Tag Archive for Me

College

by  on  in Books, Camera, Life, Me, Myself, and I, my opinion, Story • 0 Comments

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Another lovely photo from my mind’s second home: France. (A personal library of old books stored throughout a chateau – how could I not fall in love?)

College.

Student-athlete.

Biochemistry major.

Living away from home.

Wow.

Honestly, I usually still think I’m 17 when people ask me my age. It’s hard to comprehend the fact that I’m in college, that I have already had to deal with a lot of things I never had to before college, that I’m actually not even going to be a teenager next year, and that, at some point relatively soon, it’s going to be expected of me to be fully independent. Some people my age have already been married for a year and may even have a kid. Some people my age are already living on their own or traveled to a different country for school. That is just crazy to me – how can my preference of being home and my dislike of large social settings compare with that?

I used to look at college students and think that they had their lives together. Even if they weren’t doing well in school or something, I figured they must have a backup plan, that they were always calm about what they would do. Since starting college, I’ve realized that no one has it together, even the people who are like what I described above. Even those people are worried their backup plans won’t work – no one can be sure. Oftentimes, the future seems terrifying because I’ve realized that I’m never going to feel like I’m invincible in the path my life takes. And it’s true, I won’t ever be invincible in what I do.

But, honestly? I still find peace. I really only have that peace because of knowing the Lord. I do not have to worry about the risk of failing in something. I don’t even have to worry that I will let someone down because the Lord has got me. If life plans have to change, it’s not because I’m not good enough, it’s not because I don’t have value, it’s because I’m needed somewhere else. I will be a thousand times more useful in a place He has picked out for me than in a place that I am trying to make work for me. There is no comparison between any one life and another: all have a need for Him and all will better glorify Him while following what He chose for them. He has His plan and all I have to do is try my best to follow Him and every smooth path or rocky cliff will be used for His glory.

 

Random odd things accomplished thanks to college:

  • had my number requested by a fourth grade boy touring campus
  • successfully sneaked out of a park I got locked into with a friend
  • applied for a job as a snake handler (the snake left campus, but not to worry, I have two other jobs instead)
  • went to Georgia (for swim nationals but I was delirious with a fever)
  • dyed my hair with temporary dye for the first time for a day (blue, and then dyed it again for a day a purple/red color)
  • experienced a demonstration of stunt driving skills
  • made a turkey hat with kindergarteners
  • drank 3-5 cups of tea every day for a whole week (sick before finals week this last semester)

 

All in all, it’s definitely been an experience.

xx

France

by  on  in Camera, Favorites, France, God's Creation, Life, Me, Myself, and I, Photography, Story, Vacation • 0 Comments

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Hello all,

Wow – it really has been a while! So much has happened. I left off rather upset about not having gone to France two years ago, but I was able to go the following year. It was an absolute blast and I enjoyed it so very much. I even had trouble switching back to English at the end of the three week trip.

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I celebrated my 18th birthday the last full day of the trip, which was so exciting. Unfortunately, I also had gotten strep throat and a 24hour bug, both of which I was recovering from on my birthday. BUT a dear friend bought me crepes in celebration and that was the first meal I was able to eat after catching the virus, and we wandered around for shopping so it ended up being a fun day.

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The missions part of the trip was also fantastic. We had so many children attend the VBS. One girl personally asked me to dedicate her new Bible to her. Another even younger girl, about three years old, discovered a much enjoyed pastime of tackling me to kiss my cheek or fiercely hug me every day. Two little boys, in the group I helped with, made quick friends with me and I was cheerfully invited to eat with them every day of the trip – these boys remain so special to me. My absolute favorite part of these days was getting asked to please sit with them by the sign (used for storytelling) for lunch and then getting to follow through and laugh at all of their stories during our meal.

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I truly felt at home in the French culture and church. I was happy to see my family when I returned, but a part of me still always wants to be in France, sleeping in the gorgeous chateaus and homes of host families. In one church service, the pastor welcomed us and asked us to sing in English while the congregation sang the same song in French – it was a particularly memorable moment, it sounded lovely. And yes, the food was amazing. (: I was honored to get to be a part of the kitchen staff during the second week we were there. I got to tour the street markets with a French cook and dear friend, then return back to a French kitchen to learn how to cook from the greatest father and son duo that I’ve met. (Plus they were absolutely hilarious!)

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The weather was another beautiful thing about southern France. At night and in the morning, the air was always cold, even in the middle of summer. It warmed up during the day, so we were able to enjoy trips to the beach, but at night, we wrapped up in jackets and sweaters to sit on the rooftop and sing under the stars.

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Should you ever feel the desire to go to France, particularly if the Lord calls you – do it. Don’t choose not to out of fear. There were risks when I went and in fact, there was an attack on a city while I was there, although the Lord kept us safe a few hours away. The chance for something bad to happen is not a good reason to turn away from the likelihood that something great will occur.

Missing France, but happy to be reliving it and finally sharing with you all again!

xx

A Little More ‘Bout Me…

by  on  in Favorites, Life, Me, Myself, and I, my opinion • 0 Comments

So, as you might have noticed, I wasn’t able to post last weekend. I realized that I had a final and I should study. 😛 (So I took my final on Wednesday and it went very well!)

Today’s post is adapted from a post from Bryleigh’s blog, which I recently ran across. (Metias and Me is not affiliated with her blog in any way though, I just emailed her to ask to borrow the idea.) She was super nice and you can check out her version on her blog. I’m going to answer some questions about myself, so you guys can all get to know me a little better. If you have any other questions, feel free to email me or leave a comment! Let’s get started!

