and more..

That is the Rathaus (City Hall) in the background. They have a lot of horses and carriages all over the city for tourists.



We were just heading from the square to the famous Gothic Church when we saw this puppeteer playing. So fun!!



This is the famous Gothic Church



This is a small portion of the stone carving that is inside the church. I had a hard time getting any good pictures inside because it was so dark.



This is a statue in a Jewish section of town. A very old section!

More Pics of Vienna

This was inside a big church.



We laughed about what it'd be like if that huge gold ball would one day fall and bounce across the courtyard floor. :)



These are two identical buildings that hold major art museums or something. I think they were built by the same man who built the palace in the first pic. The two pillars in the first pic were designed after one pillar built in Rome.



I can't remember the significance of this statue, but there were lots of statues like this around. I think they were depicting war heroes.

A Day in Wien (Vienna)

I was invited to go on a day trip to Vienna with a family of one of the girls here. Nif (Jennifer) has been to Vienna 5 times before and so she prepared a fun tour for us. What a beautiful city!!



This is the first thing that we saw in the city. It's a palace of some sort.

Goodbye New Friends...:(

Well...today a bunch of staff left for Christmas holidays. One of them isn't coming back. :( Kinda sad to get to know someone and then have to say goodbye so soon. Aah well..such is life. Christmas holidays have officially started. I'm one of the only people staying here for Christmas, but the others that are staying have been very kind and gracious in trying to include me in their activities. Christmas Dinner on the 25th and possibly traveling to Vienna for a day. Should be fun. :) I spent most of the morning just lounging around. Reading and listening to music. Had lunch and helped clean the kitchen and then helped one of the girls pack up. By the way Heinrich and Irene...All the girls speak German and one speaks Dutch as she is from Holland. They all speak English as well, but they often talk amongst themselves in German. I don't mind though. It helps to hear it all the time and I often ask questions and can usually figure out what they are talking about. Kinda fun. ;) Anyway..after the girls left for Christmas Vacation I moved all of my stuff into my new room. I was living in the Chalet until Monika moved home (she's the girl who is not coming back). I will now be sharing a room with a girl named Christy from the US. I unpacked all my stuff and was able to put it all away. I don't have any good footwear for hiking yet. :( I guess I'll need to go shoe shopping. yeah, yeah, I know more shoes. It's hard when you work at a place like the Credit Union that only needs dress shoes. I thought that I would have too much stuff, but it seems reasonable now that I unpacked it all. Anyway..time for supper.

My Night in Salzburg

I have finally made some time to upload some pictures for your enjoyment. This is from my night in Salzburg at Hotel Adlerhof. It was actually a very nice room.






So...I went for a walk in little Schladming this afternoon. Beautiful little town!! It has a river running through it and mountains on all sides. You can take hiking trails right from town. The water running in the river is so clear and a blue/green color. What an awesome God we have!! Some of the work I've been doing?...We have been preparing for guests. Cleaning all the Chalet rooms and other rooms and dining rooms and the kitchen even down to scrubbing with a toothbrush between tiles. Good hard physical work. Some of the food I've been eating?...for breakfast-croissants filled with chocolate, dark bread with jelly or nutella or peanutbutter(not kraft), meat and swiss cheese, coffee (very good!!), cereal, yogurt and whatever else we can find. :) Lunch - Usually a larger meal, today it was pigs in blankets (really amazing pastry), salad, potato wedges, plum kuchen with whipped cream. Supper - So far it has always been a 'help yourself' meal. Basically scrounge or leftovers. I've become fond of toasted bread with swiss cheese and ham and a cup of tea.
What have I been doing in my off hours?...Reading my bible, emailing friends, updating my blog, going for walks, last night I watched a movie with the kitchen girls (Life of C.S. Lewis in Deutsch). I have been going to bed early. :) Anyway..that's all for now. I will eventually post some scenic pics.

Still No Pictures

Sorry.
I need an adapter for my laptop before I attempt to upload any pics. I will try to get some this weekend yet. Till then you´ll just have to imagine :) I am finally over the jet lag. Yippee. I woke up tired as usual this morning, not wide awake. I know I´m over jet lag when that happens. It´s how I feel every morning. :) Life is good here. We finished making beds for guests today and then cleaned the kitchen. Wow...what a job. We scrubbed everything down. The floor was fun. We sprayed water all over it and then stepped on towels and scooted around to dry it up. Great fun. The girls I work with are great, but some of them will be leaving soon. :( Anywhoos..gotta run for supper. adios.

First Day of Slave Labor!!

Just Kidding!! I am loving doing some physical labor!! I am really enjoying the change and I already am starting to feel at home!! The people here are very friendly. For now I am staying in a really nice room in the chalet. I will be moving to the house next week after Christmas break where I will be sharing a room with an all american girl. ;) I think that my body is almost over the jet lag. I am still having a hard time eating properly at the proper times. I went to bed at 7:30 last night and didn´t get up till 7:00 this morning. I am typing on a german keyboard and am having a hard time of it. So confusing. :) Well..I can honestly say that I love flying. So fun!! I like the smaller planes better though. My favorite part of the whole trip was the train! It was an hour and a half trip with gorgeous sites!! Where I am staying is just as beautiful. Look out the window and see mountains on all sides. Aaah..this is the life!! My first night in Europe I spent in a hotel room, since I didn`t make any of my connections and all the trains to Schladming were already gone. The hotel room was really nice, but also expensive for one night..one person. Oh well..I took some pictures of the room, but you`ll have to wait and see later. I´m too lazy to drag my laptop up to the eagle`s nest. (the lounge/computer room) You guys can pray for me that I will get another good night´s rest tonight and that my stomach will be back to normal soon. The food here is really great!! After eating airplane food though, just about anything would be good. I ate a meal on the long flight over and it made me sick that night. I´m just really glad I wasn´t sick on the plane or bus etc. Hope you are all doing well. I´ll post some more maybe tomorrow.

I'm Here!

Just barely..
let's just say that missed flight connections are no fun!! Stupid Air Canada! sorry, just a little frustrated. I am still severly jet lagged. I ended up staying in a hotel in Salzburg last night, nice, but I couldn't sleep when it was only 5:30 in the evening.
gotta get going now..I don't have my own computer set up yet.
catch ya all later

Opera Anyone??

So...Christmas music huh? It's getting old already. Actually just these cd's that are playing at the cred are getting annoying especially the opera cd. Those high notes just really make your shoulders tense. And the bell choir...wow it can drive you dingaling. Pun intended. Last day on till..Yesss! So far it seems to be slow, but then it's only 2 minutes after opening. I'm going out for lunch today with my girls. (Barbara Ann and Fran) No, I did not make them up to keep me from getting lonely. We are the top of the totem pole, so to speak here at work. The most experienced etc. We generally have a lot of fun when we work together. Then there's Trish, who I worked with yesterday. We call each other fruit and nut. :) So..we're a little crazy. It keeps life interesting. This week I have a whole lot of stuff to get done. I should make a list yet, I keep on forgetting things. I'm really looking forward to the weekend. Saturday, Heather and I are going to hang out..get my Christmas shopping done, get a makeover(actually just a haircut)maybe even play some mario. :)
Mom really wants me to help do some decorating yet, not that I'm a pro or anything, but Tim and Dad won't help. Anyway...hope you all have a good one!!

Entertainment Tonight...ET phone home...

Yes...very random title..just about as random as the comedian at our Christmas Banquet tonight! I wouldn't even be able to tell you what she said that was so funny. Mostly vague Menno jokes and lots of puns/running on into the next story. Oh well..we had our laughs..and the food was great. Actually the thing I found most amusing tonight was watching an unnamed person dump coffee all over themselves and the table. :) It was fun for a Christmas Banquet. Hey Justin..I know how you feel about the choir being off when the Piano came in. I watched the highschool jazz band today, and the one girl soloist was off for almost the whole song. Terrible!! I also couldn't help stifling laughter when the soundman gave us two major bouts of feedback. ouch! Oh...Winkler. Speaking of entertainment..come to the Cred. No..the MSR's are not learning how to juggle. We just got an LCD tv put up that will constantly be showing the news with HCU rates running across the screen. I think today it mostly just had political news on, but anyway. 3 more days of work! I was so tired today. I was almost falling asleep at my desk. I only have a few more gifts to buy for Christmas and then I am done. 2 more work parties to go to and 1 family gathering. :) hope you all are having a great Christmas season so far!! God Bless!!

Winding Down

Well...I'm really tired today. I know, weekends are supposed to be time to rest before another week of work, but no such luck for me. :) I ended up getting up at 6:30 yesterday morning in order to get ready for the quiz meet. We met at the church for 7:45 and left for Altona shortly after 8:00. We had to go and pick up Stephen from Plum Coulee, so we ended up taking that route to Altona instead. Now...neither Roger and Mary or I had any idea where the quiz meet was taking place, since I didn't get any of the emails...and they didn't bother to pay attention to the details, since they thought that I would know exactly what was going on. (Me always being so "in charge" and "organized" :) )
So...I called the Duecks from the church in the morning before they left for Briercrest to get directions. I asked Eric which church the quiz meet was at and I was SURE he said Altona Bergthaler Church. Then he gave me directions. "Turn onto rd 11 from the highway, going north for about 2 miles and you'll see it. Now you have to remember that we were coming into Altona from the Plum Coulee side and so...after giving Rog the directions...I figured he knew where we were going..so I followed him. (Me not being too keen on directions and all.) We went past Altona and Mary and I noticed something..we passed rd 9 and then eventually we passed rd 5..we were going the wrong way. We called Rog and I turned around and went back to rd 11. Unfortunately..we were on the wrong side of town. The directions Eric gave me, were given assuming we were coming in on the 201 highway. I only thought of this when we were in the middle of nowhere. The whole time we were driving, it was windy and blowing snow and at times I could hardly see anything. Finally we decided to go back to town and ask directions. ( Mary and I would have done this long ago, but...Men!! don't like to ask directions. Just joking around guys...) So we asked for directions to the Bergthaler Church, which we found, in town. Definitely..nobody there on a Saturday..definitely not a quiz meet happening there. This is when..I told Rog that we should try rd 11 on the 201. Of course, by this time we were all rather frustrated and also running very late!! We finally got out to rd 11. The sign said "Church Rd" and Bergfeld Church 2 miles. We knew we had the right one. ;) The road was really really bad!! Huge drifts of snow that I had to gun through. (Kinda Fun :) Eventually we got there and although we were late..it was still a great day! Lot's of quizzing and lots of talking. My voice was just about gone by the end of the day from asking so many questions. Our A team has a lot of work to do to get up to speed, but our C team actually conquerred. Good Job Guys!! I am really sad to leave quizzing this year. It has been fun having more kids! If anyone knows of someone willing to take my place while I'm gone, let Rog and Mary know. So that was my adventure. Good Times...gotta go eat some lunch now.

First Christmas Party!

I got through my first Christmas party. We had a potluck for our Bible Study group. Wow was that food good!! I ate two platefuls and three different desserts. It was a good thing I had lunch at 11:00 yesterday otherwise I wouldn't have been able to eat as much. We played some Catch Phrase afterward as a group. What a fun game!! I was a little slow on the uptake though. Must have been all the food or I was tired or a combination of the two. ;) Well..it finally feels like winter! Lots of snow out in the parking lot here! I wish I could take a few hours and go play ;)
It is going to be a busy day today!! It's month end and we are handing out calendars. yay for calendars! 7 more days of work. I'm looking forward to my night off tonight. Time to work on home stuff. :0
Anyway..I have some work to key...catch ya later

Time is Flying

Wow..only 3 more weeks till I'm gone. Scary..I have so much to do (and worry about) :) just kidding. I'm a little nervous about traveling on my own, and all that, but it'll work. I still need to do a whole bunch of stuff!! My last two weeks here will be nuts!! I have 3 work Christmas parties and one for Bible Study and I have to Christmas shop for family and friends yet!! crazy! Not enough time and so much to do. Only 10 more days of work. I am really looking forward to the break from work, but I know that there are definitely new challenges ahead. I've been thinking all day about making a list of things to do, but I feel so scattered! If you guys could pray for me, that I'll settle down and be able to get things done, and also to hand all worries over to God. Mom and Dad are still unsure of whether I'm going or not. At least that's what Dad has been saying ;) I'm going to miss them too, but this will be an awesome experience! Anyway...I'd better get to bed so I can get up at a decent hour and get things done tomorrow. g'night

Good Morning!

It's still dark outside. I shouldn't be up yet. :) Actually I slept fairly well last night and am looking forward to being a floater at work today. Floating means walking around and making sure everyone else is doing ok. I don't have to be on cash. So Montreal bombed yesterday. Learn how to catch a ball guys!! This is me...who's afraid of flying objects... talking. Oh well..It was a pretty boring game, and I was watching it with a bunch of loud people. :) No offense to them of course. It was fun..Good food..great to see old friends. I recently discovered that while waking up with music playing can greatly improve your mood in the morning, it also can badly affect your mood throughout the day. At least if it's the beatles you're listening to. Their music doesn't consist of much, and while it might be catchy at first it get's old really fast on the thousandth time through your head. :) I'm going to listen to some better music while I walk to work today. Anywhoos..gotta go get ready..I've actually gotta look good today. :(

It Feels Like Winter..

It's windy outside and gray. So far it has been a very interesting day! I got up at 9:30 after trying to figure out where my crazy dream came from. :) I think I got it figured. Anyway..Came upstairs and had every intention of making myself bacon and eggs for breakfast before going downstairs to start organizing and doing laundry. I ended up sitting in front of the TV and watching city line and then the Remembrance Day ceremonies. While Mom and I were watching, Dad answered the phone and you'll never guess who was on the other end!...Uncle Guy! He was sitting in the Walmart parking lot and wanted Mom and Dad to come and escort him to our place. :) He has never come out to visit us and I haven't seen him since I was like 12 or so. :) Wow! I never knew how much someone could miss the sound of a french accent. ;) What a crazy man! Mom had it written on the calendar to call him tomorrow and all of a sudden, out of the blue he shows up. Well..I still have laundry to do and stuff to sort out. Hope you all have a great day! By the way...I still haven't had that breakfast. :)

Mornings..

So...I've been getting up a lot earlier lately. 6:50 in the morning. You might ask why? Well...It feels better to get up and do my bible reading take a shower, have my starbucks coffee, and then WALK to work. :) It's about a 15-20 minute walk from my parents place and I get to listen to my favorite music on the way. ;) Great stuff. Before moving home, I didn't have coffee made for me in the morning. I didn't have leftovers to take for lunch. I didn't have a double bed that didn't sink in the middle. I didn't have time on my way to work to listen to music. I'm looking at all the positives, because I miss my apartment. :( Can't wait to have my own place again. I'm still staring at a stack of things to unpack and organize. Not right now of course. :)It was nice to have Ashleigh home this week. We even played some dutch blitz for old times sake and Heather beat the tar out of us. (what a stupid saying):s Anyway...it's supposed to be warm next week. The snow is all going to melt. not sure if I really like that yet. well. I have some stuff waiting to key...ttfn

I'm Done!!!

Moving home that is. :) Wow! what a job! I accumulated more stuff this past year than anyone should be allowed to have. I figure i'll live in a tent when I get back from Austria. I am NOT moving that stuff again!! Sorry Bruce and Heather. Whatever is in the basement is now your problem ;) Of course I'm just kidding, but from the feel of my back today...
So...lots of snow fell yesterday! I think I cleaned off my car about 10 times. At least I had all my big furniture moved on Saturday! I feel like going outside and having a snowball fight. It looks so nice and snowy out! I love winter! I walked to work today and it was perfect out. I can't wait to go sledding! I'm supposed to take Bruce and Heather sledding in January, but I guess they might have to come out to Austria for that. :) I would have a perfect hill right down the street!! Sorry guys..I can't pay for the flights though. I wonder how long it would take them to paddle across if they started now. Justin..can they use your canoe?? :)Anyways...enough silliness. Hope you all have a wonderful wintery day!!

It's the End of the World as We Know it....

And I feel annoyed...
I keep on getting these radio songs stuck in my head. "If I had a million dollars," "Is Everybody Going Crazy?" etc.
I haven't had a chance to listen to any decent music lately, so I keep on getting these other songs stuck in my head. The upstairs bathroom had country music going in it yesterday and even though I don't know the name of the song, it keeps running through my head. :( help!!! Anywhoos...I'm going to be packing up a bunch of stuff today and getting rid of all my big furniture. Luckily the new renter wants to take care of my couch and chair and table and chairs for me so I have a few less things to move. I packed up a bunch of books yesterday. Wow!!! I have too many! I'd better get going on finishing up work. ttfn

Hungry...

I didn't remember how hungry I usually am by 1:00. I did eat some breakfast, but obviously not enough to keep my stomach busy. Oh well...I'm going out for lunch with one of the girls today. Chicken Chef. I wonder what I should have? my usual? or maybe the taco salad? I guess we'll see. :) It's been pretty quiet here today, at least on the commercial side. I'm enjoying the feeling of being caught up for once. Last night we had quizzing and I think things are coming together pretty well. Tonight is Bible Classes on the book of Judges. I guess we'll see what Les has for us!

