Signs and Wonders

Day three of tour: It’s a new day and we went from New Jersey to New York. We had our best concert so far at the Open Door Church in New Woodstock, NY, but spending 6 ½ hours in a van to get there will do strange things to you.

Road signs fascinate me. Sometimes they don’t seem to make sense.

Pay

STOP

Toll

There is a toll for stopping? Oh, oh, oh, you have to STOP and pay toll? Then why don’t you just say

STOP

Pay

Toll

It would be much simpler. To keep the driver of our van entertained, I took to interpreting different road signs. The –Deer Crossing 3 Miles- signs are always fun. Then you hit a –Snowmobile Crossing- sign and it gets even better. Then you have the random billboards that don’t really say much of anything at all. –Three Bear Inn : Marathon- Why marathon? What does that even mean?? You’ll sleep like you just ran a marathon? Only marathon runners can stay here?  Then about 50 miles later, we saw that there is a town called Marathon. Good to know. 

We eventually made it to New Woodstock and had a wonderful meal and a great concert, followed by fellowship with members of the church. It was a good night. And to top it off, all 9 of the girls in my choir were able to stay in the church’s parsonage/mission home by ourselves for the night. It was like one giant slumber party. Another girl and I even got up the next morning to make us all pancakes! 

Tour is wonderful, but I’m getting no homework done. But does that really matter?  . . . Maybe. I’ll worry about that after I’m too worn out to think about trying to have fun. 

m®

Family Kinection

Day 2 of handbell tour: I discover that I have a hidden talent while playing Xbox Kinect. I am really good at boxing. I contribute it to the fact that I was born on Boxing Day. I will someday try my hand at real boxing; it's a dream of mine.

We played a concert in Philadelphia this morning and then drove an hour and a half to NJ to play in another church. Both were full of wonderful people who were delighted to hear us play. It always makes it more fun when the audience enjoys the music. To be honest, we played horribly this morning, but did much better in the evening service. It's hard to switch from travel to bells . . . but we eventually made the transition.

On tour, we stay with families from the churches where we play. Tonight, we were taken to a family's house. First, it's HUGE. Second, I love this family. They have 3 children, all adopted. A girl from China, a girl from Korea, and then a boy who was abandoned by his teenage mom at birth. Their story is wonderful because of how long they prayed for their children. God works in wonderful ways; this family is solid evidence of that.

They were so much fun to be with and we talked and laughed and played Kinect. Their 11-year-old son was puttin out some friendly trash-talk about how he was going to beat me at boxing and though I'd never played on a Kinect before, I took his challenge. Growing up with 4 brothers causes that type of behavior. I won. 5 knockouts to 2. Oh yeeaaah! I did a small victory dance and trash-talked right back. He took it well and challenged me to another game. I beat him again. Hopefully I burned off all the calories that came with the ginormous piece of coffee cake his mom fed me. Hopefully.

These stays with church families is just one of the pleasures of tour. I love getting to know new people and hearing their stories. It is surprisingly easy to bond with families, usually over small things like the fact that they bought their Yorkie from my hometown, or that I knew who was playing in the basketball game today. Nothing huge, but small things tie us together and allow us to connect. Or kinect.

I'll be sad to leave in the morning, but the show must go on! New York, here we come!

My Country 'Tis of Thee

I don’t think I was truly an American until today. Yes, I was born and raised here – never left actually, but it wasn’t until I finally traveled to Washington, D.C. that the true spirit of America flowed through my dormant veins of patriotism.

Day one of handbell tour: We visited the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. Awestruck. I had never even heard of the National Cathedral until my director mentioned it and I definitely never imagined anything so grand. It was also nice that I had just learned about the architecture of cathedrals in my art appreciation class. Inside the cathedral, I finally understood why stained glass windows are so beautiful. They cast rainbows across the enormous columns, lighting up the otherwise muted colors of the cathedral. But the best part was the bell tower, because we are, after all, a bell choir. We were able to travel up the windy staircase to see the 14,000 lb bells. We also got an exclusive tour with the bell ringers that pull ropes to produce the change ring on the smaller bells. It was fascinating . . . I kind of want to try it. The thing is, when you’re pulling on a rope that connects to a 600 lb bell, the bell is in charge and you can get seriously injured if you don’t know what you’re doing. That proves it, bell ringing is an extreme sport! Oh yeah, I am a beller.

