Things we learned in April

New friends: We've had the privilege of making one! It's never too old for anyone, isn't it? Over this past month we've done a few things together, and it was just a time in our lives where we felt God calling us to reach out to this particular person. It's been terrific!

Let's get better: We're both pretty healthy and have been for all our lives, but this month we decided to see for ourselves- that is, make actual, adult doctor's appointments and be more proactive with our health. I (Holly) go tomorrow, even though I'm currently battling cold-like symptoms, and Kelly went earlier in April and, aside from some joint issues, received a clean bill of health :)

Honest conversations and realizations: Sometimes you have to have them, be it for setting the record straight or coming to that conclusion that you just have to let go. It's one of the many ways we grow as humans.

Cars are expensive: Both of us had some unforeseen car issues arise this month that left us needing to pinch pennies for a few days. Be prepared!

Mental illness is real: Our sweet, dear friend bravely shared her struggles with depression in a candid, honest way, because so often these types of conversations are brushed aside. A sobering reminder to always, ALWAYS be kind and considerate to others, because we never really do know what the other is going through. Treat others with compassion, and be grateful for what you have.

Birthdays can still be fun: For the first time since either of us can remember, we rang in 26 out of school, out of home, and actually...out of Kentucky! We spent our birthday weekend in Chicago, where we nearly froze to death, ate way too much, and just cherished the moments we got to spend both together and with Justin.

Those that we hold in our hearts never truly leave us: Our beloved Grandpa passed away on our birthday (April 9) three years ago this year. It's almost every day that something or someone reminds us of him.

Happy b-day from Chicago! 

The nice man in shorts

Kelly: Alas, our fall semester is complete, as of 5:00 today! Yippee!!!!! It was crazy and rough, and how we got through it is still a mystery to us. Definitely looking forward to a few weeks of downtime at home with family and friends. However, I am sad to report that this will be our last blog post for a few weeks; the internet at home is not good at all and to get on here and blog regularly is just not going to happen. However, we may be able to sneak in a few posts, so avid readers please keep your eyes open.

The purpose of tonight's post is to share a wonderful "God moment" story with you all. I will leave Holly to tell the story, but I have something that I would like to share before the story. While I was on facebook, a friend of mine posted that he had some "nursing questions" that I should be able to answer. Though for confidentiality reasons I will not disclose our discussion, but it just really made me feel useful. I am happy that I am able to console this friend and actually put my major to use when I'm not in class or in a clinical setting. SUCCESS. Before I hand this over to Holly, I just want to wish all of our avid readers a very Merry Christmas! I hope that God blesses all of you during this holiday season and that your time with family and friends is truly joyful! Peace! :]

Holly: This will be our last post until sometime after the New Year (less than desirable internet conditions at home), but this story is too good not to share.  I'm still smiling.  I suppose God is too.

Amanda (my roommate), Kelly and I were driving to a nearby gas station so Amanda could fill up her car to go home tomorrow morning.  I ran in to grab a frozen pick-me-up for Kelly and I and I noticed that there was a $20 bill in the cup holder.  Amanda had no knowledge of it.  (Just go with it...it comes back later).

I come back out to the car and Amanda tells me her tires are a little flat, so we pull up to the air pump thingamajig (after first placing a phone call to her mechanic stepdad).   Unfortunately, all three of us have NEVER put air in tires before, so we were completely clueless.  Out of nowhere, a man in shorts steps out of his pick up truck and asks us if we needed any help.  Mind you, it's about 30 degrees outside (about 1 C, for our Canadian/out of US readers).  Not only is this man in shorts, but he puts air in all four of Amanda's tires!  We were completely shocked...we literally just stood there the entire time.  As he's ready to leave, Amanda has Kelly go into the car and...get the $20 from earlier.  It is now in the possession of the nice man in shorts. 

We know absolutely nothing about the nice man in shorts.  We don't know if he was in a hurry, if he was a Christian, but we do know that he didn't have any obligation to help us, but he did.  It is likely that our paths will never cross again, but I don't think he'll ever know just how appreciative we are of him.  This.  This is what this time of year is all about. 

