Pet Peeves

I realized something today. I have a few pet peeves, not many, but a few. And one of them is when people ignore obvious signs and keep going about their business. For instance, I am in Starbucks quietly studying this afternoon, and a woman sits next to me and talks on the phone very loudly for 45 minutes. I know Starbucks isn't the library, but I feel like it is just common courtesy that when you see someone studying/working somewhere, you don't sit two feet away from them and talk as loud as you can. I wouldn't have minded it so much if she hadn't have said to the person she was talking on the phone to: "I feel so rude talking so loud on my phone next to this girl because she is studying." And then she didn't even move and continued about her business!

Oh well. I'm over it now. Kind of.

So, as you all know (if you are in South Carolina/the South in general) the weather has been amazing this month! It is a little strange how warm it is, but I'm not complaining. Some of my favorite peeps and I headed out on our bikes to explore and enjoy the gorgeous weather! Here are some pictures from our adventure!

Night Lights

Last night, I tried shooting at night for the first time with my new camera. It was a lot of fun to play around with the settings and see what my camera can do! Rutledge and I went to Coleman to take some shots of Abe's and Mozzo with the moving cars, then we went down to the new Shem Creek park. Here are some of the shots:

Low Tide

Sunday afternoon, despite the cold, I headed out to truck in the low-tide mud at the old Pitt Street bridge in search of, well, anything really. Of course, I had my partner in crime with me to make sure I didn't somehow die on the oyster beds. Anyways, besides finding some great stuff, I took some pics too:

P.S.- Here are a few pics from a week or so ago on Sullivan's:

Oh Education...

One thing I have learned, especially over the past few weeks, is the blessing of education. I've been reading a book by missionary Katie Davis, and in one of the chapters she discusses education. She talks about how hard it is for the kids in Uganda to get any education at all because they cant afford. Want to know how much it costs for them to go to school for three months? Between 10 and 50 American dollars... three months guys. Tuition is up for the kids in Honduras, but still it is only 40 dollars a month for them to go to school. And their families can't afford that. Some of the people in Uganda use half of their year's salary just to send one child to school. That sure puts life into perspective if you ask me. It really has started to break my heart. I think the part that really gets me is my past considerations of dropping out of college and my consistent complaints over the years about hating school and thinking it was stupid. I don't even like to think about how much money I pay to go to school, or to buy groceries, or clothes or whatever. 40 dollars. That's all. I sit here stressing and complaining about my education, while families and children in other countries and even in my own are hungry and begging just to go to first grade. It makes you realize how blessed you are for having what you have, but God doesn't allow us to have these things for no reason. He doesn't suggest that we help the needy and give to the poor- He instructs us to. 

Anyways, sorry/not sorry that was a tad heart wrenching, but that's what has been on my mind today. Especially as I complained to Rutledge about my education and making decisions about my major. He prayed over me that I would surrender it all to God, all my planning, and that God would reveal to me the knowledge I need to move forward in my decisions.

 But God sure has been revealing more than just that...

Espiritu de Dios

      It's been quite some time since I blogged, due to the fact that I have been home for winter break and haven't had internet connection. Another reason is that I have been out of the country for the past week or so in Honduras! The experience I had there was unlike anything I have ever experienced in my life.  A group of 23 of us headed out of Charleston on December 27th and started making our way towards Tegucigalpa. The weather was so warm and sunny and the landscape was more than beautiful. We were working down there with the LAMB Institute (http://www.lambinstitute.org/), started by missionary Suzy McCall in 1999. The organization is Christ-centered and includes the children's home for about 65 abused and neglected children,  an elementary school and daycare for over 250 children, and a micro-finance and community outreach program. So as you can imagine, most of my days there were spent with children in my arms (or on my back)- and I am definitely not complaining.

     The trip began with many changes in plans... It was crazy to see how all of the plans we made prior to the trip were changed around because the Lord had even better plans for us. We ended up painting the Ninos Casa (the cottage that hosted the smallest children at the home: ages 1-5), we brought in loads of dirt and started leveling out there soccer field, and we took on the task of electrically wiring the future computer lab at the home. And I can't leave out the hours of crafts we did with the kids as well!

      During the time I was there, God revealed a lot of things to me. He showed me how important every single life is, how much He loves every one of His children, and how lucky I am to live where I live and have the things I have. We can't take for granted the life the Lord has given us, the people He puts in out paths, and the love He continually pours out on us always.

Here are some of my favorite pictures from the trip: