Fish Dives and Peach Cobbler

Today started pretty well. Met a friend at the bus stop and had a lovely ride to the studio, had a slow, but good ballet class and my day was off to a pretty great start. After lunch I had floor barre which really stretched me out pretty well and let my lunch digest a bit. Then we learned a pretty okay lyrical dance that wasn't on pointe, which made the class fantastic. Then partnering was amazing. Most notably, we learned a fancy little lift thing called a "fish dive" pictured below. 

 

I caught a ride home with a friend, then came home to start packing. I have about 80% of my clothing packed and ready to go, which is just insane. The other 20% I'm either going to wear over the next 3 days or is drying. My day ended with some delicious Aunt Janet dinner and a phenomenal peach cobbler she just "threw together." I have to say, I'm going to miss her cooking, and I don't come from a family of poor cooks. 

It's only about 9:00 as I'm writing this, but I think I'm going to head off to sleep now. Only 3 more sleeps here, which is just insane to think about. Time really does fly. 

Awkwardly Awesome

My day consisted of awkward and awesome moments. Here's the run down:

Awesome: Waking up at 6:30, resolved it's time to get up, checking my clock, and realizing I could sleep for another 1.25 hours.
Awkward: Waiting for the bus, this guy (who due to the events I'm about to explain, I do believe had some mental handicap, or at least was really, insanely socially awkward) came and stood 5 feet(ish) away from me, facing me directly. (It wasn't crowded, and at the bus station the social norm is for people to make like ideal gases and be as far from each other as is possible.) Feeling the awkward, I just avoided eye-contact, and after a minute or so, he just said, "I like your shirt" then walked away. I thought I was wearing a Dr. Who shirt, and then this whole incident would have been excusable, but no. I was wearing my "This is Love" shirt.
Awesome: Quadruple pirouette on pointe. That's four rotations out of one push. And it felt amazing. Just "whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whooooosh, done."
AWESOME: Hip Hop class was cancelled and replaced with a stretch class. Oh, it was wonderful.
Awkward: I was running out of the studio, trying to catch the bus. I checked the intersection where I can usually see the bus pulling up, and it wasn't there, so I started walking at a normal pace. Then out of nowhere I see my bus pulling down the street, so I start running, drop my water bottle, have to run back to grab that,  and I resume running as fast as I can and waving like an idiot trying to get the bus to stop. The bus does stop for me (which was awesome) and I get on, thank the driver and start back to my seat when the one other person in the bus (other than the driver) starts talking to me, something like, "You almost missed the bus!" And in response to such a brilliant observation, I said something genius like, "Yeah!" and then took a seat. But then this guy kept grinning back and trying to talk me, but I really couldn't understand him, so I just laughed and nodded, then  put earphones in and pretended to fall asleep until he got off the bus. Blah, I'm so socially awkward.

The final bit of my day, I can't decide it it's awesome or awkward. I have to start packing. How weird is that? So that'll be my evening.

In all honesty, today was no outlier in terms of the strange mix of awkward and awesome moments. But that's me. Awesomely awkward. Or awkwardly awesome. Whichever you prefer.

Mondays are Awesome

Mondays are awesome. Really. In ballet, they are. You're rested from the weekend, you feel strong, teachers tend to go easier, it's awesome. After you make yourself get out of bed, the day only gets better. Or at least that's what happened today.

Started my morning with a latte from Starbucks. (For such a diverse city with so much food, I am disappointed in the lack of local coffee places.) Had a painless bus ride to the studio, discovered the schedule for the week, and started class. It wasn't with a particular favorite teacher, but it was a great class with a lot of corrections, so I was happy. There were also about 10 people missing, which made for a pretty decent class size. I broke in a new pair of pointe shoes, which hurts, but now they're ready to go. They held up pretty well in Variation, where we learned a pretty intense jumping variation that involved some acting, so I was really happy. Then we had Character which is really just an absurd and awkward form of dance, which actually fits me embarrassingly well. And the crazy Russian teacher taught it, and her classes really are just an experience. I'm ashamed to say I actually enjoyed it. We ended with some glorious Pilates--the lights were dim, we stretched a lot and the workout was gentle. It was fabulous. Then I caught the bus, walked home with a little Jesus party going on in my earphones and that was awesome. The plan for the night is to look at my dance schedule, figure out what I'll need up until Friday, then start to pack everything I don't need. That's right. Start to pack. I'm coming home soon.

T-5 days.

It's the Final Countdown

I spent my last full free day in D.C. with Aunt Janet, and we had quite a lovely day. First Church, then some tasty Mexican food, then home to breathe a little. We then visited the FDR and Jefferson Memorials--two of the few memorials of which I didn't have distinct memories. We fixed that today. FDR's memorial was very tasteful, and it was inspiring to read such idealistic words. Aunt Janet was right to say that most modern presidents just don't speak in the statesman like speech of the older presidents--newer presidents lean to political rhetoric rather than idealistic and inspirational prose. A pity, really. Anyways.

The Jefferson memorial was splendid--such a beautiful building. We also were fortunate in our timing of arrival in that we were able to catch a tour of the Jefferson, which was super informative. There's very little to take away from the memorial without some knowledgable person explaining the subtle symbolism scattered throughout the structure. For instance, the guide (whose name, no lie, was Sam Snider) was able to tell where in the U.S. the stones creating the memorial came from, with the floor coming from a southern state, the ceiling from a northern, the interior from a southern, the exterior from the north, the base of his statue was made from stones from states bought in the Louisiana purchase etc.

He also emphasized Jefferson's metaphor of a "coat of democracy", which was a concept I found so wise and humble to come from a man as influential as Jefferson. The basic concept is that as America grows and changes, the "coat of democracy" has to be tailored again and again to fit the changing country or the fabric democracy of the coat will rip and fall to pieces. He's so absolutely right, but what wisdom and humility it must take to be able to look at an incredible document that you poured your time and talent into and be able to say (I'm paraphrasing here), "I know it isn't perfect and that it needs to and should change." Just some food for thought.

 Back to my day, Aunt Janet and I got some frozen yogurt, came home and watched some cheesy movies, I sewed a pair of pointe shoes, she made some incredible pasta, I packed my stuff for tomorrow, and now I'm off to sleep. It's been a wonderful weekend, and an incredible month, but I'm excited to hug my siblings and parents again. 6 days and counting.

Mis Tios

My last Saturday in D.C. started rather early, as Aunt Janet and I hit Mount Vernon this morning. Wow. What an amazing area. The weather today was absolutely amazing--72 degrees, good breeze, and some cloud cover. We toured the mansion before the large crowds came, and didn't have to wait in line anywhere. It was an amazing view, everywhere we went, and I felt shockingly patriotic--an emotion to which I'm not highly susceptible. There is something inspiring hearing more about such an idealistic man as George Washington. As Aunt Janet said, "We may not have everything perfect as a country, but we do have some things to be proud of." Certainly, even I have to admit, that is true.

Then we had a nice lunch and I got a haircut. About 4 inches off, so it's super curly now. And my head is so much lighter, and hopefully my bun will be significantly less gigantic.

After the hair cut, Uncle Mike picked me up and I went to Fairfax Community Church and got a nice tour of their children's facility. It was very similar to ELCC, though they broke kids down into different age categories. Then we went to a lovely dinner where I got some great Pad Thai, and quite enjoyed talking with Aunt Mona and Uncle Mike. I have really enjoyed spending time with them. I've very much enjoyed analyzing church services, making faces, and learning more about my parent's old lives up here with them. I'm going to miss their humor and wit when I'm back home, but I'm certainly returning to plenty of those qualities at my house.

Overall, I had an absolutely wonderful day with the "Tios." I really love these people.

But it's no Canada

My shin is definitely up to something here. I've been massaging, stretching, and even icing during lunch; it's just being a booger. I think it's just tired and needs some rest, which I'll try to give it this weekend. One more week. 

Today I had a good relaxing/stretching day. As much flexibility as ballet requires, a ballet class itself does not really contain a portion of sufficient stretching. But luckily we stretched a lot in Pilates, Jazz, and Modern. I actually feel quite loose in my joints and muscles because of those lovely stretches, and Pilates and Modern today focused a good bit on relaxation and releasing tension from joints and muscles. That was pretty helpful.

