The Saga Continues...

Well apparently we don't have seven girls now, and now I'm trying to find at least a couple. So I got an email this morning from a girl RA who said she had some girls, so hopefully we'll get this whole thing worked out.

As far as the name goes, here's the story: Yesterday I gave Jon the roster and he commenced sending it away. We didn't have a name, and he said it was up to me to pick one because I was the captain...of course I am horrid at coming up with names, so I asked him if he had any ideas. After about 3 seconds of thinking he named the team Carl's Heroes....yep...so now everyone is going to think I'm a vain, arrogant captain...which is not true at all haha.

Well I'm off to my first chapel of the year, hoping to not fall asleep too bad...

SEVEN GIRLS!!

Buenos tardes!

Yes, I am using my new found Spanish knowledge, which happens to be a very small amount. Well, for any one out there reading this other than Adam, who pretty much knows what's going on over here, things have been going really well. The first day of classes was overwhleming to say the least. Getting everything that needs to be done over the semester dumped on you in one class is pretty crazy. But now I've settled into the pattern a little better...basically once you get homework, do it right away, so you don't get behind and you can still have fun at night. At the moment I'm keeping up well, but this is only the first week.

Anyway, in more exciting news the freshman frisbee tournament is coming up. Now a slight problem arose when I found out we needed to have two girls on the field at all time while we were playing. Now if you know me, you know I don't like to sit out when I play games, so my first thought was to make two teams on our hall (1HPEW), which quickly collapsed when I found half the hall was going to be doing something. So we decided to have one team...but there was still one problem: we had no girls.

So last night several of us went on a girl searching mission. I, myself, facebooked a couple and had an acceptance which was quickly retracted when she realized she was going to the campus retreat at the same time. Brad and Henry spent their night at the bonfire walking up to random groups of girls and trying enlist them, which also met no success. Adam got a lead, but actually none of this matters because today I found out from Brad that John (our RA) got seven girls from our sister hall.

SEVEN GIRLS!!

We only have 7 guys on the team! I was hoping for 3 or 4 girls so we could easily sub them and keep the rest of everyone on the field a decent time. So I have no clue how this is going to work with seven girls, especially cause I have not met any of them, nor do I know if they are any good at frisbee. I wish Diana and Sarah (friends from MA, Diana is Andraya's sister) were down here...then our team would be killer. But alas, this is not meant to be, so we must make do with what we have.

Enter problem two: we have no name. Now our freshman IM team's name is "Ivory and the Hicks of Destruction", a perfectly fine name for a bunch of guys, but not exactly a feminine name. Do I want a girly name? Not really, but seeing as we are going to have seven girls on the team, blood, guts, and death are pretty much out in the naming process. So Brad said he would try to come up with one, but if you guys have any ideas that would be appreciated.

Despite all these issues I'm sure it will be a great time...and watch out for our unamed team. We're planning on winning...or at least I am. Now for some more Spanish!

Adios!

Socrates to Decartes

So I'm sitting here in the dorm, where in 15 minutes I will be taking a career assessment test. The results should be interesting. I'm honestly expecting anything from pastor to doctor. Well maybe not doctor, but we'll see.

It's been a long first two days of classes, and everyone is feeling it. Earlier today Adam passed out on his bed and right now Josh is disfigured in some horrible position sleeping on his bunk. This probably relating to his getting up at 5 to watch the lunar eclipse. But I digress, this blog is about the future and careers, both of which I know nothing about. Which means I'm not going to talk about them.

Instead I'm going to talk about how freaking amazing my philisophy class is. Dr. Trammel is an amazing professor from what I can tell already and I'm looking forward to this class a ton. Yep. haha...I'm really tired too. And there still is my life to consign to a internet test as well as a bonfire tonight.

oh did I mention 20 pages of reading Decartes?

And that's it for now...9 minutes and counting.

Missing vs. Loving

I miss people.

I miss Andraya.

I miss my family, watching the Red Sox with my dad.

I miss the Rhodes and Yousfi families.

I miss the soul of Massachusetts: its people. I could care less that I left the polluted mess of a city that is Springfield. I don't miss the dirty skies and dead grass. Leaving Massachusetts was easy; it's leaving the people that was hard.

But there is plenty to love here at Grove City. The people are awesome, and I've warmed up to the OB a bit. The mentor groups are really cool. My hall is awesome, and so are my roommates that are in the room.

The atmosphere here is so much more free than the smog-filled air of MA. Not only weather wise, but spiritually wise. God is here, and while I don't pay as much attention to Him as I should, he nevertheless is here.

Laughter abounds here. The OB OB was tonight and it was fantastic. Laugh after laugh, filled with plenty of inside jokes that only us good GCC students get.

