Who wants to go with me?
Saturday, August 30, 2008
Friday, August 22, 2008
Mental Health Break
1. Where were you 3 hours ago?
Holding the crying mom of my patient while she processed some devastating news. It was a bad day.
2. Who are you in love with?
Whoever invented ice cream.
3. Have you ever eaten a crayon?
Not that I remember, but I have had cow's tongue.
4. Is there anything pink within 10 feet of you?
Definitely not.
5. When is the last time you went to the mall?
Probably two months ago.
6. Are you wearing socks right now?
No.
7. Do you have a car worth over $2,000?
Yes, got to love the Honda.
8. When was the last time you drove out of town?
I went to Houston, MN last weekend for a bluegrass festival.
9. Have you been to the movies in the last 5 days?
Probably not the last five months.
10. Are you hot?
Yes, it has to be about 80 degrees in this room.
11. What was the last thing you had to drink?
Water.
12. What are you wearing right now?
Charlie Brown scrub top and blue scrub pants.
13. Do you wash your car or let the car wash do it?
I like to wash it if I have time and cash.
14. Last food that you ate?
Muffins cooked by Amy
15. Where were you last week at this time?
At the bluegrass festival in Houston, MN.
16. Have you bought any clothing items in the last week?
No.
17. When is the last time you ran?
Yesterday.
18. What's the last sporting event you watched?
Olympic basketball today
19. What is your favorite animal?
White tiger
20. Your dream vacation?
A survey trip in Rwanda
21. Last person's house you were in?
the B.A.J.A house
22. Worst injury you've ever had?
Couple of broken fingers
23. Have you been in love?
I think so
24. Do you miss anyone right now?
Too many people to count
25. Last play you saw?
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum.....I don't recommend it.
26. What is your secret weapon to lure in the opposite sex?
I am just ornery enough to be fun.
27. What are your plans for tonight?
Sleeping
28. Who is the last person you sent a Facebook message or comment?
Jenel
29. Next trip you are going to take?
Louisville, KY for a medical missions conference in November
30. Ever go to camp?
I suppose you could call it that.
31. Were you an honor roll student in school?
Yes, and proud of it.
32. What do you want to know about the future?
I would take anything about now.
33. Are you wearing any perfume or cologne?
I probably smell like hospital or baby lotion.
34. Are you due sometime this year for a doctor's visit?
If I have to
35. Where is your best friend?
Somewhere in Arkansas.
36. How is your best friend?
Much shorter than me.
37. Do you have a tan?
No, I'm trying to be a real Minnesotan.
38. What are you listening to right now?
The rain.
39. Do you collect anything?
Projects, lately.
40. Who is the biggest gossiper you know?
My neighbor Jane.
41. Last time you got stopped by a cop or pulled over?
Sophomore year of college, I think.
42. Have you ever drank your soda from a straw?
Yes
43. What does your last text message say?
Kristy asked if I could do breakfast in the morning.
44. Do you like hot sauce?
Yes.
45. Last time you took a shower?
Last night.
46. Do you need to do laundry?
Nope, did it yesterday.
47. What is your heritage?
My dad says he doesn't know. I apparently have no identity.
48. Are you someone's best friend?
I think so.
49. Are you rich?
In more ways than I deserve.
50. What were you doing at 12AM last night?
Heading towards bed.
Thursday, August 07, 2008
Community
Last night was so good and so powerful I'm not quite sure it happened. But I'll come back to that.
For those of you around Rochester, you've probably been aware of or are a part of this "community" here. For a brief reference to the girls in this group, see this post . It all started last fall when four girls, including myself, started meeting with the intent on doing a Bible study about Daniel. We did that for about 1.5 weeks, then decided we needed something different. We needed to get real.
So we did. The four of us, who barely knew each other, started sharing our lives with each other. The good and the bad, the hurts and the triumphs, the profound and the mundane. We prayed for each other. By that, I mean more than a few tired words spoken almost by repetition. We prayed for each other. We cried together almost as much as we laughed. This weekly meeting became a mainstay for all of us, a must-have that profoundly impacted our relationship with God. Not that we are the first people in the world to do this, but we realized we had stumbled upon a gold mine, something that had to be shared. Everyone needed to experience this relationship, this true community. And so we grew.
