What I Missed on the 31st

Living in the Middle East means that you don't celebrate some holidays the way you would in the States.  The first of those for me was Halloween.  It was just like any other day.  There weren't any decorations anywhere and no real prominence of orange and black around.  The only place I really saw any Halloween treats was The Lime Tree Cafe (because they know how to do it right!).

Yummy!

But I was able to experience some semblance of Halloween over skype.  It's a tradition in our family to carve a pumpkin.  My mom always draws the face and my dad cuts it out.  When I finally saw the pumpkin over skype I realized something... it looks the same every single year. ;)  Sometimes the eye shape changes a little, but he always has eyebrows.  The nose might vary and one year he might have teeth, but he always has the same smirk.  And that's the way it should be.

Good going Rodger and Shirley!

A Show At Chazzanos

On Sunday morning, I woke up at 4:30 am to see my nephew play a show at Chazzano's in Ferndale, Michigan.  It was 8:30 pm their time.

This is what I got to see:

This was the first time for me to see one of Dano's shows.

Doesn't he look cool?!?!

Who answers a phone in the middle of a set... hehe

I had to move seats because I was taking up too much room.

That happens to me every time I go to a concert through computer...

It was the night before Halloween.

Kim and Adam were dressed up for a party they were going to after the show.

They were both splicers (from bioshock).

I don't know what that means; all I know is... Kim lost an ear.

But I made sure to show a picture of her with the mask covering up the wound...

A New Chapter

Last time I wrote in this blog, I was living in Denton, still in school and working at McConnell. Many things have changed since then. I have moved to Michigan, Connecticut and then back to Texas. I have experienced happiness and heartbreak. I have learned how to teach and how to learn. I have learned how to love and how to step away from hate. I have learned many different things.

Now:

I am living in Lindale with two wonderful roommates and working at Sky Ranch as an Outdoor Education Instructor. Everyday I wake up early to have some quiet and some coffee before I go to work. This time in the morning is what keeps me sane. In every place that I have been in life over the past two years, the one constant thing is my relationship with pops. He has loved me like no one else ever could and teaches me how to love others like that. Over the past year, he has affirmed that my passion is working with kids, even though the stress of the day can make me forget this. I have loved teaching kids about science every day, it is such a blessing.

There are times when I look over into another pasture and wish for my life to be different. With my schedule and the lack of time I have to invest in my family or meeting people out of my circle of friends, I start to feel claustrophobic and wish for more space, more time. But then I slow down for a bit and realize that I have everything that I need in life right now and I don't want to waste time wishing for something else.

I recently went to visit my family over Thanksgiving in Detroit and it was wonderful. I spent time laughing and crying with them. They remind me of pop's love so much. They know me the best and know how to love me in everything. I can't believe how blessed I am with them.

As December continues into the Holiday season, I want to make a promise. That I'm going to look for opportunities to give and to love well. I'm going to stop worrying about what's next and I'm going to focus on how to live in the present. I'm going to slow down and spend time loving those the pops has put into my life, but most of all, I'm going to let them love me.