the transit team

i'm really into getting over myself

And it’s a good thing because yesterday I got an opportunity to do so. I have run out of clean pants and wore a pair of jeans that I can only wear with heels. (I actually had to have them hemmed so they were short enough to wear with heels.) So I wore my black boots. Just one problem, it’s a 45 minute walk into town. Up hill a good part of the way. I made it to the office with a manageable level of pain. Took the boots off while we were there. Then, on the way home, once we got past the town center it was too much. I had to take them off. So there I was, walking home in red striped socks, with my jeans rolled up so they wouldn’t drag on the concrete. It was pretty humiliating. You could tell by the expressions on everyone’s faces that they were trying not to laugh until they got past us. It was pretty hilarious!

On a more triumphant note, I made dinner on Tuesday with Frances and successfully cooked an entire meal without a recipe. Yeah! I really can cook!

from london, well egham really

I have arrived safely and soundly. Will post soon about everything but want to take some time first. I just wanted to share this story which was recently shared with me:

Legend from the Cherokee Indians


Do you know the legend of the Cherokee Indian youth's rite of passage? His father takes him into the forest, blindfolds him and leaves him alone. He is required to sit on a stump the whole night and not remove the blindfold until the rays of the morning sun shine through it. He cannot cry out for help to anyone. Once he survives the night, he is a Man. He cannot tell the other boys of this experience, because each lad must come into manhood on his own. The boy is naturally terrified. He can hear all kinds of noises. Wild beasts must surely be all around him. Maybe even some human might do him harm. The wind blew the grass and earth, and shook his stump, but he sat stoically, never removing the blindfold. It would be the only way he could
become a man.!


Finally, after a horrific night the sun appeared and he removed his blindfold. It was then that he discovered his father sitting on the stump next to him. He had been at watch the entire night, protecting his son from harm. We, too, are never alone.

Even when we don't know it, our Heavenly Father is watching over us, Sitting on the stump beside us. When trouble comes, all we have to do is reach out to Him. OurFather would Never leave us alone, A love like none other!

yard sale

Today Kirstin and I had a yard sale at my parent's house. It was hot, hard work. But considering we didn't sell any furniture, we raked in a good amount. I made enough to buy a new, super large duffel bag from L.L. Bean for my trip, including monogramming and expedited shipping. The funniest part of the morning was when a man gave us a hundred dollar bill for a $2 purchase. Yikes!

My dad, two of my sisters, and my brother are all out in Iowa for the Anderson family annual pig roast and apparently having a hilariously wonderful time. I so wish I could've gone. Love to every one there if you read this!

I have one week left tomorrow and I can't decide if reality has hit me yet or not. I haven't been still enough for it to catch up with me I think. Still a lot to do, but I think it's all manageable. As long as I stay very busy. Very, very busy.

two weeks left

Today marks two weeks until I leave. Saying good-bye to Charlotte is proving more difficult than I expected. Yesterday I was at the pottery studio cleaning my tools for the last time and fighting back tears.

So many dear places and moments have made up the last nine years. So much change has taken place in me that this place of change has grown to be a part of me. The person I was when we came here and the person I am as I leave are entirely different.

The state motto of North Carolina is "esse qualm videri" (or something like that) "to be rather than to appear." That is what has happened to me here. I have ceased appearing to be and have become. And while part of the becoming means moving forward, it is never easy to say good-bye.

the sound of music

I just bought the most beautiful Violin. An Eastman Fiddle to be precise. She is so lovely. A beautiful, rich tone to her voice, simply beautiful. I have never played a violin like this. I don't feel worthy... yet. But I do feel inspired. She makes me sound better. My playing level hasn't increased, but she is so wonderful that it sounds like it has.

I'm learning a lot about not giving up. I've been renting a violin for 2 years and have played it less than 50 times. I just sound so horrible I can hardly stand to listen to myself. And with this move to London I was just going to give it up. Put the violin on the shelf and forget about it. But I have wanted to play the violin since I was four years old. This is my truest life-long dream. It began before any other. And I can not turn my back on that. I will not turn my back on that.

So, with patience and perseverance I am going to become a violinist. (Or a fiddler, who knows!)

A Happy Day!

I just found out one of my favorite bands of all times Waterdeep has just released a new album. And I thought they were finished forever! This is so happy!

Now, the actual album doesn't come out till the fall, but you can download the entire thing from their website Waterdeep and then upgrade to a physical CD for $4.00 later. Yeah! This has put a big smile on my face!

And to make it even better my lil sister sent me a newsletter that proclaimed one of my other favorite artists, Sara Groves, is releasing a CD two days after my birthday! Yeah!

I'm a very happy person right now! (And I already know what I want for my birthday.)