Pshh...I Wish There Was A Calm Before The Storm

Whew!

Tomorrow I leave for my camp job (I'm so excited!) and there's still so much packing left to do!!

My sister and I had decided this past week to go and visit our grandmother in Wheaton, Illinois so we hopped in our car and headed out on a 10 hour trip for some family time with the Vergara clan. 

The coolest thing about my grandma's house is that she lives directly on campus of a private high school, it's pretty interesting waking up and seeing a graduation ceremony on your front lawn. 

So we ate. And slept. And ate. And watched spanish soap operas while eating dessert. Then we would go to sleep around 10. 

You know, the average life for a college girl.

And I would be lying if I said that visiting family was the only reason I went to Chicago.

There's also the food. Chicago pizza is incredible, however that craving can be satisfied by calling up the local Pizza Hut. 

And then there's Italian Beef.

Delicious sizzling roast beef thinly sliced, dripping with meat juices on a thick roll, added with jalepenos for a small kick. 

It's beauty at it's finest.

And so, every two years when we visit the family, we have never failed to take a stop at Portillo's, an eatery that, among all other things Chicago-ish, serves the succulent Italian beef. 

 Trust me, it's worth driving 10 hours to eat.

And we also toured the Billy Graham Evangelical Museum, however there was no mention of the urban myth that Billy Graham went to Bob Jones College and was told he was a future failure. Or of any roads that were renamed Billy Graham Avenue. 

Myth: Busted

It's a shame--it would have been a great Hallmark Channel movie.

And so now, I'm going off to camp.

I'm excited.

But also super nervous (There's a 40 ft ropes course. I despise ropes courses.)

              Among other worries.

(I hope everything goes well, what if I'm not an effective leader? Am I prepared? I have no idea what going on, will I get along with all the other counselors? Will my relationship with my sister stop being so bipolar? Sure we love each other, but we also love to fight, I always get really nervous when I have to share the gospel--what if I mess up? Will I ever be able to fully obey God? What if I think I'm obeying God but I'm actually making a bigger mess? blah, blah, blah)

And I'm not bringing my laptop...

Cell phone service isn't the best either.

So, I'll see you guys in 10 weeks!

No Need To Say Goodbye

Listening to: The Call by Regina Spektor & Wunderkind by Alanis Morissette (two of my favorite songs)

When I was younger, I was very shy and so making friends was hard for a introverted child like myself. Our family also used to take many long roadtrips as well as me being taken to many events where I was thoroughly bored.

Thus came about the creation of my imaginary friends.

I had one who was a rather large polar bear named Bob. I’m not sure why he was named Bob but when I was at an incredibly boring event (church), I used to imagine a polar bear roaming around the congregation and what the people would do if they realized that a polar bear was sitting next to them. He was always especially fond of the baptismal area and would go for some nice swims.

There was also a lion, the one that I always wished I owned. He would simply barge in when I was sitting in class. I always hoped that one day a lion would escape from a zoo somewhere and find himself wandering into my classroom. There were no drills that we practiced in school that would help in that situation. Would you feed him a PB&J sandwich? Would the lion simply sit down in a sunny spot and listen in about the British monarchy?

There were many more as I had quite an imagination and found myself constantly daydreaming as my family would take the long trips to Illinois or California. Ethan was my good friend that always went on the best adventures while there was a girl that always understood what I was thinking about.

I think I was sixteen when my imagination started to fade, the adventures happened less and less, the stories began to disappear gradually. I started to think about things that pertained to my life instead—school, family, guys, work, my future, all worries that took over my mind.

I began to feel more like the old Professor, rather than Lucy

I honestly pushed them out of my mind until recently, when I found myself sitting in a car and staring out of a window bored. Staring through the trees, I glimpsed, for a second, one of those imaginary characters in the forest next to the highway. He was staring back at me, with a longing look to come back and continue our adventures.

Maybe we were never meant to grow up.

"Please Aslan, before we go, will you tell us when we can come back to Narnia again? Please. And oh, do, do, do, make it soon."


"Dearest," said Aslan very gently, "you and your brother will never come back to Narnia."


"Oh, Aslan!!" said Edmund and Lucy both together in despairing voices.


"You are too old, children," said Aslan, "and you must begin to come close to your own world now."


"It isn't Narnia, you know," sobbed Lucy. "It's you. We shan't meet you there. And how can we live, never meeting you?"


"But you shall meet me, dear one," said Aslan.


"Are — are you there too, Sir?" said Edmund.


"I am," said Aslan. "But there I have another name. You must learn to know me by that name.

This was the very reason why you were brought to Narnia, that by knowing me here for a little, you may know me better there."

Hola Summer!!

Summer is finally here!

I had a rather rough ending to my school year as I had 7 exams to complete before gaining some freedom in my life, but I wasn't feeling bitter towards them stealing my fun or anything:

But there's nothing a little Mountain Dew, M&Ms, Ibuprofen, and dance music couldn't handle: 

And so sweet freedom finally came and I was finished with my freshman year of college and perhaps one of the greatest years I've ever been able to experience. 

The only thing that can really describe my past year is:

Now for summertime to start!

Just waiting for summer camp to start (20 days!!)

I can already tell it's going to be a great summer: Last night I dreamt that I was hanging out with the Jonas family

--Now if only reality could be like that too!

Seriously though, I'm hoping it was a prophetic dream of some sort

But first there's some unpacking to do: