angels in your angles

A year or so ago (because I’ll remember random and useless phrases you might tell me for years), Karlan told me he liked to eat food so spicy that it made his ears burn. A year or so later, and the day prior, I experienced this burning of the ears (and mouth) with a lot of jalapenos and hot sauce. I just have to say, the feeling of enjoyment is not mutual.

It’s nice to travel alone at times, when there is more motivation to find your own entertainment and acquaint yourself with interesting strangers. From Pasco to Salt Lake City I sat by a Polish scientist named Uric, who was traveling to Frankfurt, Germany on business. He laughed at my gift box wrapped in a world map, and ran his fingers along the map I covered with clear packaging tape and we reminisced on past travel. He was a seasoned traveler, and when I mentioned time spent in Southeast Asia, he spoke fondly of his business stays in Hong Kong, taking the ferry to Macau, and hoping to finish his project in time to present it in Singapore next month. And we both had an hour and a half layover, where we got coffee at the Crown Room with his membership. I am on my way to Southern University to see my brother, and am excited because I finished my 10-page research paper strangely fast. And I can't wait to see my bro and the fam and other cool people.

I finally narrowed down my student missionary opportunities, and we decided to apply at a school in Ponm Penh, Cambodia. It was sort of a stressful afternoon, because it’s rare to find two people co-existing with the exact same preferences and agendas in everything, and while my friend Liz and I promised to make decisions together, it did not mean that compromise would not be in order. We had a 1pm meeting to discuss our call, and we were at limbo. I preferred teaching in Cambodia, and she was favoring the idea of teaching in the island of Kosrae in Micronesia, and both were unsure of who should give up their own preference. We planned on getting together later than night to get a cup of coffee and talk about what was really on our hearts, but when I called to plan a meeting time, she said she had come upon a conclusion. I felt nervous that her convictions might differ from my own, and she is outspoken and stubborn and would not be afraid to fight for what she wanted. But to my surprise, she said she felt she was pushing too hard for Micronesia, and some factors, like time and money were just not working out, which she believed were a result of God's will becomming clear, and a process of God communicating His plans for our lives. Phil and Emily said I should count it a blessing and a gift of clarity from a force bigger than ourselves. It is true, everything just sort of fell into place. Praise God.