I hope that all of you who read (or do not read) enjoy a holiday season filled with laughter in your spirits and joy in your hearts.  :)

Connecting in church, Berea, food, family...everywhere!!

Holly: First off, as a sort of sad sidenote, I have come down with the ick that has afflicted the Berea campus. So if I spawn off on random tangents, you know why...

Sundays are probably my favorite days of the week, primarily because I am able to be a part of something so awesome that, most times, I can't stop thinking about it. Like today. Now, I've heard many of Pastor Kevin's sermons in my almost three years of attending Berea Baptist, but what really gets me about him and his sermons is that he's not on a pedestal preaching to people below him: he's preaching to himself too! That level of humility is something that so many people strive for, yet so few achieve (I myself still struggle with this and probably always will). The sermon today was titled "Things That Last Forever." I won't get into the nitty-gritty details, but basically, the main idea was to focus our human mindset onto the fact that here (earth) is not our permanent home, and that the vast majority of the things we accumulate will not matter once we reach eternity with Jesus! Towards the end, he asked "If you knew you only had a few hours to live, what would you do?" Really struck a cord with me today, especially since, in the college world, we still have that mindset of trying to see how much "stuff" one another has...which is stupid, because if I see a Berea student with an iPad or driving a Mustang convertible I'm forced to do a double take! So I'm going to try my best to shift my perspective (which will NOT be easy, so stay tuned).

After church Kelly and I met up with one of our dear Berea friends who graduated back in December and has since then become a mommy! Her little one is adorable! :) Our favorite married friends joined us later and it was absolutely spectacular to catch up...over yummy food, of course! Always a plus! :)

The absolute highlight of the day was a visit from our mom's cousin and her family, whom we haven't seen probably since we were about 7 or 8; they were driving back to Ohio from Asheville, North Carolina, and decided to pay Kelly and I a visit. We gave them a (very) brief tour of Berea's campus and then...ate more yummy food!! Yes, twice in one day, but...seriously, cannot pass it up! The visit was lovely and we had a great time catching up with family we hadn't seen in a while!

Going back to the sermon, there was also an emphasis on relationships. That could not have come at a more perfect day, if I say so myself. :)

 Kelly: 8% of the world's population owns a car. Over 1 billion people have no clean water. 800 million people will not eat today. 300 million of those people will be children. 1 billion people live on less than one dollar a day.

Readers, we've got a problem.

Those were just some of the statistics mentioned in church this morning. Shocking? Yes. Sad? Incredibly. But what as Christians and humans can we do? Simple; count your blessings. Granted, we may not have the "best" or the "nicest" possessions, but you know. Compared to those individuals who don't have a car, clean water or a stable income, we've simply got it MADE. Definitely going to change my thinking and definitely going to be extra thankful for what I already have....or don't have.

Anyway, onward. Holly forgot to mention an additional highlight of the day which happened while we were eating lunch this afternoon. Our pastor happened to be there with his family and was eating lunch with another couple from our church. My friends left and so Holly, me and my roomie were talking to them for a while just because it has been such a long time since we've actually....just talked. And of course, their adorable 15-month old was the spotlight of attention. She later on was serenading us in "Three Blind Mice." I don't know if we have any pictures or not....anyway, adorable. Absolutely adorable. Garsh, I am so blessed to have found this wonderful church. I talk a lot about church, in case you haven't noticed. In addition, two girls in our Sunday School class became members today!!! *big grin* At my church if you're a college student you can do what's called a "dual membership" in which if you belong to your home church then you can also become a member at BBC too! Great, huh? Yes, I am a dual member and have been since May of 2009 (read the previous blog post about how we got started and all the mayhem we've been involved in!). Good times, and I wouldn't change a thing! That's about all to report today. Hope all you fine readers have a fantabulous week. Will post more later on. Cheers!