. Ten bucks gets you unlimited beer and some pizza. It's so fun and a very welcomed change to the everyday.

Jesus + Friends + Beer + Pizza + killer view of the city= a good life.

Life and Death

It's April. I have a hard time believing it myself. In the time since I last wrote, so much has happened. A celebration of life and death.

I spent Spring Break in the Philippines doing mission work. We were serving those who were affected by Typhoon Sendong in the city of Cagayan de Oro, which hit the city on December 17, just a few days before Christmas. The typhoon affected over 100,000 people. Over 2000 people have died or are still missing. We arrived in the Philippines on March 5 and so many people were still living in evacuation sites. Tragic if you could see their living situation. So many more were living in the tent cities, which were set up as a better temporary home base for the families.

While Filipinos are generally warm and happy people, but it still came as a bit of a surprise to hear and see them celebrate life with such joy and vigor. They were so thankful to be alive despite the tragedy they had just experienced. Not a single person that I spoke with was ever in despair about the situation they were in. So many of them lost loved ones, some in the most tragic ways, but there was a sense of peace about them. They were alive and were so thankful about it.

I wish we had more than a week to spend with them. Their joy and love was very contagious. It was one of the most blessed weeks of my life.

(Some of the women I met who were affected by the typhoon.)

~*~

Then, on March 20, just 9 days after we returned from the Spring Break, I received a phone call for an emergency meeting. Our boss informed us that our Administrative Assistant, and a friend to all, had passed away in her sleep the day before. It was a shock. Sandi was a healthy, vibrant, and joyful woman. She worked hard in our office and was well respected and liked. Her death was difficult to accept, but as it says in Revelation 14:13

And I heard a voice from heaven say, 'Write this: blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.' 'Yes,' said the Spirit. 'Let them find rest from their labors for their works accompany them.'



I take comfort in the will of our Lord and that of His Word. Sandi spent the last 12 years in service of the students at the college and her life in service of her family. She was the warm welcome you needed in the busy-ness of life. I miss her, but I find comfort in missing her knowing that her work accompanies her as she meets our ever merciful Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Monday+Marines+Mug

Welcome to the first Monday of a very very busy month. I was not looking forward to this Monday, not that I ever look forward to such an evil day. I actually woke up (before the alarm clock!) and thought it was Sunday. Imagine my disappointment when I realized that it was in fact Monday. Very disappointed.

But let me take you through my day, even if it is only 4 pm.

I arrived at our weekly meeting a few minutes late. A huge problem for me and something I actually have been trying to work on. It's the first meeting in awhile that I've been late to. Still not a good thing.

Meeting went as well as any of those meetings could possibly go. Friends and I went to lunch, which was pretty uneventful. Love them, but going to lunch is not a huge deal for us. Then part of my after-lunch-ritual is going to the mail room to check my mail. On my way back to the office, I noticed a couple of gentlemen in uniform. Marines, no less. (I love the Marines-if I have to join a military branch, it would be the Marines. Hands down!) Not something we see every day here. It's a small campus so I notice things like that. They seemed lost and instead of giving them directions, it was easier for me to just show them where to go. It seems natural for me to do something like that. Must be that Filipino hospitality that is so ingrained in my soul. Wish I was exaggerating.

They asked if that was on my way to wherever it was I was going. It wasn't. I just didn't mind doing it. So I chatted with them and we walked a little bit more since the person they intended to see wasn't in their office. I showed them a little bit of campus, talked about how beautiful the weather was (seriously! It's 68 degrees outside right now!) and how horrible the food was in the cafeteria, and how it can't be any worse than prison. We went our separate ways after a few minutes.

I went to my office then went to a meeting that I only really needed to be in for about an eighth of it. I just needed to present my program and move on. While at the meeting, my phone rang. When my work phone rings, I answer. Always. Unless it's the weekend, which this day isn't, no matter how much I wished for it to be otherwise. It wasn't so bad. It was a student worker who just wanted to inform me that I got a special present in the office. I couldn't concentrate on the meeting after that. I tried to come up with a million excuses to leave the meeting and go see what this present was. I'm such a little kid. When I wasn't thinking about how to get out of the meeting, I was thinking about who it could be from and what it could be. My birthday is still a few weeks away, so it couldn't be flowers. Any other packages would be sent to the mail room. It did cross my mind that those Marines left a note for me, but that's it. Then I wondered again if someone did think to send me flowers a month before my birthday. Unlikely, but my hopeful little heart couldn't help but wish such an impossible thing.

I almost bolted out of the meeting when it ended, but ended up running into the dear (ummm, wrong word. strong? intimidating?) Marines. They mentioned that they left a mug for me in the office. I was touched! Truly! The surprise was ruined, but I couldn't keep from smiling. I was so excited! It really was nothing for me to take these gentlemen around campus. I would like to think that anyone who had the time would do the same thing. I would want someone to do the same thing for me.

And so, even though I still have so much left to do and am still stressed with the amount of work, I have a mug to remind me that no matter how crazy and stressful life is, I need to take the time to reach beyond myself and love on those around me.

Semper Fidelis.