 

The Basics:

Name: Emily

Nicknames: Em, Emmy, Lulu, Emily-Bemily, Bem, Катя, Sizzle, Bacon Sister #3 (There’s a lot, guys… My dad and friends make up new nicknames like there’s no tomorrow. These are the most frequently used ones.)

Birthday: July 23 (I’ll be 17, believe it or not)

Job: I have several, but the real ones are – working on websites & coaching swim

Hair Color: Blonde – I think my hair would be more of a brown, but the sun and chlorine from swim bleach it.

Height: I am totally proud of my 5 foot 10 (although 6 ft was the goal originally…)

Left or Right-Handed: Right handed

 

Favorites:

Movie: Oh, boy these are gonna be the hard questions… I have many, but Captain America comes to mind first.

TV Show: Sherlock, Once Upon A Time, Psych, Rosemary and Thyme, Murder She Wrote (I could never pick just one for that.)

Color: Blue

Song: Another impossible one, right now it’s probably Freewheel by Josh Osho, Classic by MKTO, or Thinking Out Loud by Ed Sheeran

Candy: I love chocolate anything. Seriously.

Book: Man, I have GoodReads for that question!

Shoes: Like Bryleigh, I love wedges. But. Even more than those, everyone who knows me well could tell you this, the shoes I love and that are associated with me are high tops. Love ’em.

 

Currently:

Feeling: Hungry. We are having the most amazing ribs ever tonight and they cook for five hours, so I can already smell them.

Eating: I’m in between lunch and dinner right now, so nothing. For lunch, I had my own version of chicken lettuce wraps from Pei Wei. (Maybe a recipe will come soon…) 😉

Listening To: My dog bark at the birds in our backyard. (No music at the moment)

Thinking About: What I’m going to write, for an essay in French, about my best friend from when I was little.

Wanting: To watch scary movies with my brother tonight. (Who is currently home – yay!!! I miss him when he’s at college.)

Wearing: Navy blue shorts with cute buttons on them and a bright pink t-shirt with pleats on the shoulders.

 

Future:

Careers In Mind: Ok, I’m looking into being a nurse. It seems so cliché, but I really am interested in being a surgical nurse. Other than that – working in a forensics lab.

Dream Career: In a perfect world where I would succeed at whatever I did, I would either be a coroner or run a small bookstore in a beautiful small town. Drastically different, I know, but it’s me.

Where Do You Want To Live: 50-100 years ago. Bam. Oh wait, like where not when? Umm… Narnia, Wonderland, Neverland, or maybe just my house forever? *Sorry, I have a strong case of I-don’t-want-to-grow-up today.* But probably the same area that I live in now, but in my own apartment or small house later.

 

Do You Believe In:

Miracles: Yes! I’ve seen some.

Ghosts: Quite honestly, I can’t come up with an answer, but anyways, I know who to call…. (If you yelled GhostBusters: You are awesome.)

Aliens: Define “aliens”, but the green guys with huge eyes? Nope, but that would be cool/creepy.

 

Hope you all enjoyed that! Until next time,

xx

Studying Essentials

by  on  in Favorites, my opinion, school • 0 Comments

A little week-day post for you. Better & longer posts coming this weekend hopefully. Survive.

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The above picture I took about a year ago. Best way to study. The below picture I took this last week. Best way to study continues. Hello Panda is apparently one of the essentials to studying effectively. (Dude… My homework looked way more fun last year…)

IMG_20150317_134127[History homework in both of the above photos, for anyone wondering.]

Here are my for-real studying essentials:

  • quiet company – whether it’s quiet music or a sibling also studying, it’s almost impossible for me to study in silence. I think the silence distracts me because I’m used to working with at least four other people around me, so when given silence, I daydream instead.
  • mechanical pencils – I found out a year or so ago, that I want to write if I’m writing with a pen or mechanical pencil. So use whatever writing tools make you actually want to write something.
  • abundance of working erasers – as you could see in the first picture, I need to erase sometimes and erasers that leave gray smears drive me crazy.
  • snack or drink – although it will never last the entire study session, you can use it as a treat. I was allowing myself one panda after I read a page.
  • clipboard – don’t try to write on top of your books, just have a cute clipboard. Mine has little owls all over it.
  • breaks – take them to: stretch, grab a snack, attempt a handstand, run around the house, scream in a pillow, etc.
  • time limit – don’t sit down and say you’re going to study for a while, have a set ending time. Otherwise if you’re like me, you’ll study too long, get a headache, and be crabby until the test or final is over. (Which could be days later so have a set end time.)

I have a final and a few tests next week, so studying in on my mind. Good luck to anyone else with tests or possibly finals/midterms coming up!

xx

Lose Myself

by  on  in Me, Myself, and I

Here’s two music tags combined and answered. This is my tablet’s music on shuffle. Most of these songs I don’t listen to and a lot are Disney! 😀 Have fun reading this:   Q : What does your love life look like next year? When We’re Human Q : What do you say when life gets hard? What Idiot He… Read more →

The ABC’s of Me

by  on  in Me, Myself, and I, my opinion

So here are the ABC’s of me! 😀 This is from Jenna’s blog. Please enjoy my weird answers. Addictions: Clothes, music, old TV shows, books, the list goes on… Bible Verse: Mark 16:15 Chore you hate: Probably loading the dishwasher is the most hated in our house. Dogs or cats: Oh! That’s tough! I love cats and dogs, maybe dogs… Read more →