It has been a while again :(

Sorry! I truly tried to post yesterday, but blogger wouldn't let me in!! Life is going...One more week till I move home. I have a lot of work cut out for me this week! oh well, I have a day off tomorrow to start. I was the Junior Church leader this morning. Wow! what a bunch of hooligans. 16 kids is too much! Actually I think we are thinking seriously of splitting the 2-3's from the 4-5's and having two rooms going. It's too hard to keep the younger ones involved and everyone under control and happy. Oh well. kids are cute and fun anyway. I loved playing duck duck goose this morning. I probably got more exercise than I had all week! Football is on. Lately I've been watching a lot of sports. Hockey, Baseball, Football...
I'm trying to think of what I have been thinking about lately that might be worth posting. I've been listening to some Jennifer Knapp lately. Probably about the only female artist I enjoy listening to.

All the chisels I've dulled carving idols of stone
That have crumbled like sand 'neath the waves.
I've recklessly built all my dreams in the sand just to watch,
them all wash away.
Through another day, another trial, another chance to reconcile
To one who sees past all I see.
And reaching out my weary hand I pray that you'd understand
You're the only one who's faithful to me.
All the pennies I've wasted in my wishing well
I have thrown like stones to the sea.
I have cast my lots, dropped my guard, searched aimlessly for a faith
To be faithful to me.
Through another day, another trial, another chance to reconcile
To one who sees past all I see.
And reaching out my weary hand I pray that you'd understand
You're the only one who's faithful to me.
You're the only one who's faithful to me.

I love this song. It reminds me that of all the things I fill my life with, only God really matters and fulfills. Only God is faithful. I put too much of myself into things that don't last or even matter in the long run. It was snowing when I walked to church this morning. Just softly snowing. It was beautiful! I love the changing of seasons! What a reminder of how wonderful everything God has created is, how powerful and attentive to detail God is! The Franklin Graham crusade has been going on this weekend. Hopefully the numbers have been good. The ministry needs a lot of prayer. That the messages and music would be effective in sharing the gospel and touching people's hearts. I hope you all have a good weekend/week ahead!

Back to Routine

Still not sure if that's a good thing, bad thing or either one. :) It's cold and rainy outside again and I want it to stop!! You probably have guessed already that I only talk about the weather when I'm bored or not sure what else to write about. :) I'm also really hungry right now and am waiting for lunch. By the way, sorry I haven't been as regular with posting and everything. Training people really wipes you out! I hope I'll get back into writing more often again. I have a bit of a strange schedule this week. I work every day till thursday, then I get Friday off and work again on Saturday. Should be interesting. 2 more weeks till I move home. Apparently I'll be sleeping in the basement with a ping pong table as a room divider. Oh well, at least I get a nice bed. I really need to find another suitcase though, since I won't have a dresser to put my clothes in before I leave for Austria. Only 2 more months! Still don't really feel like it's real yet! Am I truly moving to a foreign country for more than half a year??! Thanx goes out to Bruce and Heather for storing my stuff for me!!

First Day of Winter??

Brrr!! It is really cold out there today! Snow on the ground and there was ice in my parking spot this morning! Ick!! It has come too early. 7th day of training today. Now it is just basically a test of staying awake and alert while watching to make sure they do everthing right. Just another couple of weeks and then I'll be moving back to my parent's place. Scary!! I still have to figure out what I'm going to do with all my stuff. If I ask some of you to store some...you know why. That sounds dumb, but anyways...
Last night I led quizzing. I know...what's new? I led quizzing by myself. 8 crazy...good kids. :) Had fun and they all did pretty well too! Quizzing is interesting this year. Lots of younger kids. I'm going to stop writing now, because I keep getting distracted and writing 2 word sentences. After this week it will be easier to write again. ttfn

Sorry Guys

I know it has been a little while, but the last few days have been exhausting! I am training my first new employee at work and the amount of talking and explaining and concentrating I have to do is incredible. I forgot how much stuff you have to learn when you first start a job like mine. There is so much little stuff that needs to be remembered that i just take forgranted now. Right down to the way you organize and write things down. :s Last night we had quiz practice. Good times! I love quizzing! It is so encouraging and exciting to see kids excited about memorizing God's Word!! I really need to take more time to memorize again. A couple of weeks ago we had people from Trans World Radio out for a visit and to share in church. One of the things they shared was..in China some Christians would take a week off of work so they could study God's Word before they had to pass their copy of the Bible onto the next person. I need to have that mindset...This might be the last day that I get to read God's revealed Word.
Tonight we had bible study. We are learning how to memorize and meditate on scripture. There are far to many "out there" thoughts about meditation. All it is in a Christian context is thinking and finding new truths about God's word. Trying to get all the truth you can out of the Bible. We went through 2 exercises to help us gain new truths and apply them to our lives. We paraphrased a verse in our own words and we also wrote down questions about verses. These questions were to make us think harder and perhaps even search the scripture more deeply for answers. It was really encouraging and relaxing to be with our group tonight and to share and pray together. I'm feeling pretty rested right now, but I still need to go and get a good night's rest for tomorrow. ;) Tomorrow and Friday we get to wear jeans!! Our boss was in a really good mood when he decided that! Anyway...good night

Patience is a Virtue...

This is the second time I've tried to post this. Apparently God thought I needed a little work in the patience department. I am rewriting this and we'll see how much I remember from what I was trying to write last night. :)
"This too shall pass" or so I keep on telling myself when I'm at work. We have a few new people and it is taking a while to get them "broken in". As fun as these new people are, it takes a lot of patience and a lot of ability to multitask. :) And I haven't even begun training someone yet!
A different topic...We had bible classes last night and Les is now teaching our class. Lots of fun! We just finished getting through the book of Deuteronomy and there are all sorts of "nuggets" in there! I love the way this course makes me have to think! We actually have two groups meeting in the church building. Dad is teaching the other class. We will be getting together to begin with some singing and inbetween we'll get together for coffee as well. It will be great to get to know some more people. I think if everyone came from the two groups, we would have 40+ people there.I don't have to start work till 12:00 today, but I should still go eat something for lunch. Otherwise I'll be starving by the time 3:30 break comes along.

Long Weekend

Yes!! It is the weekend and I get Monday off as well!! Quizzing went really well last night and we had a lot of fun! I really hope that the kids get as enthused about quizzing as I am! We have a bunch of new kids this year and hopefully it will go well. We might even have enough to have 3 teams this year! Wow! Big change from last year! I'm really excited about memorizing Acts. I really love the situation questions that pop up when we're quizzing on books like the gospels or Acts. Kinda fun to try and figure them out. Well, we have a special treat this weekend. David and Mindy Nelson are out to visit. David is the guy who got Dad hooked on BTCP training materials and who has been working in the Philipines with the same materials. Such a fun couple!! Anyway...I've gotta go and make some phone calls.

Back into Routine

Yesterday we started our small groups! It sounds like it will be a good year. I'm a little bit sorry that I will only be around for the first half of the book. Also...We will be starting up the quizzing again this week. Friday night is our "kickoff". I really hope that we get the kids interested. I really want to memorize Acts this year. I need to check out the materials website and see what we should order. It is going to be interesting this year. We need another couple to help lead, especially when I leave. I guess a prayer request would be that we as leaders would be good communicators and that we would find someone else to help. Anyway...gotta get back to work.

Could Someone Please Help Me Stop Yawning?!!

Yes, I am very tired today. It is dreary and cold outside and that always makes me feel tired. Yesterday we had a family member from out east just drop in. No, it wasn't Josh. :) shucks. actually it was my first cousin twice removed. Her name is Judy. We had so much fun trying to figure out exactly how we are related. :) We can't figure it out as fast as all you mennonites!! I think my great great grandfather is her grandfather and my mom's great grandfather. And my grandfather is her uncle or something like that. She is a character and we had fun looking at some pictures of her travels and just chatting. It is really nice to have a couple people from my Mom's side of the family still visit or call every once in a while. We are a lot more in touch with my Dad's side. Anyway...I have a bit of work to do now....

Please, Break My Heart

The title is one that you may or may not understand. I will explain it yet. Yesterday I found out that two very dear friends of mine lost their baby. The knowledge of them having to deal with such pain and loss had me in tears. This brought me around to thinking about something God has been impressing on my heart. Having a broken heart. Losing someone you love is always something that brings that pain. Some biblical background...
Adam and Eve - lost their son Abel
Abraham - offering up his son to God
Jacob - Losing his son Joseph and thinking he was dead
Job - Lost everything, I'm sure his Sons and Daughters were the worst part of that loss
David - Lost his first child born of Bathsheba, and his son Absalom
Mary the Mother of Jesus - Watching her son be crucified
God - gave His only Son for each and every one of us.

What pain must all of these people have felt?? What pain must God feel each time a person turns away from His gift?!! All these people who went through these things still gave glory to God through faith.