And there is love here. People love God. They love frisbee and the campus. This is where I am going to be for the bulk of my next four years of life and I know that this is where I'll laugh, cry, and love. I know I will bring so many lessons with me, on how to interact with people and God. These years will help define me, and all I can do is go along for the ride.

"Where'd you go, I miss you so..."-Fort Minor

Scooters and Sunrises

Ever do something that jogs a memory, makes you feel like a kid again?

Well I did that today.

So I'm in the dorm, and me and Adam decide to ride our scooters(RAZORS BABY!!) over to the rock by the SAC where the co-rec games where being organized. However, me being myself, decided that I would, for probably no other reason than the fact I was in college and wanted to be crazy, attempt to jump some stairs on my scooter.

So after unsuccessfuly attempting riding through Hicks first floor hallway and jumping the stairs leading to the door due to lack of speed I took on another task. Jumping the stairs heading towards the emergency exit of Hicks cafeteria. So I tried twice and was forced to bail both times.

Then came the third attempt. I lowered my leg and pushed against the dirty pavement and went careening towards the stairs. I jumped cleanly, landed, and for a split second thought that I had completed my task.

Then the scooter went out from under me. I slid across the ground, destroyed my elbow, which now looks very disturbing, and hurt my back and butt as well.

Well that made me think back to childhood. Riding scooters and being crazy...it was so much fun. And just because I'm in college doesn't mean I can't still be like a kid every once in a while.

The service we had this morning outside of Harbison Chapel didn't so much bring back memories but formed new ones. The worship songs were great, and the dude on the jembe(at least that's what I think it was) was incredible. But what I think was so awesome, was the girl, Britney, who spoke had such a passion for being in love with God, something that I always seem to have a problem with.

She said something that caught me off-guard but made so much sense. She said, "God is in love with you." I've never thought of it like that surprisingly. I know God loves me. But I've never thought of God being in love with me. And I've certainly never thought of myself as being in love with God like I would be with a certain young lady. But I think it's something I need to try to do. To just be with God. I'm going to give it my best shot this semester.

I'm going to try to fall in love with God. Not sure exactly how to do that...but I guess it's like falling in love with a girl. It's giving your time to get to know Him, sacrificing your time to find His dreams and what is on His heart. It's strange to view God in this manner, at least for me right now. But I'm trying...and that's what is important.

At College

So I’m at GCC now. A new chapter in life has begun. I’ve left behind youth group and high school and now I alone stand responsible for my decisions. No longer is anyone telling me where to go, when to go, and how I should go about doing these things. It’s a strange feeling to be sure. I am an adult in college, and from now on I must act as one. No more parents helping me, no more youth leaders telling me how to conduct myself, no one looking over my shoulder. That is, except for myself.

Yet in the midst of this God is still there and is the presence that gives me strength to move on and to embrace this new found freedom with the proper perspective. He is the One who now lays the rules for me to follow, and if I truly love Him enough His rules will not even seem like rules. One thing is for sure, His love is pure and is the type of love worth modeling one’s life after.

While I am here in Pennsylvania, free and in college, I still think about Massachusets a lot. I think about all my friends, one more so than the others, yet I think of everyone. The roommates are sweet, even if one is never in the room, and college looks to be full of plenty of new opportunities and new frontiers. It’s a time to embrace everything God has for me and to make a difference in this world. It’s a time to love bigger and dream higher, but to never forget my roots.

It’s time to be myself.

This Too Shall Be Made Right

Sometimes God doesn't make sense.

Why would he take a man with two young children home to be with Him? Why wouldn't he leave him on this earth to care and love his children? Why?

I have no answers, only God does.

What I do know is that God is in control, as cliche as that may sound. I can't even imagine the situation in its fullness, as I was not very close to this family, nor have I ever been in a similar situation. But I know he is in heaven, and this simple truth makes things in some small degree better.

I also know my God is a conqueror of death. He's defeated it once and for all.

The day is coming when all will be made right. "Oh death, where is your sting? O grave, where is your victory?" God has taken their power away and one day all will know this truth. Does it take away the pain? No. Is it supposed to? I don't know.

It says in Ecclesiastes that there is a time for death, and a time for mourning. However, there is also a time for life and rejoicing. So why we live our lives thankful for our life, let us remember how quickly it can be snatched and remember what is truly important. All my insecurities and problems look small in comparison to two young children's loss of their dad, as they should. Yet another wake up call to live each day with everything we have...because no one knows when they will be called home. So please remember this family in your prayers and never forget that each moment we live is a gift from God that we take for granted all too much.

"This too shall be made right."-Derek Webb