To move or not to move...alas, the deed already is done.

Yesterday my friends, the S-'s, started to move into their new house that they are building. So I went out there to help them move. Of course, I made sure to arrive just in time to eat lunch. When lunch was done, we went out to their old house to get a load of furniture and clothing. We took a 20 ft. flat bed trailer, a 10 ft. enclosed trailer, a heavy duty truck, 2 suburbans, a Geo Metro, and a minivan. We filled every single spot available in those vehicles and trailers. After spending a couple or 3 hours there, we finally finished loading stuff up, and took off for their new house. It was completely dark by the time we got there, and I failed to mention earlier that the temperature never got about 25 (F) the entire day...so when the sun dropped below the horizon, the temperature hovered around 17-18 degrees, plus any time the wind blew at all, the windchill was around 0 degrees. Back to the completely dark...With no lights to help us see the uneven terrain, we finally got all the vehicles unloaded. I had on so many articles of clothing, I must have looked like an eskimo. But...I was warm. By the time we had finished unloading, I had broken a sweat, and was rapidly shedding layers of clothing. That's the nice thing about layering....and one good reason to do so...you can take off, or put on whatever you need to in order to stay comfortable.
We ate dinner, and then set around chatting for a while. I played a song that I composed on the piano that we had brought over...it's going to be titled "The Love Birds." I hope to be able to flesh it out a little more, write a string accompaniment part, plus 2 vocal parts, and then record it as a wedding gift for two friends of mine (Rachel and Colin) whom I hold in the deepest respect and admiration for the way that they have conducted their relationship. I don't know if I will be able to complete the song in time for their wedding, but I really hope to be able to. We'll see what happens...anyway, I played the song on the piano...and went upstairs and talked some more. It was getting kind of late by this point, so I started my van, so it would warm up before I left, since I didn't want to freeze driving home. Everybody else left just before I did, because I went downstairs and made myself a cup of coffee, so I wouldn't fall asleep. Then, so as not to stress my relationship, and not over-use the S-'s hospitality, I left. Now, as I write this on the day after, my arms are sore...I wish I could have totaled the amount of weight that my arms carried yesterday. The amount probably wouldn't be as great as I would expect or hope it to be, but I'm sure it would still be quite a lot.

Time to get ready to go to church!! More later...maybe. =)

Much of Him

I've not been feeling well for the last few days. My neck had been really hurting badly, and that didn't help my attitude at all. I think I was kind of depressed. I'm not exactly sure why. I think it's just Satan's attack on my life. Seems like every time I attempt to stay really close to God, I fall away even farther. Suddenly, everything becomes harder. I guess that's a good sign that I'm doing the right thing. If Satan doesn't want me to do it, and does everything in his power to hamper me, then it's probably the best thing to keep doing.
And so I plod along, trying to stay close to God, realizing that I keep trying to do it from my own power, and starting over again.

Don't get me wrong. I wouldn't trade this life for just almost anything. The only thing I might trade it for is the same essential life that I have now, just without all the stupid mistakes that I've made in the past, and I wish I could have never done. I may feel depressed every once in a while, when I again discover that I CAN'T do it on my own, and then for a while, my pride gets the best of me, before I finally turn again to my Saviour, and start afresh. That's the wonderful thing about my Saviour. No matter how many times you mess up, make mistakes, or are just plain stupid, God is still there, waiting to forgive you, and to forget your sins.
I couldn't decide whether to post the words to East to West, or Much of You...since the lyrics to East to West are scrolling to the right of this post anyway, I've decided on Much of You.

How could I stand here and watch the sun rise
Follow the mountains where they touch the sky
Ponder the vastness and the depths of the sea
And think for a moment the point of it all was to make much of me
Cause I'm just a whisper and You are the thunder and

I want to make much of You, Jesus
I want to make much of Your love
I want to live today to give You the praise
That You alone are so worthy of
I want to make much of Your mercy
I want to make much of Your cross
I give You my life
Take it and let it be used
To make much of You

And how can I kneel here
And think of the cross
The thorns and the whip and the nails and the spear
The infinite cost
To purchase my pardon
And bear all my shame
To think I have anything worth boasting in except for Your name
Cause I am a sinner
And You are the Savior

I want to make much of You, Jesus
I want to make much of Your love
I want to live today to give You the praise
That You alone are so worthy of
I want to make much of Your mercy
I want to make much of Your cross
I give You my life
Take it and let it be used

To make much of You

This is Your love, oh God
Not to make much of me
But to send Your own son
So that we could make much of You

For all eternity

I want to make much of You Jesus
I want to make much of Your love
I want to live today to give You the praise
That You alone are so worthy of
I want to make much of Your mercy
I want to make much of Your cross
I give You my life
Take it and let it be used
To make much of You

I want to make much of You
Much of You Jesus

~ Steven Curtis Chapman

Back from Christmas Break.

Okay....back from Christmas break, and onto a semi-normal school schedule. Christmas pretty much awesome, just like always. And the break was soooo good. I finally got caught up with my physics. I had been pretty behind since Grandpa died. I was able to get totally caught up 2 days before school started again this January. But as long as I'm caught up, it's all good.

I've done a couple more Medical Explorers rotations since I last posted. I know I watched at least one surgery. Actually the end of one and the beginning of another. They were both Hernia Surgeries. Not very exciting to watch, but the Surgery Team made it worth it cause they were so fun. One of the guys asked me "do you want to sew the skin up?" Yeah, I would have loved to, but imagine the law suits, not to mention not knowing how to do it, and having to get all steralized and all.

I have a Medical Explorer's Business Meeting tomorrow night, so I'll get to sign up for more rotations and stuff.

My knees have been bothering me for awhile. Yesterday I went and played frisbee with some friends, and my knees hurt sooo bad this morning. I had even iced them last night. Nothing helped. We'd been considering taking me to our doctor so we could get an MRI scheduled. The doc said that I have loose knee caps, and possibly torn cartiledge. We're scheduling an MRI so I can find out what all is wrong.

Rules For Africa:
1. Everything in Africa bites. Even the plants. If it doesn't bite, it stings.
2. If you stay still long enough, something will come eat you.
3. Never try to outrun anything in Africa. You'll lose. Even Jesse Owens would lose.
4. Know how to shoot and have your rifle sighted in. The Swahili word for hunters who don't do this translates to "Lion poop" for a reason.
5. If you kill any game within an hour of twilight, you will be walking back to camp, covered in tasty blood all the predators can smell -- alone.