The other night I was praying and I asked God to soften my heart, to break my heart for each person I come in contact with. It is easy to feel pain and concern for those close to us who are hurting. It is easy for us to express concern and caring for those who are across the ocean. It is not easy for us to care for the people that we come in contact with either through work, or maybe even just random people you meet as you live each day. For me, it's the people that come in for a few seconds, to do business. It is easy to be completely impersonal and forget about them immediately. These people have problems and are hurting too. What does it take for us to care? I personally always try to guard my heart from pain. Knowing too many people too well, is a recipe for getting hurt. I pray that God will break down the barriers that I build up. That I would care more about the other person than about myself. That I would be willing to have my heart broken, to feel concern for each person I meet. That I would be willing to let God have the glory.

Dull...

I know, I know. When am I actually going to have a real post? Not right now. Yes I am very bored at work, but for me to actually keep a train of thought here, is impossible. Right now I have been counting the seconds till lunch time. only 1920 more to go!! I'll post more tomorrow

Oh What a Day!!

Yesterday, I was invited to go on a hike with some friends from camp. I thought "sure, a couple of hours hiking and maybe icecream after, no problem". It turned into a 10 hour marathon of fun and laughter!! We left my parents place around 1:00 in the afternoon and headed out to camp for some exercise. And oh, what a gorgeous day for hiking!! 20 degrees, the trees are starting to turn, the sun was out, Perfect!! After our hike, they decided to play some football. Since I haven't got over my fear of flying/falling objects, I opted for lazing in the sun instead. Afterward we went out for ice cream at Dairy Queen. Yum! Pecan Cluster Blizzard. Lots of laughs and then we decided to go and buy some food from Stuporstore, and make supper at someone's house. Perogies and bacon. Good stuff. lots more laughs and then we went to another person's house for some basketball and frisbee, where I again opted for the sidelines and my 4 doggy friends. Apparently every animal knows what a sucker I am. ;) We ended up gong inside and eating and laughing some more and finally got back to my parents place around 11:30. Anyway, It is another gorgeous day outside. Maybe I'll go rollerblading or something.

Just a Typical Day at Work

So...not much new going on in my life. Yesterday I firmly decided that chewing tobacco is an absolutely disgusting habit! It reeks, it bulges out your cheek, it makes it hard to talk properly and I'm sure that there are many other reasons beyond that. Besides serving that one person last night was a very slow and easy night. Today I'm on commercial. Yay!! love that! So, I got my passport in the mail a few days ago. It only took them 14 days to get it to me. Not bad! Also, Tauernhof got my application so it is now completely officially official. And...I got my leave of absence approved from work. Great!! Everything is falling into place so neatly! I'd better start working now. :)

Back to Work

So, my first day back at work after my extra long weekend and I got to work overtime. Yay!! Can you tell I'm being sarcastic? I am. No, it wasn't because I was rusty and couldn't balance. It was because it was so incredibly busy!! So much for a holiday to get rested up! I think I'm more tired now than before. I'm sitting here listening to my little bro record some harmonies for one of his songs. If I didn't know better, I would think that he just couldn't sing. :) It's funny 'cause we can't hear the music he's singing along with, so we just hear him singing something that sounds very off key. :) Anyway...I think I'm going to go home now and do some more Sudokus to make me really tired, and then I'm going to bed. g'night

The LifeLight Experience

Wow! What a great weekend!! So, apparently my parents (no pun intended) like Perkins because it's "predictable". We stopped there for lunch the other day in Winnipeg, and then on the way down to Sioux Falls, and also when we got to Sioux Falls. For those of you who know how indecisive I can be when looking at a menu, I am really tired of Chicken Quesadillas. :) When we stopped for lunch at Perkins we were seated right by a middle aged couple who were taking their very elderly mother out for lunch. So funny!! They kept on reading suggestions off the menu for her with tantalizing comments. The elderly woman was so spunky! She didn't know what she wanted, but she sure knew what she didn't want!! After a few such comments, Mom and I were trying to not obviously laugh at them. So when we got to Sioux Falls we camped at the KOA. Showers, a great playground, laundry facilities and not too many other things that would recommend them. Not my idea of real camping, but I'm not complaining too hard because it was cold and wet so it was good to have those things (minus the playground). LifeLight...Yeah, so it started out with a lot of rain (and I mean a lot!!) With close to 100,000 people walking all over the grounds and driving all over the fields where there was parking, it was soon a muddy mess! I wore flip flops on Friday and got a really great pedicure!!! Hardened mud..exfoliation..yah. :) We sat in the dining tent and watched people trying to walk up a little hill to get to the main stage and wiping out. People were walking around in mud from head to toe!! The showers and dryers were in demand at the KOA that night. The next day was much better!! It was still a little cold, but it was drying up. They had brought in wood chips and gravel and we had gone out and bought rubber boots (with hard toes for moshing!!jk). We managed to stay fairly warm and dry and the concerts were good! Sunday was definitely my favorite day for concerts though. Leeland ( a really great band with a 17 year old lead singer!! ) Sanctus Real, Kutless, and Newsboys...although not my favorite band, they always have a fun concert!! The sun also decided to come out on "Sun"day and dried everything out and kept us much warmer. So we came back safe and sound and even without a cold!!

The Gift of Love

The reason I was thinking about what I am going to share with you is because I had a song stuck in my head. I know that those songs are often not ones that we want stuck, but this time I was blessed with one of my favorites.

Arms of Love
I sing a simple song of love
To my Savior, to my Jesus
I'm grateful for the things You've done
My loving Savior, my precious Jesus
My heart is glad that you've called me your own
And there's no place I'd rather be
Than in Your arms of love
Than in Your arms of love
Holding me still, holding me near
In Your arms of love

We have been given a gift called love. There are many ways that people think about love, but I'm thinking in the simplest terms of the meaning. God gave His Son out of love for mankind. He wants us back.

1John 4:9-11 This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might have life through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Since God loved us in this way, we also ought to love one another.

If God had not shown His love for us in this way, what reason would we have for showing kindness to others? We as Christians should literally be taking Christ's example when he was here on earth, and loving others like he did. Without asking, "what's in it for me?". If Christ had not come, what would our world be like? I know that for me, living in a Christian community, it's hard to imagine. In this way we can understand the verse:

1John 4:19 We love because he first loved us.

So simple. But is it really? God has given us an opportunity to love. By becoming a Christian, going to church, going to youth, being baptized...all those things we do...in these things we are supposed to be making a conscious decision to live as Christ did, to LOVE as Christ did and does. Are we? What a scary, exciting, challenging thought!

Please realize that in writing this I am not trying to judge you. This is just my thoughts about my life made public, to challenge and hopefully encourage you!!

Another Day, Another Dollar (or a few more)

Ya, I'm working today. :( Actually I've been sitting here watching other people work. haha. I'm on commercial teller today and it's separate from the other tellers. I only have to key business deposits and there haven't been that many businesses coming in. I get to go for lunch pretty soon. Yippee. I couldn't find much to eat at home though. I have eggos and syrup and nachos and salsa and a yogurt. weird, I know. I only have to work 3 days next week! yay! I'm on vacation on thursday and friday and then we are going to sioux falls for life light fest. good times! I know I'm not writing with good grammar or phonetics, but I'm sure you all get the general idea. As one of my coworkers said this morning "Saturdays are when you are supposed to be home watching cartoons." :) I'm lazy...

Making it a Habit

Hey,
You might find that I don't really have much to say, but I'm trying to make this a habit. :) Eventually it might stick and I'll actually update this regularly. So I started reading some of "The Complete Works of Francis Schaeffer". Wow!! A lot of it doesn't really sink in, but some of it I'm able to understand. What an amazing thinker!! And to be able to put it into words! Even though the average person may not be able to understand it right off. I'm finding it fascinating anyhow, and it's pulled me in enough that I might actually be able to keep reading it without getting sidetracked. Well..I've been thinking about all the things that I may need for Austria and trying to cut out all the unneccessary. It really is going to be hard to fit everything in two bags. What about all my shoes? just kidding. I'll live without my 2 dozen pairs somehow. 'k maybe I don't have quite that many. Only 18 pairs that I can think of excluding slippers. :) At least I have the reputation of girls packing a lot as an excuse. If Justin didn't need his 50 lbs of stuff, he could bring some of my stuff to Europe as well and just forward it to me when I got there. LOL It might look kinda strange for him to be bringing my heels with him though. :) (Justin: I give you permission to get me back.) Maybe I'd better go before I dig myself into a deeper hole.