Next, we traveled to the main monuments of D.C. I rode the metro for the first time!! Woo, woo! I was excited, oh yes, I was excited. It was like walking onto the set of National Treasure or Night at the Museum 2. I saw the Lincoln Memorial up close and personal, the Washington Monument, and the WWII Memorial. I held the Washington Monument in the palm of my hands. Once again, I was awestruck because of such an amazing tribute to our country and its rich history. Definitely more important than just being the set of a movie.

There is something that stirs deep within me as I stand beneath Abraham Lincoln’s solemn gaze as his famous words echo on the walls around me. To see the memorials to our soldiers and know that each star presents a boy whose life was whisked away by the terrors of war is very sobering, but also fills me with a deep gratitude for what our country represents and how much we are willing to protect that. It gives me hope for this country. 

Farewell

Ima leavin' today.

Tonight.

In less than an hour.

After an incredibly busy week of Bible Conference, my handbell choir is headed out on tour to New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. We are also taking time to stop in Washington, D.C. and I'm going to Niagara Falls for the first time! I'm incredibly excited because I've been on tour with my high school choir and with a Rezound!, but I'm also extremely tired. Could y'all pray for me? I want to be able to minister this week, to the churches, the schools, and also my team members. Pray that I'm able to get a lot done . . . teachers still give homework to people on tour.

I'll be endeavoring to write at least once a day, so you know what it's like to be on handbell choir tour. It's definitely an experience and a half.

Thanks for your prayers!

m(r)

From the Room of MG126

Tonight is roomie bonding night! In case you're wondering what that means, it means that we're AWESOME. Also, it means that we have pulled 3 mattresses onto the floor, cranked up the A/C (because I get hot), made a canopy out of sheets, blankets, safety pins, phone cords, clip-on lamps, and a ponytail holder, popped popcorn, turned on some lively music (aka 'The Lion Sleeps Tonight' and 'It's a Hard Knock Life'), and sat in a circle for a pow-wow. To add to the ambiance, we hung up my leopard scarf. We like to feel like we're in the jungle, the mighty jungle, where the lion sleeps . . . I am the lion.

Abby is the elephant. She's a very cute elephant.

Sarah is a giraffe . . .. mostly because she is taller than all of us even though she is youngest.

Ruthanne is our resident hyena because she always laughs at all my jokes. Ok, maybe she doesn't. I just pretend that everyone always laughs at my jokes. Denial is bliss.

I ask my roommates, "If you could say anything on a blog about our room or about anything, what would you say?"

They answered. Jungle animals can speak!

Abby: "If you learn anything at school, you should learn Greek!!" (Elephants don't normally speak Greek, only the ones that get a higher education)  "Our room is fantabulous and it just keeps getting fantabulouser!" (It made more sense in Greek . . . but I can't write Greek.)

Oh wait. Our wildlife ranger (hall leader) came in to tell us goodnight.

Sarah: (giraffe-like silence) . . . (choking on water) . . . I embarrassed her. She's laughing now, but there are no words coming out.

Ruthanne: "Hey, I'm Ruthanne!! I'm Mareena's roommate and it's nice to meet you all! Have a good night. But our night will be better than yours. Ok, see ya!"

I love my roommates. I love that we made a mad dash to Rita's ten minutes before they closed. I love that we're sleeping in a jungle. I love that we all sleep with stuffed animals. I love that Sarah laughs when I quote Brian Regan. I love that Abby and Ruthanne are always confused when I quote Brian Regan. I love that we can all sit and share what we learned during the first day of Bible Conference. I love that we're all together.  I love that God put us all together. It's not a good room, it's a GREAT room. Yeah, you can be jealous.

In the jungle, the mighty jungle my roomies sleep tonight
In the jungle, the mighty jungle, my roomies sleep tonight
A-weeeeeee-uuuuu-eeee-uuuuu-eee-uuu-e um bum ba day
A-weeeeeee-uuuuu-eeee-uuuuu-eee-uuu-e um bum ba day

m(r)

As a Patron(ess) of the Arts

I commissioned my first work of art yesterday. I feel that even as a poor college student, I can help to nurture culture and art in others and better allow them to view the world through art. Who did I commission? Well, she's a senior in high school. The art piece?

