College / Updates, God 
No Comments Tea in a Tub
So – onto the events of the past week.
1. We are art students.
Scott and I dyed paper for Bookmaking Club in my roommate’s crock pot last week. Then we dried them by sticking them to the side of the tub. It was the most fun spontaneous thing ever.
Pictures of the finished book? Coming soon? Maybe…
2. Basecamp (for Student Leadership)
On Friday morning I left for Rincon, GA on a bus of almost complete strangers. I knew a few kids from Rising Star – but most of the thirty-five were new faces. Honestly, I cannot tell you how uncomfortable it made me to go. To get up. Pack up my things. Sit down next to somebody. Leave behind my studying for Survey I. My unfinished rhythm project for 2D. And head off to camp. But. It ended up being one of the best decisions that God has lead me to make.
Among the new experiences:
- Feeling 100% comfortable in a large group (if you know me well, you know I prefer one-on-one time and that groups make me uncomfortable)
- Being able to (literally) approach any individual and have a conversation
- Knowing every person’s name within the first two hours. Among the interesting ones: Thu. Fun (short for Funfere). Dayspring. McKendree. Anders (pronounced On-ders).
- Getting whacked on the butt with a rubber chicken. By a guy.
- Not getting tired playing tag. It was too much fun for being tired.
- Winning back-to-back rounds of rock-paper-scissors and advancing to the level of Smarty Pants
- Not getting nervous about speaking in front of a group.
- Willingly falling backwards into a catcher’s arms. (And hitting the ground.)*
- Lifting people (as a group) above chest-level.
- Supporting a person’s entire body weight on my thigh.
- Playing “Human Pendulum Toss.” Sounds fun, right?
- For the first time: truly being able to identify and form relationships with people of different races without judging them or considering them any different from myself.
- Solving problems that looked impossible.
- Being considered tiny enough to fit through a 1′ x 4′ space.
- Again, lifting people and supporting them using my leg as a stepstool for them to smoosh prop themselves up on.
- Balancing in a wooden triangle while being carried a distance of about 7 yards by my teammates. Oh, and all they had were ropes attached to the frame. And only I could talk.
- Making large groups of people laugh without meaning to.
- Feeling like a kid again.
- Laughing till my jaw hurt.
- Feeling growth taking place. For real. In its present, developing state.
I have never felt so comfortable and yet outside my comfort zone. We solved problems as a group. We fit 17 kids into a circle with a one foot radius. We lifted each other up. We caught each one as they fell. We ripped muscles. We listened to each other. We all led; we all followed. And somehow I know now that I will never ever be the same – I cannot let my days slip by me – void of meaning, connection, progress.
And aside from my nine quarter-sized bug bites and my incredibly sore abs and leg/hip region (yes, that includes the butt), I could not be happier. I have new friends. I saw at least six of them around campus just today.
* This was the only real negative experience of the camp.
3. Today I saw a boy on the steps with a bouquet of flowers and his phone on his lap – texting. Later Christine ran out to take a “pretty picture.” On our way to dinner we spotted the flowers on a trash can. They had been on a nearby door (according to the documentary evidence provided by Christine). This evening when Christine opened her jar of Kimchi (smelly fermented cabbage), I opened the door to find this:
And we had to be resourceful about our “vase.” I honestly think it was the trashman who left them. I left a sticky note on our door saying thank you.
4. Church.
Awesome! I talked to the right people (more of the right people) and I think I should be set for a Lifegroup this Tuesday and homeless ministry soon. I was so thrilled to find Kate, Torry, Arielle, and Katie (from Basecamp!) at church this morning. We went out to lunch and I felt I was truly a part of a little community. I love having friends.
I did some things at church that are not usually a part of my routine. But that’s what all this is about. Change. Response. Authenticity. This book I’m reading – Jesus For President – as well as my own reading in 1 & 2 Peter lately have me going on this common thread of new knowledge. God is showing me how much of my faith is based around verbs. Actions. If you read 2 Peter – my gosh! I am overcome by all the actions. All the words – they demand response. Even ‘delight’ is a verb. And with this leadership camp… I am just buzzing with excitement. For the first time in my life I really feel like I’m going somewhere. I am growing. I am trusting. And as Bartavius put it – I can stand a little taller. (Not in pride, of course.) God is whittling my view of Him. And adding some of the shavings back in new places. There are so many things… I am learning so much. Such small things – but huge. Backwards to what the world teaches me. What I teach myself.
(I’m sure I’ll be rambling more about Basecamp & God stuff soon. The stuff swishes in my head constantly.)