Back on the prairies. Back in cowtown. My own house. My own bed. It's funny, reflecting on it, it doesn't seem like it's only been 10 days that I've been gone. We filled the days so full that it seems like I've been gone so much longer. It's like getting on the plane in the airport in Calgary (or off in Toronto) sent me into some sort of timewarp in which time moved in a much different way, only to be corrected when I got back on the plane in Ottawa and landed again in Calgary.
Coming home is definitely something I've met with mixed feelings. I know I've said it before but there's something great about the community that's built on the fairs. It's there that I find that I have peers. it's also on the road that I find parts of my job that I'm really good at and respected for...things I don't always see at home. It's funny because it always takes me a little bit of time to get warmed up to the idea of going away again, especially on this fall stretch. It's like I forget just how much fun it is until I get there and am back in the middle of it...plus it's a nice break away from the daily grind of the office.
My top 10 2006 CCUF East Highlights
1. As always, I am blessed by the recruiters and other enrollment personnel from across the country. Peers and friends. If any of you are ever in Calgary, you have a friend in me...can anyone name that song?
2. Starbucks...or, as I mentioned earlier, St. Arbucks.
3. My roommate, Steph.
4. Having my eyes opened to new possibilities.
5. Students and parents searching for next steps...and the role I get to play in it whether they come to ABC or not
6. Seeing God answer prayers in many ways.
7. Great coffee (or should I say Oh So Good coffee) in Ottawa. Thanks for the inside scoop, Tim. The Indian restaurant was amazing too! I guess it shouldn't surprise me seeing as how we were separated at birth and all!
8. My new scarf from a street vendor in Ottawa...oh, and the tea store!
9. Taking pictures, especially Ottawa at night.
10. My funny plane trip home. Quick story...one steward and I got chatting. He asked me if I was part of a youth group and somehow in conversation it came out that he thought I was 17. Sorry, just 10 years off. Anyway, it started this whole bet with the flight attendants about how old I actually was. I guess the guy that was the closest won $1 on my old age! I should be flattered considering I had only had 2.5 hours of sleep the night before after 10 days of travel and had almost poured all my water from my waterbottle on the floor at the security gate of the airport out of frustration!
Okay, I said that I would only use 10 but I just have one more that needs to be included.
11. The answers to the question of the day. While some days I racked my brain to find questions, it was continually a privilege to hear the answers of my fellow travelers and get to know them better by their responses. Yes, I know, I'm obviously too relational for my own good sometimes. So many good conversations came out of this. One that really surprised me was Friday's question. I had specifically saved it all week:
If money wasn't an issue but you still had to work a 40 hour work week, what would you do with your time?
Basically, this was an opportunity to give in to the passions and dreams on our hearts. A couple said they'd stay recruiting and that made me happy. While there are ways this could be integrated into my current job, I knew my answer easily. I would love to do something that got me mentoring, discipling and much more deeply involved in spiritual formation...in the life journey of those around me. What surprised me was my passionate response when talking with Nathan. It was then that I realized that I would specifically like to use this to encourage and build into the lives of young women and girls. I saw so many students on this trip dying for something more, lacking in confidence and struggling to find some purpose in life. I wonder how many of them doubted their worth and feared for them - what ways would they strive to find worth and to bury the doubt they feel? It rips at my heart. Yes, I ended up in tears it ended up so close to home. The thing is, each girl I met is a valuable, captivating daughter of the King and I want them to know that...and then I want to help them find their place in His Kingdom work.
Okay, that's enough for now. You'd think after talking all week, I'd be a little more at a loss for words. Afraid not.
*I was going to post pics but blogger is acting up again. I'll get them in asap!
No comments:
Post a Comment