A pair of tennis shoes.

But not just any tennis shoes! They're specially decorated to convey something about the person wearing them. They start out as just normal white, plain, and even a little bit like old-lady shoes, but then the artist decorates them with brilliant colors, words, and doodles. Then she puts super cute colored ribbon in instead of laces. The shoes are transformed! She came into work with a pair yesterday and when I complimented them, she said she would make me a pair. She offered to do it for free, but I paid her $5 because I am, after all, a patron of the arts.

I was getting excited until she turned to me and said,

"What are some words or important phrases that you really like saying? What are things that have impacted your life?"

Uhhhhhh...

I duuunnnnoooo.

Record stopping, movie cutting out, world shutting down. I had no idea. What are some things that have impacted my life? I was drawing about 20 blanks a minute as I searched my mind for things that really mattered to me. Why was it so hard? Meanwhile, my artist was throwing out suggestions and showing me what she had put on her own shoes. Her mini-missions trip to NY was commemorated by the New York skyline drawn onto the toe of her left shoe. She had 'secret' messages written on the tongue of her shoes because they were covered by a ribbon. I still couldn't think of what I wanted on my shoes. Brain overload!! This goes to show that I am not creative. Ay. I have not the brain power to dabble in the creative arts. Eventually, I asked if I could tell her later when I thought of something.

Then I sat. And I thought. And I thought and I thought. And no this is not going to turn into a Dr. Seuss poem. But I questioned to see what really was important to me, what I would actually write down that was important to me. My family, my friends, my Savior, a desire to do better . . .  just to name a few.  But how would I put that on shoes?

Eventually, I wrote down a phrase from my dad about working hard and striving to do better that will go on the tongues of my shoes. I wrote the title of one my favorite songs, His Robes for Mine. I asked for there to be a heart and key somewhere on the shoes to mirror the necklaces that my two friends and I wear. I want a dragon on there to show my society spirit. All the rest, I leave up to her artistic talent and license.

I can't wait to get my shoes, and I know that every time I look at them or wear them, I'll be reminded of what I find important. Pretty cool for shoes, huh?

Definitely a good introduction into the arts.

m(r)

A Student's Best Friend

My mechanical pencil is my helpful friend. She gives me just what I need, right when I need it. 

My RSVP pen is my special friend. I love him and his fine point.

My laptop is my brainy friend. Always has the answers and is a great notetaker. (a little slow at times, but I don't mention it. He's sensitive about it)

My ID card is the friend I couldn't live without. Literally. Without her I can't eat.

BUT.

My backpack is my best friend. She helps me bear all my burdens.

Freshman year, I remember trying to shove all my books into my big purse because I thought that backpacks were dorky and not sophisticated enough for an college student. My accounting book is the size of a small horse though, which made carrying it off of one shoulder somewhat difficult. Add in the Literature book (over 1000 pages) and my laptop and I made one funny picture walking around campus tilted so heavily to one side that I looked like a speed skater trying to get around a turn. Plus my poor purse couldn't handle the pressure; the handle started fraying. I suffered adverse side-effects too. One shoulder was permanently lower than the other (this deformity may be the reason I'm not dating yet . . . ) And the handles of the purse were starting to form a divet in my skin. Needless to say, it was not a pleasant experience.

One day I was so sick of having an aching back and wounded shoulder that I pulled out my pink and black Nike backpack from high school. I let out a few sighs while I packed it up, dreading how dorky I would look with my backpack. When I zipped it up, everything fit nicely. Huh.What a change. But still dorky, right? Then I put it on my back and discovered the magic of even weight distribution. I walked around with it all day and when I got back to my room, I didn't feel the need to ice my body to rid myself of pain. I felt good! From that moment on I didn't care how dorky it looked, because my backpack was AWESOME.

Remember what I thought about backpacks? Well, the more I wore it, the more backpacks I noticed around campus. Dorky? No. Practical and nifty? You bet your britches. I don't know what I would do without my backpack. The other day, I was afraid it would break and my heart almost stopped at the thought. My backpack is clearly my best friend.

I look back at myself as a freshman, and I remember thinking that I had everything figured out. *snort* Yeah right. I was mostly stupid. I'm so glad I'm a sophomore now and know everything there is to know about college life.

Because sophomores have it all figured out . . . right?

m(r)