Winter has arrived

Tuesday was nearly 70 degrees, which is unusual for Kansas in late November. I was walking around campus noticing the t-shirts, shorts and flip-flops, thinking to myself how strange this was for being so late in the year. Well, as of Wednesday...no more flip-flops! I don't like winter, but I especially don't like when it arrives abruptly and with a vengeance. It started with freezing rain. The storm included hail, sleet and more freezing rain. I cannot even count the number of accidents I witnessed yesterday while driving to and from Lawrence for class. At one point I called Kansas Highway Patrol from my cell phone to let them know about a couple of girls who had gone off the road. The response from the dispatcher was basically they are doing all they can, but they don't have enough officers to help everyone. Amazing! The temperature was close to 20 degrees. Brrrr! Poor Kenyon had to work on the FedEx distribution docs last night in the terrible weather. Today we are supposed to get inches of snow beginning this morning. It's hard to believe there were people walking around comfortably in shorts on Tuesday. What a difference a day makes!

unexpected news

I received some unexpected news tonight. When living in Topeka years ago I made a good friend named Lori. She was married to a doctor and they moved to Texas. She and I kept in touch through the years, in spite of the distance. She and her husband Alan have four boys. The youngest is six weeks old. The oldest is seven years old. The night before Thanksgiving Alan was admitted to the hospital and died that night, a blood vessel in his brain had burst. I received the news by email tonight. I'm still in shock. They are a young family. This has got to be devastating. I can't begin to imagine what Lori is going through right now. It is a reminder that tomorrow is not guaranteed to anyone. Please pray for Lori and her four boys.

Thanksgiving

Kenyon and I took a road trip to Arkansas for the Thanksgiving holiday. Why Arkansas? It is where my good friend Angela grew up and we met her family, including five siblings, nephews, nieces, and parents there. We had a great Thanksgiving holiday. Ate lots of food. Went hiking in the mountains - Kenyon's first hiking adventure. He was like a little boy. His excitement was entertaining. I didn't take any school books with me. Three days without homework! Now that is something to be thankful for! Unfortunately, the stack of homework and deadlines welcomed me back with open arms. Ugh!

I have to ask the traditional question: What are you thankful for this holiday season? I have a long list of things I'm thankful for. Top of my list are the beautiful people in my life. A couple of years ago I had an awakening - try as I might, I cannot do life alone. I need people. That was a HUGE thing for me to admit because I've spent most of my life as the lone ranger, attempting to do it alone. I found myself in a circumstance where I could not do it alone. I had to change. Since this epiphany I've allowed people in to my life in a significant way. What I've learned is these relationships enrich my life in so many ways. I have more fun, less stress, more blessings, and to my surprise (though it seems like common sense) I can accomplish more with their support. What am I thankful for? You! Thank you for sharing the journey of life with me.

juggling act

Of all the things I've learned in life I have never learned to juggle physical objects. I can get two objects going at the same time, add a third and it's a disaster. That's not really juggling anyway, it's more like an exchange from one hand to the other. I haven't invested much time in learning the skill, partly because I'm so busy juggling my time. I feel like I have many balls in the air (figuratively speaking) and at any moment one of them is going to come crashing down. In the meantime I'm working my tail off to keep the juggling act going. School is demanding. It could consume my entire life if I let it. I have two part-time jobs and both would like to have more of my time, energy and talents if I were willing to give it. Kenyon and I are trying to build a relationship that lasts and he deserves more time than I have to give. India is my heartbeat, it keeps my life in perspective and my dreams alive. I could do less toward the India projects, but I'm not willing to give it up. The result is a constant juggling act. Each day I decided where my limited time and energy will be spent. I set up a weekly to do list and cross items off the list day by day. I wake up at 5am and determine what I can feasibly accomplish that day given my many meetings, classes I have to attend, etc. Then I spend the next twelve to fifteen hours working to complete the items on the list. I crash into bed at night exhausted, only to wake-up the next day and do it again. I am constantly evaluating the balls in the air, which can I drop easily without loosing momentum? In recent months, I have given up many of my beloved volunteer activities. I have reduced my social time significantly. I attempt to curb my ambition and insane commitment to perfection. There are times when I force myself to turn in a paper even though it isn't perfect yet, or to skim an article rather than read it entirely, or choose to pass up opportunities in order to preserve energy for the other opportunities I am already pursuing. There are days when everything is running as it should and the juggling act is mesmerizing. Then there are days when it seems to be too much and the juggling act gets wobbly and disorienting. These are the days I say, "I've got too many balls in the air. Too many balls, something needs to go. What can I let go?" I've lived most of my life this way. Kenyon calls it "doing too much." That may be an accurate assessment, but I don't know how to live any other way - and frankly, I don't want to. I feel like I'm truly living only when I am going all out, full-steam ahead with the wind blowing through my hair, giving all I've got to what I've deemed a worthy cause. Someday, just maybe, I'll master the skill of juggling...

the Kenyon fairy

This is how I sometimes refer to Kenyon. Why? Because he sweeps in and does nice things and leaves, unnoticed. I don't see him. I just see the results. Since my July trip to India the Kenyon fairy has been cleaning my place. I would leave for work with the ironing board out, dishes in the sink, towel and discarded clothes on the floor, bed unmade. I would come home from work with everything in place. The handiwork of the Kenyon fairy. Since starting school the Kenyon fairy has been busy! Not only does he continue to clean my place. He also shops for groceries. I open the fridge one day and it's empty. Next day its full. Same thing happens with my gas tank - empty to full with the blink of an eye. He takes out the trash, puts away laundry, does errands. I can't count the number of times this semester the Kenyon fairy has been to library for me picking up and dropping off books. I'll use this week as an example. I left last Wednesday to D.C., my place was less than clean and my gas tank was empty. Sunday night when I returned I was welcomed to a clean home. Monday on my way to school I realized I hadn't got gas and it had nearly been on empty - I look at the gauge and abra-ca-dabra...gas tank is full! The Kenyon fairy has struck again! He took mail to the post office and books to the library. He left sticky notes (needed for continuous studying), flowers and a sweet handwritten card. The bed has been made and bathroom clean, and I didn't do it. I am so lucky to have a Kenyon fairy. What would I do without him?