a new obsession

I consider myself a pretty well-traveled person, considering my age and station in life. There are always more places I want to go, though--with a life goal of joining an elite club of travelers, new locations and experiences are a must!

Within the continental U.S., I only have 4 states left to reach my goal of visiting all 50 states before age 30! And now, thanks to my roommate and a few others, I feel like I'm ready to hit that most intimidating of states: North Dakota. 

Apparently this game called Farkle is quite popular there...and we've discovered that I'm surprisingly talented at this game of chance and risk. 

North Dakota Farkle champions, watch out!

Jesus, Jack Bauer, Ann Voskamp, and 2013

Somewhere about the middle of Jesus’ famous mountain theologue, He has a section about worry. “Do not worry,” he says. “Can you even add one hour to your life through anxiety? So go, seek God’s Kingdom, and don’t worry about your life--God will provide all you need. Today has enough trouble; let tomorrow worry about itself.” 

In the midst of preparing to return to Uganda, worry about tomorrow comes quite naturally. Will I be so lonely this time? Will I continue making friends? Will I like living on Primary or will I miss Secondary? Will five months be easier or harder than three and a half months? Will I miss Uganda when I leave? Will I enjoy Uganda while I’m there? 

All these worries swirl around my head, pulling me into a cycle of anxiety focused on possibilities and fears. I fight to ignore the future, to interact with real life, with what’s occurring in the moment. So I enter the present and end up watching 24 with my parents. Watching, I’m addicted and the future recedes...yet the more I watch, the more the lesson of saving tomorrow’s troubles for tomorrow strikes home. Jack Bauer, the starring secret agent, lives every hour to the fullest. From the beginning of his day, he doesn’t worry about saving energy for the next 18 hours, let alone the next day (a brand new season!). Jack does whatever is necessary in the moment wholeheartedly, letting consequences and future trouble fall by the wayside in full pursuit of whatever needs to happen at that moment, to fulfill the ultimate goal of saving the world. 

I want to live like that, my heart whispers. I want to breathe every moment, to grasp every opportunity, without regard to my fears, to ‘what ifs,’ in pursuit of my ultimate goal, in pursuit of knowing Jesus. What’s the secret to living like Jack Bauer?

The answer comes unexpectedly that night, as I finally finish the book I started four months ago,1,000 Gifts, so aptly a gift from a friend with the note: “It’ll change your life.” 

The secret to a grace-filled, in-the-moment, seeking-after-Christ life, write Ann Voskamp, is eucharisteo: giving thanks in all circumstances. God blesses every day with limitless gifts, big and small. We must seek them, count them, use them as weapons to fight the battle against fear, against worry, against Satan’s whispered lies that perhaps God is not entirely good. The gifts of a sunrise, a friend, a bargain, a breath, are all assurances that God is good, that He gives good gifts, and that He is involved in the details of my life.

the gift of Bubba!

To live outside of worry, to live as Jack Bauer, is to live with thanksgiving continually on my lips. The revelation is simple, probably a repeat of something I’ve heard in the past, but this time it sticks. And so, lying on my bed one cold December night, I develop my 2013 resolution: to find and list 1,000 gifts during the next five months. 

That’s 7 gifts a day, 49 gifts a week, 200 gifts a month, 1000 gifts in 5 months. Starting today, all these gifts, counted in one little book, exploring the idea of thankfulness as the anecdote to worry, the technique for leaving tomorrow’s troubles in tomorrow, the secret to living fully like Jack Bauer.

my 1000 gifts book

PS--so if someone wanted to send me a season of 24, that person would likely make the top of my gifts list for at least 24 days… 

a letter to my better self

Dear better self & your lovely long list of August goals,

I didn't run the Leesburg 10k yesterday. And I have no shame.

Oh, my better self, you are probably asking what happened. Injury? Catastrophe? Traffic?

Sadly, I have no real excuse except laziness. I don't have a training partner. I forgot to register for the race. I couldn't muster up the 'oomph' to train. And then I signed myself up for duties at church...a sort of 'holy excuse' for not racing on a Sunday.

Better self, don't scold. There are other races. I'm thinking of at least one 5k between now and September 30. And of course, there's always the Hot Chocolate 5k/15k in December. We'll get through this. We'll find other race bibs to add to the collection. And don't forget, I did run a 5k in April that didn't even hand out race bibs! So, I haven't really been slacking this year...just this summer.