More ladies started coming. Finding a place to meet became an issue. We needed places big enough to handle us, but cozy enough so we could converse. We bounced around all sorts of restaurants and houses. We made it work. We shared ideas of living together, serving together, being a constant support for each other. Our core group of four grew to eight.
Our guy friends became jealous. They got tired of hearing so much about this "girls' meeting" that they started their own. Pretty soon, you couldn't see another friend without hearing the buzzword "community." We had a goal, a common vision, a unified purpose.
The guys and girls started meeting together. It came to settle on Wednesday nights, and now it is a standing date. We eat together, usually share communion, then often having a time of sharing and prayer for each other. We all come from various backgrounds and different faith traditions, but all built on Christ. Several of us bought houses and live together, opening our doors to each other at any time of day. We share many things, and if it is in your fridge, you better consider it fair game to be eaten. The community has grown by leaps and bounds, and now you can expect several dozen people every time we get together. It has blessed my life in immeasurable ways.
The girls continue to meet on their own at a different part of the week, though it has been hard to coordinate that the last month or two. We have become a little distant, disconnected from each other and left to struggle through life more or less on our own. Though God is always there and is always helping us, without the constant support of our Christian sisters, we were hurting, and it came to our attention that we needed each other. So we scheduled a girls' night with the core group of eight, which was last night.
We were (are? it has only been one night) a complete mess. A complete mess. Every single one of us has been struggling with some major thing, be it loneliness, fear, sin, temptation. We were antsy at the beginning, knowing this was going to be a rough night, so we started out stating praises. It went from praises about happenings in our life to praises for the good things in each other, building each other up in love. It was good.
Then we took turns sharing what we had been struggling with. Every single one of us cried when talking. Life has been too hard. We have not been there for each other. We confessed many shortcomings, many sins--some almost unbelievably, shockingly bad--some of us so far from the Lord.
And we loved on each other. We loved on each other. We cried out to God to heal each person, specifically, passionately. We spoke strong words against the work of Satan and how he had taken hold of us. We sobbed together. Maybe it is so significant to me that we cried together because I am not typically a crier. But there were no walls last night as we mourned for each other and sought out the guidance of God. And it was very good.
How we need each other. How we need the Lord. May His Name be praised for breaking us and building us back up. I have a feeling for the next good while us girls are going to be attached at the hip. May we never fall apart like that again. And may every one get a taste of this community, this fellowship, based on Christ with a foundation of love. Let me know if you want to join. We'd love to have you.
Small Joys in Life
I have a nice, big red dumpster in my driveway right now, and it is one of the most fun things I've ever experienced. A sampling of today's accomplishments:
Nastiness carpet from the living room and bedrooms---gone.
Three layers of carpet and one layer of plastic unknown thing from the stairs---gone.
Sneakers, gnarled tennis balls, random pieces of wood, empty sticky bottles from the basement---gone.
Dead branches and bushes that haven't been trimmed this millennium--gone.
Yucky green tile covering perfectly good hardwood---gone.
Gooey, greasy non-functional stove vent---gone.
It is liberating, exhilarating goodness that gave me quite a high. I love that feeling of declutterizing. Absolutely love it. And right now, it is incredibly convenient. All for one flat price.
(P.S. Are you tired of hearing about this house renovation yet?)
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Makin' Progress
The house is coming along, being salvaged from years of neglect and bad interior design, one coat of paint at a time. I could not have done this without the help of my oh-so-faithful friends. You guys are simply incredible.
A Silly, Serious Poem
I’m tired of being a yo-yo.
Will I ever come down to rest?
My life is filled with motion, yes, I even crave it.
Can’t I be like a knick-knack that sits on a bookshelf?
Maybe a joyful little figurine, complete with peaceful face and relaxed pose?
But no, up and down I go, a ball of twisting, spinning string
Switching directions with the twist of an unseen wrist
Emotions gliding every which way
Yet if the turmoil ever stops and the tension is released
The whole thing comes undone.
I feel like a yo-yo.
One minute I am revolving beautifully, smoothly
Living the life I want to, feeling fulfilled, gratified, loved.
The next minute, I am a tangled mess of passions
Despair, loneliness, confusion, doubt, regret.
There is no predictable moment when these will arise,
No law of physics to tell when the string will get jumbled,
When my life knots upon itself and the fun ends.
So here I go, twisting and turning, up and down,
Never knowing when
Or if
This will stop.
Thursday, July 17, 2008
What Not To Paint- A Call for Help
Scheduled Workdays: Wednesday July 23rd and 24th, starting at 10am both days
Help me update my newly purchased house! I recently bought an older house with lots of character, but it also came with some very, um, interesting design and neglected upkeep that have to be addressed. There is a ton of work that needs to be done, and I would appreciate any and all help.
I will keep good tunes, tasty food, cold lemonade, and fun company flowing. We'll start by 10am on Wednesday and go until 7pm when community meal happens that a lot of us go to. On Thursday, we'll start at 10am again and go until we run out of things to do or I don't have any friends left. :-) Come and go as you please.
All predictable supplies will be provided, but bring any unique tools you have that we may need. The agenda will include stripping wallpaper, painting, trim work, ripping up carpet, yard work, washing siding, and whatever else we uncover!
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
An Important Day
Recently I learned that when one of my good friends is talking to other people and refers to me, he calls me "Sarah Dill-his grown-up friend." I'm not quite sure why he labels me that way, but today, I think I did take a step forward towards adulthood. Today I became a homeowner for the first time.
After a good bit of deliberation and fickleness, I decided to buy this cute, 1930s home here in Rochester. It is 3 blocks from work, which solves the never-ending saga of parking at Mayo for me. It is small enough to be cozy, but big enough for several people to live there and lots of room to host others. I can't tell you how excited I am to have a place to welcome others. It's got a big back yard with an old shade tree. There are lots of built-ins and character accents which just add to the charm. The upstairs is a loft bedroom with a built-in office with desk and bookshelves. And today when I investigated under the carpet that covers the two bedrooms downstairs, the living room, and the hall, I discovered beautiful hardwood floors in really good shape.
This house is no
Southern Living Home of the Year quite yet--it is going to take a lot of work. So, I'm putting on my Martha Stewart hat and learning the ins-and-outs of home improvement. Here's a sneak preview of some of the ugly wallpaper that just had to come down--
The whole house is going to be repainted to get rid of the disturbing pastel pinks and purples, the floors redone, and various other updates and improvements are battling it out in my head for who goes first. So this is a shameless call for help, advice, manpower, tools, etc. I promise a steady stream of music, lemonade, and good company if you should choose to help out with the cause.
Other than the hardwood floors, I also had another surprise. Apparently the guy who owned it before me forgot to tell his renters that he was selling the house right now. They didn't know till yesterday. So....I have renters for a week or two while they scramble for another place to live.
It's always an adventure.
Sunday, July 06, 2008
When the dog bites, when the bee stings....
I'm at work right now, basically watching a kid sleep. It is 4 o'clock in the morning. And I feel like being contemplatively optimistic. So here goes a list of a few of my favorite things...
Rochester's farmer's market, fruit, chocolate, a combo of the last two items, infants, giggling, stretching, going barefoot, t-shirts, being called princess, cute old men, homemade ice cream, being on a farm, creating something artsy, dangley earrings, pearls.
Having friends call me for advice, reading insightful stories, black and white photos, peanut butter and banana sandwiches, road trips, my job, singing, being commended, finding the best hole-in-a-wall in a small town, making a definitive decision, being genuinely happy for someone instead of being jealous, going for a run and being surprised when the time goes fast, consignment stores, potlucks, Georgia Mud Fudge Blizzards from Dairy Queen.
Being capable, having a child decide they want to be my friend, visiting former patients who graduated from intensive care, being comforting and collected in crisis situations, taking communion, earthy things, stone walls, lotion, sleeping in sunlight, simple solutions that change people's lives.
Serious conversations, real mail, finding the perfect word, autumn, linen clothing, crossing state lines, knowing I don't have to worry, organizing, fixing problems, folk music, a good cup of coffee, hugs, journals, being productive, window seats, brainstorming ideas annoyingly when people tell me they have nothing to do, exciting moments at work, and quiet moments at work.
And that's just a few. Works every time.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