There and Back Again (Beth's Tale)

Actually, I'm going to keep this relatively short, because I am really tired. :) It was a successful day in the city. I got my flights booked, my travel insurance bought, and all the browsing through stores I ever have wanted to do in my life, done. It really feels official that I am going now! I also feel more nervous than ever about the lack of travelling I've done, but what better way to get experience except through experiencing. :) It was a fun day with the parents, but exhausting nonetheless. Far too much "browsing and saving", not that I wanted to spend money. Oh well, at least most of the day was spent in one of my favorite places...shoe stores. Just one of my many weaknesses, but I was able to hold out and didn't buy a single pair. Every time I was tempted, I just told myself that I was saving money by not buying them. I saved a few hundred bucks today. haha. Dad was looking for some shoes, but he ended up saving money too! There's nothing out there that could possibly measure up to my Dad. :) just kidding. The styles are a little weird in Men's dress shoes right now though. A whole bunch of European styles that have long toes that make you look like one of Santa's elves!!! :) Well...things are quickly falling into place for my trip so...time to talk to the boss. :) gotta get to bed soon! my eyes are starting to close on me. Peace

I'm Going to AUSTRIA!!!

Yes, I've known about this for three weeks already, but I figured it was time to share it with everyone. I'm sure not that many people are actually checking this site for updates anymore, but I guess I might try writing on here again. I have been looking into possibly either going to school or working at a school for quite a while, but finally on a day when I was feeling "down in the dumps", I got an email from Capernwray Tauernhof in Austria saying that they would like me to come and help out for 6 months. So...I will be spending Christmas and my 20th birthday in the Alps!! :) I'm excited to see what God has to show me in another part of the world. I'm ready for a challenge and a change of scenery and to meet new people. Please pray for me that I will be completely willing and ready to be used by God.
God Bless

Keeping the Story Alive (by a thread)

So...I started a story a long time ago and have failed to keep it going. I will try to finish it now. If you haven't read the rest of the story, you may want to go back to previous posts and read it. Here goes...
...The story went something like this...History of a land called Allmansway: In the land of Allmansway there is a castle where the king ruled. The king reigned over the land for many many years. More years than one man should ever live. The substance of his life came from a small glass vial. This vial sustained the whole land, because it had been given to the king by the woman he loved. This woman became his wife and bore him two sons. The eldest son's name was David. After David was born she didn't have another child for several years and then finally she had her second son whom they called Percivald. From the first Davy and Percy did not get along. Percy was always taking his parents attention and often did so selfishly. He was always getting into mischief and then blaming Davy. Davy (although he did not like it) put up with it and tried to please his parents as best as he could. Then one day, as Percy and his mother were out riding in the orchard, she fell from her horse and hit her head on a rock. She never became conscious again and eventually died, and from that day on Percy became more and more unhappy, blaming himself for the accident. Percy hated himself and more and more he turned his hatred toward his brother Davy. Davy was now 20 years old and Percy was 14. One day as Percy was in the village tormenting the peasants he came upon an old abandoned hut and decided to explore. He found that it was an old conjurer's hut filled with potions. He found a potion labeled "jungmachen". He found another one that was labeled "sprechmacht".
Of course, being the King's son, he is skilled in different languages and could discern that these meant "youngmaking" and "speakingpower" or thereabouts. Suddenly a nasty idea sprang into his mind.... You will have to "tune in next time" for more of the story. Please leave me an idea of what you think should happen.
ttfn, Beth

Cookie Blitz

Hey, Sunday for college and career we decided to make cookies for some of the people in our church. Everybody brought some ingredients and we mixed up a double batch of hamburger cookie dough. While the guys did that, us girls decided to play some dutch blitz. I got a new set of blitz cards for my birthday that needed breaking in. It was great fun to let the guys have the kitchen while we fooled around. We ended up bringing cookies to 10 different households rather late in the evening. Tonight we have another quiz practice. yay! I always look forward to it. I find it fun even if the quizzers don't always. We are working on the first half of the 14th chapter of Romans today. I am going to try to get the verses memorized. It is always easier if I know the verses as well. This is going to be a busy week. I am working monday through saturday. Thankfully my evenings aren't all booked yet. I'm guessing that it will be a pretty quiet week here at the "Cred". I really don't have that much to say today soo...
catch ya later

It's Been a Really Long Time

Hey Guys
I knew I would be sporadic when I first started this thing, but this is absolutely horrible. I haven't posted since May. Apparently I got a full time job. :) I'll fill you in a bit on what has been happening in the last 6-7 months. I had what seemed to be a very short summer which was spent mostly at work. In August I started earnestly looking for an apartment for me and Heather to live in. I also bought my first car.In September Heather got engaged. In October I decided to move out on my own. In November I moved into my new apartment. Somewhere in that time my brother got engaged as well. In December our whole family was together for Christmas including my almost sister-in-law, Jenna. We had a wonderful Christmas together although it was different this year. In January I threw a bridal shower for Heather. SO FUN!!! I had a whole bunch of girls over for the evening and a few even stayed for night.
Heather is getting married March 25th and Josh is getting married May 6th. I am still at my job at the "Cred" and am enjoying it more than I've ever enjoyed any other job. I am loving living on my own and I don't think I could ever go back. Even though it is expensive, it's good to know that my money is going toward something worthwhile. (living, eating, etc.) :) The only reason I'm writing on here right now is because i have been so incredibly bored at work today. Too quiet. After Christmas no one has any more money to spend. Anywhoos... I'll try to post again eventually.
buh-bye for now
Beth

Larger Than Life

I was going through a bit of my music and reading the lyrics. I usually try to buy my music because of the value of the lyrics first and then the way it sounds. I know that sounds really backwards, but it works. I hear something I like and immediately find the lyrics. If the lyrics aren't worth the money to buy the cd, than I won't buy the cd. I do have a few "embarrassing" cds that I bought before my brain hatched. :)
The first group I was ever exposed to in a real live concert was Down Here. They played at our church. :) I really enjoy their first cd for the music, but mostly for how clear and firm their lyrics are. I love it when artists make very clear what they are trying to say. I get so frustrated with the "choose your own interpretation" style of writing music. That kind of writing can be so misleading. It's like...what are you trying to say? Are you talking about your relationship with God or your girlfriend? Or the ones that are even more spaced out. It's kind of like trying to interpret a Picasso painting. What was he thinking when he painted this? Was he thinking? or was he just splashing a bunch of paint around? or was he just a wee bit out of his head? This song by Down Here is very nice and clear.

Larger Than Life

Walk this life beneath the stars/ contemplate just who we are/ against the backdrop of knowing God/ Seasons pass they come and go/ but one thing keeps its worth in gold/ a timeless bond, sharing dreams we hold// It's larger than life, it's larger than we/ it's bigger than you. it's bigger than me/ it's larger than life// there's something here that tells me so/ I was not made to walk alone/ it sharpens me to know we stand as one/ will our lives reflect the Maker/ of the sky we're living under/ it changes all to know You're really there/ when the space between us falls apart/ You're the bridge that spans our hearts// You're larger than life, You're larger than we/ Who's bigger than You/ You're bigger than me/ You're larger than life//
by Down Here

God made each of us with a need for Him and that need can only be filled by Him. When we let Him fill that need, we are bound to Him for eternity. The mystery of God and His being is bigger than anyone can truly understand. He reveals Himself to us through His word, and if we let Him, through our lives. Isn't it an awesome thought that God made us so that we can reflect Him? God is so much bigger than my tiny little self and yet he knows and cares about what I do with my life. He wants me to reflect Him and the only way I can do that is if He works in me. I can't do anything without His help. He is allowing each living person on earth to draw breath. If He was gone all of a sudden, than everything would stop. He sustains the world by His power. The only reason the ant on the sidewalk is still moving is because God is sustaining life. He sustains us and yet He gives us our free will. Do you get what I mean by God being larger than life? The things of God are to big for us to grasp with our minds. And yet He still cares about little ol' me and you. Wow! That's exciting!

Beautiful Day!

Hey! Today was a great day. Started out the morning with some great praise and worship at worship team practice and it only got better from there. We had a missionary couple in our church this weekend and they shared this morning. His name is Alex Jean Paul with the French accent. He was born in Haiti and he is now a missionary to Haiti. They are setting up VBS there in Haiti in 27 churches. My Dad will be going out there to help train some pastors since he is fluent in French. It was so great to hear how the gospel is being spread over there. It is unbelievable how poor those people are! In some ways I envy them their hunger, both physically and spiritually. I take God's blessings so forgranted. Here's a song that makes me think every time I hear it.

I Stand Amazed

I bring You my heart/ I bring You my praise/ I bring You my broked dreams I've lost along the way/ I lift up my voice/ I lift up my hands/ I lift up the moments in my life that I don't understand/ And I lay it at the cross/ Where I'm surrounded by Your grace/ And I marvel at the wonder of Your LOVE// chorus: I stand amazed/ I stand in awe/ i stand forgiven in the midst of it all/ Before You I bow/ before You I fall/ Blessed Redeemer, Sweet Savior of all/ I stand amazed// I offer You thanks/ I offer my life/ I offer a sacrifice of praise when I'm scattered by the night/ For You are my shelter/ You are my King/ You are the risen Son of God/ the Lord of everything/ Now I'm standing at the cross/ Where I"m surrounded by Your grace/ And I marvel at the wonder of Your LOVE//I stand amazed/ I stand in awe/ I stand forgiven in the mids of it all/ Before You I bow/ Before You I fall/ Blessed Redeemer, Sweet Savior of all/ I stand amazed!
by GlassByrd

If God loves us enough that He would die for us, then why can't we do something for Him? He gave us our life. Why aren't we offering it back to Him like Hannah did with Samuel? I've heard it said that if we saw all the evil around us that we would die of terror. why is it that we don't die of bliss when we see a glimpse of God's splendor every day? We should be excited (excited is not a big enough word) about God, but instead we are scared of what others think of us! One of the best quotes I heard last summer was: "anything we go through here on earth is but a moment in time when you think about eternity". Somebody said this to me when I was complaining about sore muscles and being tired. I think of it now with the thought "we only have one life! And it is so short compared to eternity! God has given us this time and He wants us to use it to do His work wherever we are. I'll stop my rant for now, but be aware that the whole issue of complacency has been on my heart for a long time. It's not likely that I will give up the subject too soon.:) g'night.

I miss the lake! 

Wow! It's been a long time!

Hey everyone! I know it's been a really long time since I last posted. Sorry about that. Where to start?! Life has been really crazy busy! I started my new job at the Credit Union 3 weeks ago. It is going really well and I love the work since I get to be with people all the time and get to talk to all sorts of people. It's fun! I really hope my attitude reflects Jesus. Last weekend, the topic of Christian complacency came up again. I feel really frustrated with myself and how I keep on falling into the same old trap of feeling too comfortable in my life. Sherry asked us some good questions on the way home from Fisher Bay. We want to start doing some ministry stuff with our college and career group. Last night a bunch of us girls baked cookies and brought them to some people in our church that needed special thought. It was a start anyway. We don't do stuff like that nearly often enough. It felt so good to work last weekend and know that we were making a bit of a difference for the coming summer. Last time I was in the college and career we talked about the will of God for our lives and came to the conclusion that it really is the same for all of our lives, to live our lives for him, loving him and loving people. Whether I work as a missionary or at the Bank I can show God's love to people. It is so easy to become complacent here in Winkler. "Everyone" is a "Christian". I really have to work in order to become excited about doing ministry work or even just saying something in defense of my faith or about what I believe. I don't get a lot of challenges or anything, but if anything questionable comes up in a conversation or people start gossiping, I really have to think whether to say something or not. I really want to be passionate about my faith and Love for God, but some mornings it's hard to motivate myself to get up the half hour earlier just so I can do my devotions. If I can't even read God's Word willingly, how am I supposed to do His will? I've been reading about David in first Samuel lately. He was called a man after God's own heart. He was still sinful, but he had God's will first in his mind. Instead of killing Saul, he thought about the fact that Saul was the anointed king and that he shouldn't be the one to kill Saul. God had put Saul in the position of king and God should be the one to take the position away. I probably would have rationalized that God was "using" me to do his "will". How would it have been God's will to kill Saul, when it is God's will that we love God and love people? David must have thought of that. Because David didn't take things into his own hands, he was blessed by God and ended up becoming the next king. Well...Those are some of my thoughts lately. I know I never finished my story, but I will write it out by hand and finish it on paper before I post the rest of it.
I hope you all have a great weekend! ttfn.

I Got The JOB!!!

Wow! Today was a great day! This is how it went...I got up around 9:00 and felt great. I had a great sleep and felt well rested and happy. I did my Bible reading with my family in the book of Judges and in the book of Acts. (good stuff). Then Heather and I went up to MCC around 11:00. We bought a couch! It is yellow and green and Jerry is going to bring it to the church tomorrow at lunch so if you want to see it you'll have to go to the church. After dawdling around uptown for a bit longer Heather and I came home and had lunch here (grilled cheese for her and cold pizza for me). Then we ate some of our rolo ice cream. :) We went a picked up the groceries from co-op for her mom and dad and put them away and then came back here for awhile. We had some fun looking at home decorating books and stuff. Around 3:00 I went to the Credit Union for a Job interview. It lasted for about a half hour and boy were there a lot of questions! They had three people interviewing me (including Auntie Anna, Heather's Aunt). I was pretty nervous, but the interview seemed to go well. Afterwards I went to quiz practice and did some jumping for sour skittles. (good times) I came back here for supper and fooled around on the computer for awhile. Around 7:00 or so I called Warren to see if I could borrow "Napoleon Dynamite". He said yes, of course and said that he and Liane would meet me at Pembina in a little while to give it to me. (They were going for a walk) Just before I left to meet them, I got a call from Auntie Anna. The conversation went kinda like this..."If we were to offer you the job, how flexible do you think you could be with your other job? We would like you to make this job the priority." I assured her that I thought everything would work out. I said that I would talk to my current boss and discuss how all the hours would work. Anna told me to give her a call back after I had talked to my boss. I said that I would.
I went to pick up Napoleon Dynamite and right away told Warren and Liane that I had a job offer from the Credit Union etc. I came home and watched Napoleon Dynamite and then I thought about what Auntie Anna said about the Credit Union being my job priority. It made a lot of sense to me since I can't exactly move up in my current job at the library and there would be quite a bit of room to move up at the Credit Union. I quickly called Auntie Anna at home and told her that "whether or not my other job is able to be flexible" that I would accept the job at the Credit Union because of the fact that there would be room to grow at the Credit Union etc. She said great and that she would write up a formal job offer and give me a call in the next few days. She was very encouraging in saying that she was happy for me and that this was a great opportunity for me etc. Wow!! What an answer to prayer. I've been wanting this job for a few months now and this is the second time I've applied. I start training May 9th. YESS!! Thanx to everyone who was praying for me during the interview and afterward! I really thank God for this job and I know that He wants to use me there. Pray for me that I will be willing to be used by Him.

Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."
Hebrews 13:15 Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise-the fruit of lips that confess his name.
Hebrews 13:20-21 May the God of peace, who through the blood of the covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, equip you with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

life goes on and so does the story

Hey everyone! It has been a long time since I last posted. The last week or so has been really busy, but also a lot of fun. Last week I worked a lot of hours since I was filling in for someone who was away on holidays. Wednesday Heather and I went out for lunch at dj's and had some fun at the mall. (rolo;) On Friday Liane and Warren got engaged and on Saturday a few of us went to Bruce's and played games and had a fire. Sunday we had some praise and worship time and then went for a walk. Sunday evening Ellie, Tim and I went to Curt and Jacqui's wedding. Afterwards Ellie took me out for ice cream and we spent a lot of time talking about all the problems of the world and how they should be solved. :) good times. Yesterday I went to Christa Wilton's place and had some fun petting all the lambs (31 lambs so far) and then we went for a drive with one of the ponies (Prince). So...that's a bit of a outline of my whole week. This weekend our church is going to Camp Arnes for a family retreat. We are going to have a blast! can't wait! I guess I should get on with the story now. I ended with..."What is your name?" He answered,..."Davy O'Keith", he replied, "and what's your's?" I hesitated before answering, "I don't know. I seem to have lost my name and need a new one. Can you give me a name?" He looked puzzled for a moment and then answered. "I'll call you Wesley because you remind me of 'Wesley the Wanderer' from the old tales." "Thank-you" I said. "Wesley sounds like a good name. Can you tell me where I am and why this castle seems to have been forgotten and abandoned?" Davy replied, "I will if you tell me truly, Why are you here?" "I have no answer for you because I do not know myself." I replied. "I was hoping that maybe you could help me find out. I only know that I am supposed to find out about this castle." Davy straightened his shoulders importantly and said, "Then I will help you. I will tell you all about this castle and why it is abandoned and I will even show you all the secrets of it. Come on! The library is just down the passageway and it has all the history of the place holed up in a huge closet. I'll show you!" He took off running down the passageway and I quickly trotted after him. He took me past a few large doors and finally came to one that he pulled and tugged on before finally turning to me and saying, "Help me won't you?!" I grabbed the handle and pulled with all my might and finally the door creaked open reluctantly. Davy was already inside and pulling open the doors of a large case. Dust puffed up all around the case and a musty smell of old books wafted through the air. Davy sneezed three times before pulling out a massive volume that appeared to be about half the size of the small boy. I quickly joined him and helped him carry the tome to the huge desk that lay nearby. He opened the cover and began to retell the history of the castle and the village that populated the countryside to the west of the castle which I had not yet seen. The story went something like this...That's where I'll stop for today. Please give me some ideas for the history of the castle and village. Thanx for the ideas for names. Even though I came up with a completely different name for the boy. Thanx Ash for the name for myself. I've gotta get to bed now. I have a job interview for the Credit Union tomorrow. Pray for me! G'night all. ttfn