In the end, better side of me, I think this lapse of relationship over the weekend was a good thing. Maybe the break will help us. Maybe we can start fresh this week. Maybe you could help me find a running partner. Not to be needy or anything...I just think this relationship could progress more effectively with a third wheel. Or maybe you, o better self, could be the third wheel.

Waiting not so anxiously your reply,

The lazy half

august-ness

The internet defines "Augustness" as "The eighth month of the year in the Gregorian calendar." Funny how quietly life slips by when one is no longer in the rhythm of semesters and progressive accumulation of scholastic awards.

I rather like the alternative definition of "Augustness": Inspiring awe or admiration; majestic: See Synonyms at grand." July had a very inauspicious ending, despite accomplishing all three of my goals: 2 Cor. 5:14-17 is firmly in my brain, Harry Potter is finished and I'm raring to see the movie, and I intentionally spent time outside. August has had an inauspicious start, though what can you expect when a month starts on a Monday? But I have hope that August is going to be a grand month, one worthy of much "Augustness."

And to initiate the grandiosity, what better than my goals for August? Without further ado, the list, along with some intended posts so you can keep me accountable:

• Memorize 2 Cor. 5:18-21
• Earn 1.0 or more fitness CECs (expect a post about my 10+ hours of workout at the DCAC Fitness Convention next week!)

• Sewing Projects: Finish some, start and finish others, reconsider the rest. (I'm no Martha Stewart, but a friend and I have a sewing day planned...and I'm sure you'll see posts from both of us regarding that.)

• Study Spanish 3 hours a week (habla espanol? mi amiga Britt-Britt esena me!)
• Run the Leesburg 10k! (under 58 minutes is my goal...we'll see...)

• Finish reading Microbe Hunters (a book I picked up for the Bro and started reading for myself)

And last, but certainly not least, the goal I undertake with the most trepidation:

• Go curly. (more about this on Friday)

July Haze...

Whoa, hang on a minute...and another minute...and another...June, come back! Where did you go? Summer is here, the longest day of the year is gone, and now we're hurtling toward another winter?? When did all that take place?

Sniffle. Farewell, my second favorite month of the year.

Ok, month in review: I traveled. I worked. I traveled. I worked. I traveled. I'm on vacation. As for goals, I completed two of the four I set

-Finish through week 44 of my Bible study program - check!

-Memorize Psalm 116 - not check.

-Read Harry Potter books 1 and 2 - check and double check! I'm midway through book 5 right now...

-Run 8-10 miles per week even while traveling 4 of the next 7 weekends - half-check.

As much as I love June, I have to admit July is also a great month; after all, it's summer. So in honor of the season, some light and summery goals:
-Memorize 2 Cor. 5.14-17
-Finish Harry Potter series
-Spend more time outside!

June Daze

Well, May was partially successful, with a 75% success rate. I failed to read my Group Strength book, and I didn't read Margaret Thatcher's bio (but I am almost done with another book: Radical, by David Platt). Oh well. There's always next month.

Speaking of next month...my June goals:

-Finish through week 44 of my Bible study program (less than 10 weeks to go until I finish completely!)

-Memorize Psalm 116

-Read Harry Potter books 1 and 2

-Run 8-10 miles per week even while traveling 4 of the next 7 weekends! (ok, this counts as a July goal also)

And I think that's it! June is busy, busy, busy, so mostly I'll just be trying to stay sane. Still, that doesn't prevent me from being excited about a new month! So, to inspire all those who also set goals, I leave you with this (gleaned from The Daybook):

Days of May

Inspired by my friend Cossette, I set 11 goals for April. I accomplished 6 of them and postponed 1, so that gives me a 64% success rate. Maybe I should work on my goal-setting skills, to remove that 'oldest child habit' of setting too-many, too-hard, or too-many-too-hard goals.

Eh, I'll postpone that to June. May is a fine spring month to accomplish things! Nevermind that I'll be gone for 5 days and my family will be here for 4 days...that still leaves 22 days to reach my 8 goals!

Hence, without further ado or wavering or self-judgement, I present to you the goal list for May 2011. Let the aspiring commence!

-Memorize Psalm 112

-Finish through week 41 of my 'read thru the Bible in a year' program (of which I am currently entering my 15th month...)

-Get halfway through my Group Strength Continuing Education Credit book (so I can stay certified as a fitness instructor!)

-Finish my photobook from Uganda!

-Get a new camera (pending budgetary approval)

-Update my resume

-Read Margaret Thatcher's biography

And my personal favorite and the goal I am MOST excited about:

Run a half-marathon!