Rainy Day

What a beautiful day! I love rainy days! I just got back from a nice run and the front of me is soaked through from running against the drizzle. :) This has been a really busy weekend. Friday I worked all day and right after work I went to the Fisher Bay Bible Camp Banquet (what a mouthful). Saturday I worked all day and had the option of going to the Michael Card Concert or staying home. I opted to stay home because I was tired. Sunday we had the Pembina Valley Promotional Worship Night. I was at the church from 1:45 in the afternoon till 9:00 at night with a short break for supper. It was great to see friends from camp and awesome praising God in song all day long! Today is a lazy day, though I'm thinking that I should go for a bike ride later on since it isn't windy. On with the story. Thanx again to anonymous for the ideas. I left off with...there came a creak and a scrape like the closing of a heavy door...I jumped, startled. I had thought that the castle was abandoned, but there must be someone or something still here. I debated what to do, and after considering the power of the water in the vial, I decided that it was safe enough to explore the cause of the sound. I followed the passage from which the sound had come, and I came to a huge door. It appeared to be heavy and made of solid, hard wood. I grasped the handle and pulled as hard as I could and surprisingly the door swung open with more ease than I had thought it would. It made the same rough scrape and squeak as I had heard before. I peered inside. It was a large room, and was what appeared to be a bedroom. The furniture was still there but the fabrics had long ago been devoured by moths. A glint of light caught my eye and I saw a mirror at the far end of the room that was reflecting a little light from the high window. I slowly walked towards it and stopped in front of it. My appearance made my eyes crinkle with laughter. I see that I am actually a young man of approximately 15 years of age. (this explains the sturdy black boots. Of course no ladies of that time would wear them) I have longish black hair and my shirt is torn and my arms are scratched and bloody from the field of death. I look very ill kempt and tired. The fact that I am a boy strikes me as funny and I begin to laugh. Then suddenly from the corner of my eye I see a movement in the mirror, My face turns sober and I whip around to look at what had caused the movement. Behind me was a little boy with short curly red hair. He was about 6 years old and his eyes sparkled with what looked like mischievousness, and it would have been, if it had not been for the circumstances. He looked at me warily. I slowly knelt down to his height and beckoned him closer. He slowly stepped forward, and I spoke aloud for the first time. "What is your name?" He answered, "...that's where I'll stop for now. I will keep anonymous' ideas in mind for next time. Please give me some ideas for the little boy's name. Have an awesome day! ttfn

God's love, good friends, and GREAT times. 

Another Continuation

Hey, I'm back to continue the story. First I'll give you a bit of a sum up of the weekend. Saturday was a beautiful day. It was really warm and windy. I went in to work from 10-2 and then later in the afternoon, I went for a bike ride and then a run. Sunday was just as nice and not nearly as windy. We had college and career and spent a great time in prayer then went to Warky's. My first reese peanutbutter cup twister was amazing! I was only able to eat half of it and gave Tim the rest. After Ice cream we went to Morden park to go for a "walk". I would call it more of a frolic than a walk. We had great times playing on the jungle gyms and having a snowball fight. anywhoos...on with the story. Thanx to Ashleigh and Anonymous for the ideas. I ended with...Suddenly behind me there was a great rush of wind...it raised havoc with the leaves and the field behind me rustled with discontentment. The wind smelled sweet and fresh and reminded me with a rush of pleasure of the starry fountain. I was strengthened and looked around me with new regard. I began to look for a different way to get to the castle. I walked along the moat to the right and to the left searching for some way across. I saw nothing that could be of help, but as I walked back to where the drawbridge should be lowered, and was still a ways from the crossing point, I saw a bright flash. It came from the direction of the field. I saw something bright and clear. In a small clearing in the field just to my left there was a large stone set up. On it's level top were carvings and in the center of the carvings was a vial. Again I thought of the fountain. I stepped gingerly into the field again and moved toward the stone. I finally came to the stone and found that it was as wide as I am tall and nearly as high. I tried to jump and launch myself onto the top of it so that I could more easily see the carvings and the vial. It proved useless and I only bruised my knees on it. I walked around the stone and saw a smaller stone on the other side of it placed there almost as in thoughtfulness of those lacking in height. I climbed atop and the wondrous carvings made me catch my breath. They were in the likeness of the starry fountain. In the center was the vial and it's clear brightness as the sun shone through it reminded me of the many colored light of the bubble stars. I slowly reached out my hand and took hold of the vial. As soon as I took up the vial, the field of death disappeared and I was back at the fountain. I filled the vial in the fountain and took my rest under the trees of the fruit grove. I was still puzzled as to how to get into the castle but I knew that the water had to do with it somehow. After an hour of rest I got up refreshed and started my journey anew. I walked across the flowery meadow and towards where the field of death should be. It disappeared with every step I took into it! In my wake more flowers followed in every shape and color and the loveliest of fragrances. I was soon at the edge of the moat and could find no way to cross. I realized that it was the light of the sun through the water that had made the field bloom. I quickly uncapped the vial and poured a small drop of water into the moat. The sunlight followed the drop straight into the moat and as the drop hit the stagnant waters of the moat, it seemed to spread and soon enveloped all the water of the moat in a sparkling magnificence. Before my eyes the crocodiles changed to brightly colored fish that bubbled and gurgled contentedly. I quickly slid down the hill into the moat and drank deeply from the refreshing water. I waded through the moat and enjoyed the soothing feel of cool water on scrapes and cuts from the field of death. I climbed up the other side of the moat and made my way to the doors of the castle. I grasped the large golden handles of the doors and pull with all my strength. They slowly creaked open and I peered into the darkness inside. I tiptoed through the entrance, leaving the doors open for light. The castle seems abandoned, for there is no light anywhere and there were thick layers of dust on all the heavy wood furniture. Directly ahead of me is a great staircase of stone. I slowly walk towards it and once I reach it I slowly make my way upwards grasping the sturdy smooth railing in one hand and my vial of precious water in the other. As I continue upwards the darkness thickens and as I reach the next floor I can only see by the dim light that I am in a great hall. Down a passage to the right there came a creak and a scrape like the closing of a heavy door....That is where I'll stop for now. I need some more ideas. I hope I satisfied Ashleigh's desire for a secret passage by the sudden appearance back at the fountain and I don't think that I shall put any dragons in this story. Please leave some more comments. This post has taken me almost an hour to complete. I'm not sure if that is a statement on my typing speed or just my thinking speed. Hope you all enjoy the story. ttfn

story continued.

To start off I'd like to say that since no one else has cast a vote for the chipmunk's name I would like to declare Warren the winner and the chipmunk is now named MISTER chipmunk. :) Thank you again to anonymous for making it possible for me to continue my story. I am currently sitting here drinking a starbuck's frappucino and eating a mars bar. YUM! I haven't had a chocolate bar since...a really long time ago because I can't remember the event. Well...on with the story. I ended with...what appeared to be a great castle...I start to feel excited. I've never seen a castle close up before. I start to run. I run through a meadow filled with buttercups and soon reach a field filled with thorns, briars, and rot-weed. I look behind me at the beautiful meadow and fruit grove and then ahead at the death and desolation through which I have to travel in order to reach the castle. I look around me to see if there could be some other way but there isn't. I hesitantly place a foot on the field as though I might suddenly be cursed if I dared to touch it. I take another step and soon I am walking through the field, cringing at the sting of thorns that cuts through my clothes. I am glad that I have sturdy black boots. Eventually I arrive at the other edge of the field scratched and sweaty. I stare at the huge moat ahead of me and at the drawbridge that is drawn up on the other side. I slowly tiptoe to the edge of the moat and look down. It is filled with slimy sludge that could never pass for water and in it were hundreds of crocodiles. A stench rose from the moat and I could feel the bile rise in my throat. I quickly step back and sink to my knees in despair. I have to get to the castle but there seems to be no way to do so. Suddenly behind me there was a great rush of wind...

That's where I'll stop for today. What do you think the wind should come from? Please give me some more ideas. I'll keep the other ideas for inside the castle in mind. ttfn

This is what I have on my desktop right now. I drew this sometime last year and I think he is really cute. Does anyone have any good ideas for a name for him? 

most awesomest dayest "Everest almost"

Hey! Today was an awesome day! It was beautiful outside, and WET! I spent the morning driving around town with my Dad. This afternoon I played some piano and then...and then...and then we went...HIKING!! WOOHOO! why am i so excited? I haven't been hiking in a really really long time. Warren went hiking up at Riding Mountain with some friends this weekend and I was pretty jealous. So we ended up going hiking today. He took us (Tim, Ash, Liane and I) to the Morden beach trails and we had a blast. Before we left Ash asked me if she should wear her ski pants and I told her that she wouldn't need them unless she was planning on falling down every 2 minutes. Of course when we got there and started hiking (without Ashleigh's ski pants) she did fall down basically every 2 minutes. It was hilariously fun skidding down icy, slushy, muddy trails! Ashleigh just couldn't seem to stay on her feet and she almost brought me down with her a few times not to mention the others. Warren wanted us to see a "cool" spot before we headed back to the car. It seemed to take us a really long time to get to the "cool" spot because we kept on getting sidetracked. Like one time the other girls wanted to climb a boulder and Warren decided to try to jump up on top of it to join them. He takes a running start and jumps...only to bash his leg against the rock (just like I told him he probably would) :), but obviously he wasn't too injured because...the hike continued. Finally after a few slipping, sliding, and falling incidents with Ash, we made it to the "cool" spot. And it was cool. basically it was a great view of the river and hills. Of course I had to open my big mouth and point out a trail leading higher, which Warren said offered an even more impressive view. So up we went. Tim and Ash decided to come up the hard way. Tim got up all right but it took Ash some time before she could get up the mud cliff (Everest almost). Meanwhile we were having a jolly good time making the echoes on the otherside work their vocal chords and watching Tim "break dance" and generally make a fool of himself. (as we all were doing) Ash finally gets up(Everest almost) and we stand up there for a while longer enjoying the echoes and the view. Soon we decided to head back down and somehow on the way down Ash slipped again. We were still right at the top of the mud cliff (Everest almost) and Warren made the comment, "Ash, we aren't going to carry you home" and just as Ash is trying to get up she tumbles backwards off the mud cliff (Everest almost) and bounces and rolls to the bottom of the hill which I have named (Everest Almost). We were all a little stunned and then it struck us as funny and we cracked up. We laughed so hard we were bent over. Ash landed at the bottom in a puddle and thankfully she hadn't broken any bones and wasn't seriously hurt. She was very wet and muddy. Finally we got back down and slipped and slid our way down the trail to the lake. We decided to take a shortcut by walking on the lake instead of the trails. The top layer of the lake was slush and water and soon my feet were completely soaked. Eventually we made it back to the car. On the way home my face felt like it was frozen in a smile. My face and stomach hurt from laughing so hard and so often. I can't wait to go hiking again! :) We all had supper at our house and went to worship team practice afterwards. I just got home about an hour ago since I stayed after both worship team practices to play some piano. I feel very tired now and since I am getting up at 7:00 to go running with Dad tomorrow I'd better get to bed. G'night all!

continuing the story

Hey! Thanx to anonymous for the comment. I was hoping for a few more ideas but I'll have to work with this for now. Now where was I? oh yes...
...but in each and every bubble I saw... a beautiful star. At first the stars appeared as they would in a clear night sky, but as I continued to gaze at them I saw that they were not just a clear point of light but a many faceted jewel with as many colors as are in a single ray of light. "This water is too precious to drink." I said to myself. "I will come back later with a vial and take some with me." So I rose from my knees and continued down a path that seemed to appear before my feet as I walked. I walked for what seemed like a long time. I passed through a small grove of fruit trees. I did not know what kind of fruit they were for it was not the season of fruit-bearing. As I came out of the grove I saw in the distance what appeared to be a great castle...

And that is where I'll stop for today. Please give me some more ideas so that I can continue the story.
This afternoon I am going hiking with the College and Career group. It should be fun. I've been wanting to go hiking for quite a while now. This morning my Dad took me driving for a while and I picked up some paper so I can photocopy a bunch of sheet music that Candice lent to me. There are some really great songs in there! Hope you all have an excellent day. ttfn

Joy of literature

Yesterday was a good day. Nat and Candice were out from the city and we had a good visit. We played some Cheat in the evening (which I enjoyed immensely since of course I love cheating) :). After playing cards for a while, we decided to rent some movies. Ladder 49 wasn't really all that great, but Flight of the Phoenix was pretty good. We stayed up until 1:00 am. Good Times. I missed Josh though. It wasn't quite a complete "family gathering". anywhoos... just for kicks...I've decided to try and write a bit of a story. I want to make it a joint effort and would appreciate comments from anyone who reads my blog regularly. I'll start it off, but would appreciate any ideas that anyone would have. My goal is to have the story finished by the end of April and have it completely published in one entry on my blog. This is mostly motivation for me to write on here more often. Could be fun, but it also could fail miserably. Here goes...

One night as I was walking along in my dreams I came upon a wonderful fountain. It was in the shape of a many pointed star and the water appeared to be cool and clean. I suddenly realized how thirsty I was and drew near to the fountain to take a drink. As soon as I knelt beside the basin of the fountain to take a drink, I realized that it was not only water but in each and every bubble I saw...

That's where I'll stop for now. Please give me some ideas so that I can continue the story. Goodnight all and Happy Easter!

Hey Guys! It's beautiful outside! It's starting to feel like spring. I can't wait till the ice melts and the trees start budding! Have an awesome day! 

ice cream and lazy days

Hey! Well today has been what you would call a lazy day. I spent a lot of time doing...not much...and having a great time doing so. :) It started off this morning when I slept in till ten. Then I decided to do some reading. My breakfast consisted of a bowl of ice cream with chocolate sauce. When my mom came home I had a hamburger for lunch and did my bible reading. Today my reading was in Deuteronomy and the book of John. Often I get bored in Deuteronomy but today I noticed some really good stuff. God is constantly commanding the Israelites not to get sidetracked by other people and by worshiping other gods. But of course Israel had to find out for themselves just what the consequences would be if they didn't obey. I think everyone is like that. We all learn to some degree that if we do something bad than we will most like be either disciplined for it or pay some kind of price for our actions. Even though we know this we still like to test it. It's almost like being warned against something piques our interest as to why we shouldn't. I love the book of John. The book has a feel of intimacy with Christ that none of the other gospels quite has. I am very glad that I memorized it two years ago. I should really remind myself to review though. Anyways...after I finished devotions I decided to go up town and pick up some parcels from Sears and also go to Time Out and try to find some new running shoes. I hate shopping for shoes! I never know quite what I like. (By the way Warren, the ones I tried on were really nice, but I hate white shoes.) :) I probably am far too picky. Oh well. Then I took Heather to Tim Hortons. I went for the cappucino and she went because I wanted to. Can you believe that she had never been in our Tim Hortons yet?! After some great food and fellowship I came home and decided to look on Nike.com to see if they had anything I would like in the way of shoes. Of course they did, but it's not smart to buy shoes that I have never tried on. not to mention that it was in American dollars and I'd have to pay for shipping. Pricey!! Made some pancakes for supper then played a bit more on the computer and finally watched a movie. Now I am sitting here with a bowl of half eaten and half melted ice cream with chocolate sauce to end off the day. Hope you all had a great day! ta ta for now!

Quiz Meet

Hey. Ya, I know, it's been a long time. Oh well.
This past weekend our quiz team went to Moose Jaw for a Quiz Meet. It was a fun weekend! Roger and Mary brought us out there and they brought their kids along to make it kinda like a family holiday. We listened to Ella Enchanted (a book on cd) a lot of the way there. (I got it from the library of course.) Our first quiz when we got to the church was brutal. I was the only one from our team that got a question right, but I also errored out. We were in the B division for this meet and the difference in the quizzing from A to B took us off guard. The jumping was really slow and no one knew a lot of their material. After that first quiz though things got better. The next three quizzes we won and I quizzed out in each of them. For our last quiz we were late and therefore lost our twenty points and missed the first question. I still got 3 questions right but our team lost anyway. Oh well. After we were done our quizzes we went out to Tim Hortons for coffee. Then we decided to go see if the Moose Jaw tunnels were open. We ended up buying tickets for a tour that evening. We went to the 7:30 tour and we were the only ones booked for that tour. the kids found it a little scary but it was a lot of fun. Since we didn't go swimming with the rest of the quizzers, we didn't find out till later that there was an accident at the pool. A Callie Snider had a seizure while she was under water. They had to call in the paramedics and she was rushed to the hospital. She did not recover consciousness till the next morning. It was a stressful time for her teammates and coaches and for all the quizzers who had been at the pool and saw what happened. Last I heard, she was doing well and breathing on her own. It was great that all of us quizzers could all pray for her. The trip back was uneventful and entertaining the kids was fun. I forgot to tell you about our billets. The family we stayed with was a doctor's family and they were quite well off. Christa and I got a double bed in a beautifully decorated room with a huge mirror on my side of the bed so that I could see how awful I look when I wake up. (ugh!) :) The bathroom was right across the hall from us. Also they treated us like royalty and served us eggs and bacon for breakfast with fruit and yogurt and muffins and coffee and... etc. It was incredible! Normally we have to sleep on the floor and get a bowl of cereal for breakfast which is usually good enough. I am happy to be home though. I slept in till 11:00 this morning. crazy!! it's amazing how tired you get from sitting all weekend! anywhoos... I gotta go eat supper. ttfn