I said goodbye to a lot of great new friends today. Several of the dancers won't be returning next week, which means today was goodbye. My three Spanish friends and my English speaking buddies from the first week will still be at next weeks classes, which will be nice. 

I've got a pretty busy weekend planned, and I'll keep updating as it unfolds but here's the plan:

1. Finish my online course. (Done! Yay!)

2. Sew a pair or two of pointe shoes. (Bleh.)

3. Visit Mt. Vernon. 

4. Get a haircut. (Oh I need it...)

5. Pack/Ship my stuff 

6. Figure out when my flight is on Saturday.

7. Visit Fairfax Community Church to see their children's program (specifically worship arts)

I'm excited to have another week, but I think I'll be ready to come home. It's weird. I wasn't nearly this homesick when I was away for 2 months in Canada. Probably because my heart considers it home. I really do love D.C.; I have made, and will make more, fantastic memories here. I'm so glad I decided to come to BalletNova, see all the Aunts and friends up here, and it's all been wonderful, but it's not Canada. I guess last summer, if I was at all homesick, it was only for South Carolina (which we all know my affections for extend only as deep as they do because my family is there). This summer, I've got a double-whammie, of missing my family and stuff, but also missing Grandpa's stories and scrapbooking and cooking (mainly eating) with Grandma, and oh, I miss those summer nights at Port Dalhousie with Tim Hortons on my mind, a camera in hand, and those just brilliant sunsets on the pier. Yes, D.C. is wonderful--the weather is lovely, the culture is charming and unique, the friends are dear, and the dancing is great. D.C. is truly amazing. But it's no Canada. 

T-30 classes

I figured out today how to walk in the city. Walking and waiting for/riding on the bus, has been super awkward as I'm typically by myself, without anything to do but to be lost in my own thoughts. Which to be honest, is pretty entertaining sometimes, but it can be a bit tedious to have to actually entertain yourself for 2 hours every day. I see most people in the city walking with earphones in, which I just find incredibly dangerous as you can't hear the traffic around you. But then, in a stroke of genius, I figured out that I can just wear one earphone. Shocking, right? And if the music is just down low enough I can hear traffic perfectly, and can even eavesdrop on Spanish conversations in the bus, and then have something to resort to when my brain doesn't want to have to entertain itself anymore. Also, because I'm me, all my music comes from old ballets I've been in and from a narrow selection of my favorite worship songs. I found that to be an encouraging way to begin the insanity that is my day. To be reminded, "You are the rock I stand on," and to sing with all my heart "It is well with my soul" (though keeping my mouth shut to avoid looking like a crazy person) really puts gets your day off to a solid start. 

Then classes today went pretty well, I just had three dancing classes, then a 2 hour seminar on the Ballet Russes. It was pretty interesting, though absolutely too long. Aches are gone, feet looking and feeling good, and I think my pointe shoes will last me through the week (as in tomorrow), and I'll need to sew a new pair for this coming week. On the Friend Front, I'm doing well. Meeting and talking to lots of delightful dancers, and really practicing some Spanish. 

It's crazy to think I only have 6 more days of classes--it's gone by so insanely fast. 30 more classes and then I can come home. 

Highlights and Lowlights

Big news of the day: Aunt Janet is back! It was lovely to see her and catch up on our weekends over some really delicious Lebanese food. Mhm. So good. I'm going to miss the food here. Not time for that yet, I still have 2 more weeks before I have to deal with that business. So today:

Ballet was nice here are the highlights:

1. Being yelled at by a Russian--"That was very lovely, Kathryn, but bad, bad, bad fifths!"
2. That triple pirouette on pointe. Yeah that was awesome.
3. Learning finger turns with a partner. Basically, I stand on one foot, hold one of his hands to the side of me, then make a hole with my other hand and put it over my head and he puts his finger through my hand. I push off the hand to the side and whip my leg all fancily and we turn a lot of times and it's really great.

Today I have a couple of aches and pains. Not at all classifiable as injuries, but just little ways my body is taking its revenge on me. My left shin is acting up a little. Not shin splints, it's farther side than that and not nearly as painful. I just gave it some special attention today and it should be fine. One of my toes (just one) is being weird.  I have an achey shoulder from hanging on for dear life on the metro last night. And then I clobbered my right knee on the corner of some furniture this morning, so that's a bit sore. I'll be taking some ibuprofen and will try to get some good sleep tonight (cough is getting better).

Overall, an enjoyable and encouraging day. The teachers here either really like me or are just super nice to new people. Maybe some of both.

Take Me Out to the Ball Game

As my father knew before I remembered to tell him due to his seemingly incessant tracking of my cell phone, I had the "very cool" experience of going to the Nationals Park to watch a baseball "game." Really, it felt like we were watching one professional team, and maybe a half-way decent high-school varsity games. Some pretty inexcusable bobbles, I'd say, but the Pirates certainly had some nice plays. But it was still a lovely experience to just be at that massive stadium, eat a pretty good burger and fries, and enjoy the company. Aunt Mona and I had quite an interesting time trying to mimic the facial expressions of the baseball players' pictures that were shown on the big screen. It was quite enjoyable. Melanie and Sam Snyder also joined us, Ms. Melanie being very helpful with some important baseball questions, and Sam and I had some fun moments doing the "awkward-bleacher-trying-not-to-hit-anyone-and-also-trying-to-figure-out-how-to-dance" dance. Overall, a delightful evening and completely worth the insane commute. That was a REALLY crowded Metro. Standing back to back with a guy exactly your height with then inertia being a really perverted jerk can make for a very uncomfortable ride. Anyways. 

The rest of today was also pretty good--nice ride to the studio with my from Spain Spanish friend (with an awkward conversation with a guy on the bus that I thought was speaking Spanish, but she thought was speaking English) one of my favorite teachers whipped our sorry butts, my feet felt great, and got to tell a friend that when I dance, I dance for Jesus. Yeah that last bit was only really awesome. I had to choreograph a bit for this girl, and the first thing that came to mind was the Gospel Story, so I just asked if she was a Christian (she's Catholic), and went with it. Upon being asked, "Did you choreograph this because it's a good story or because you're like super religious?", I was able to explain that whenever I dance, I dance for Jesus, and that's the only reason I dance and therefore when I choreograph, the same thing applies. She thought that was awesome. I think it's awesome too. 

For One Glorious Monday

Today was definitely Monday. It was everything a stereotypical Monday could possibly be. I felt lethargic, and classes offered a lot of down time which did not aid in my efforts to stay awake. But I had some great ballet successes today, which I always enjoy celebrating. Ballet doesn't pay off often, but when it does it's awesome.

1. Quadruple pirouette. En dehors (harder). This means I pushed off the ground, spun around on my toes 4 times, then landed. It was super awesome. Everyone's reaction was, "Do it again!" My reaction was, "Psh. No quit whilst ahead." I let it be that one glorious pirouette.
2. Penche. I wasn't looking, so I can't know for sure, but it felt awesome. The perfect penche is a split, standing on one foot. So you stand on one foot, lift one leg behind you to 90 degrees, then tilt until your legs form a full split. The challenge in this is primarily balance, and I felt kind of great for one glorious penche.
3. Grande Rond de Jambe Super Adage. The idea is that you stand on one foot, lift the other to at least 90 degrees (ideally higher), in front of you, then you super slowly carry it around so that it ends up behind you. The hardest part is arguably the position to the side, as you have a ton of leg weight really far away from your center of gravity. And in this particular combination we had to hold to the side for a really long time. The danger is that you use your tiny hip flexor to lift your entire leg, which leads to really terrible issues with your hips and back, so I've been working really really really hard on using the proper muscles to hold that leg to the side. And for one glorious 4 count in adage music, I held my leg really high and turned out, I really felt all the muscles that were supposed to work doing their job, and I didn't feel the hip flexor grabbing at all, and that leg felt absolutely weightless. It was amazing.


That's basically how my Monday went today. In individual glorious moments. Like the glorious moment I realized that "Casa Blanca" meant, THE White House, not just some old house that happened to be white. Or when there wasn't a line to heat up my leftover pasta. Or when I found 45 calorie chocolate ice cream bars at Giant that didn't even have any artificial sweeteners or anything bad in them. Or the two epic Doctor Who moments of running and arriving just in time to catch first the bus, then the metro.

I definitely did a lot of half-sleeping today, but in the moments I was fully awake, my day was pretty awesome. Now off to bed so that hopefully I can be awake for more sustained glorious moments tomorrow.

Week Three, Here I Come

I left off yesterday after my visit to Georgetown, but my day did not end there. I metro-ed out to Vienna around 4 to go spend the night at the Snyder's. We had a very lovely dinner, watched a movie, and I mended some pointe shoes. It was nice to be "in a family" again with squabbling siblings and sarcastic comments across the dinner table and that wonderful awkward feeling watching certain scenes of a modern movie together. Hah, boy do I miss home. No, but really it was very nice. All of the Snyder's are incredibly friendly and I felt right at home. It was a really delightful and relaxing evening (with some really yummy food, did I mention?)

Then, I started today with a lovely breakfast at the Snyder's house then went with Ms. Melanie to Fairfax Community Church where we met the Neffs (minus Joe who's on a mission trip to Toronto, lucky boy). Church was lovely--it was nice to know most of the songs, though they played them at just slightly different tempos. Approximately a half beat of difference. Which was super discombobulating for me, but I did at least know and enjoy the words. And the little bit of my dad in me (okay, I know it's really a lot of my dad in me...) always appreciates seeing a representation of both genders participating in the leadership of the service, but I was reminded of how truly great my mom's stage presence is when she speaks, though I guess I could be pretty biased. Side note: I do miss them pretty considerably. Anywho.

After church we had a nice lunch at an Irish Pub. That's right we went to a pub after church, but that's not nearly as sacrilegious as the show we saw afterwards. The Neffs took me to see a high school production of "The Producers". Wow. I think Aunt Mona said it best: "It was one of those shows where you're embarrassed to say you like it, but it was really good." And it was certainly impressive for a high school production.

Then I came home, had some good leftovers, went and grabbed some bananas from Giant, did my laundry, turned in my project online, emailed a teacher about summer assignments, watched an old Steve Martin movie, and mentally prepped for another week of some intense ballet. My toes are looking...I don't have to wear band-aids to cover my toes. My muscles are pretty okay (except the right side of my ribs. Weird.), I've only got one more unit in my online computer course, and I've got a lot of Spanish to keep practicing.

Week three, here I come.

Georgetown University

I had a lovely tour this morning of Georgetown University with a business professor there who goes to church with Aunt Janet. I absolutely loved the campus. It was a really interesting blend of old architecture with modern renovations and an almost rural feel in the middle of a big city. It reminded me a little of Vanderbilt, but I like DC much better than Nashville, and Georgetown was much quieter and had some really spectacular views of the Washington Monument, the Capital, the Pentagon, and the Potomac. Even in the summer when school isn't in session, the diversity so typical of DC was apparent on the Georgetown Campus. I definitely got the sense of it being a highly liberal arts school and definitely pretty elitist. 

Class size is never above about 60 in the undergraduate program and is typically smaller in biology/science majors. And therein lies my one biggest hesitation about Georgetown. While certainly the place to be if you want to be connected in foreign services, politics, or pretty much anything in the humanities, you can't get much better. The location is ideal for international affairs studies, and the alumni is certainly impressive. For a biology/physics student, however, while I'm sure the classes are as good as anywhere else, it may not be quite worth the tuition. Especially not for the ballerina. They did, however, have a recently updated science building that was quite nice and I'm sure the labs were state of the art. I'll definitely look into the science program at Georgetown, but I'm not holding high hopes.

Still, it was really nice to see that kind of Campus. I definitely like the urban, but secluded, layout and there is something very alluring about being in a city where so much is happening all the time. 

I asked several questions about the admissions process, and the professor wasn't really sure about too much in terms of the undergrad program as his focus tends to be with the graduate students. His belief was that test scores and GPA, naturally, need to be high, but that higher quality schools are really looking for well-rounded people. Georgetown's philosophy, from what I understand, is that the undergraduate program is trying to create good citizens, while the graduate program is trying to create good professionals. Another interesting point the professor made was that he recommends getting an education at many different schools. That is to say, don't get your bachelors and masters from the same school. The difference in faculty and course material between schools is much greater than it is between two levels of education at the same university. But for me, step one is figuring out just where to do an undergraduate degree. Okay really, step one is taking these SATs and seeing what bracket of schools I can apply to, then I need to figure out what I want to study, then figure out where, all the while graduating high school and seeing where this dance thing takes me.

It's kind of overwhelming the amount of choices I've got coming in the next few years. Not looking forward to all of them, but definitely looking forward to seeing where they take me. But I know I've got some pretty great resources on my side here. I've got educated and involved parents who want me to get the best education I can and will support me through pretty much any choice I make, but mostly right now, I'm grateful for a God who I believe has plans for my life that surpass anything I can imagine. Which is pretty cool, because I can imagine some pretty awesome stuff. 

So basically, I'd say the tour left me feeling anxious. Anxiety is, in my humble opinion, a mixture of excitement and nervousness. I'm absolutely excited about the possibilities of the coming years, but the control freak in me is always nervous about the unknown. 

?Que has aprendido este semana?

Pues, yo he aprendido mucho este semana. Yo aprendí mucho ballet, y también yo he practicado mucho español. Ahora estoy contenta pero estoy cansada también.

Most exciting news of the day: I learned that my Spanish friend (From Spain) takes my bus every morning and afternoon. She had been taking a totally different route for the first week or so, but if I time my mornings a little differently, I can ride with her to and from the studio, which will be great! I've much enjoyed working on my Spanish with her. It's a constant struggle, but I'm learning to manage a conversation pretty well, and I'm understanding more and more of what she says. I've quite enjoyed getting to know her. Basic Spanish 1 stuff finally coming into play. "Como se llama tu hermano?" or "Cuantos años tienes?" make pretty good conversation starters. We also play the me duele(n)________ game. Where I say "me duele" then point to a body part and she tells me what it is and I try to figure out how to pronounce it.

I've got a pretty packed weekend, but for now I'm going to just take care of my feet/legs, so that I heal up over the weekend, watch some doctor who, do some homework, and eat some Ben and Jerry's ice cream. And for my father, who needs some public proclamation of affection: Yes, I do miss my family very much. Especially my goober father. But between texting and facetime, any "homesickness" I've experienced has not even remotely become hindering. I'm proud (well mostly grateful) that I've made it injury-free for two weeks, and I pray that this remains the same for the next half of my stay here.

And even though I'm technically by myself for the weekend (as Aunt Janet is in Michigan) I do not in any sense feel alone. I am now more sure than ever that I am blessed beyond comprehension in the quality and quantity of good friends and family both near and far. My heart, my soul, and (most of my body) are all quite content.

Bam. Surprise.

My day began with several unexpected surprises. First, I got to the bus station right as my bus was pulling out, meaning I'd have to wait a whole 12 minutes standing awkwardly alone at the bus stop. Then I turned around and, bam, right there was a Starbucks. So then I could just wait in line for a few minutes, then at least have something to do while I waited for the bus. Then I looked around again, and, bam, there was my Spanish speaking friend, waiting for the bus too. She is never at that stop, but for some reason (that she explained too quickly for me to catch), had to take the same one as me today. So then I had a great conversation with her on the bus ride home. She taught me a swear word in Spanish. (That isn't bad in Spain, but apparently is in the Dominican Republic...) And I got to learn more about her and where she lives. It was great fun.

Then I had ballet, video analysis, hip hop, and finally contemporary. Video analysis was pretty encouraging, I learned how to pretend to have "swag" in hip hop, and had some great Jesus moments in contemporary. Dancing with Jesus is the best. And then you get brownie points with the teacher for showing "artistry".

My body is pretty sore--I need to ice well tonight, and my blisters aren't exactly healing, but they aren't getting worse. The weekend should be good for them. I stopped taking my cough medicine because I swear it was making my cough way worse than it was. Sure enough, I'm doing much better just taking a decongestant in the morning. Weird. Allergies are pretty common up here right now, though.

Also, Aunt Janet left for a business trip, so I've got the house to myself for the week. I'll be staying at people's houses/spending weekend days with several family friends and I certainly don't mind the alone time on after dance. Ms. Introvert over here is totally content microwaving leftovers and watching ballets and old doctor whos. Life is good, God is good, and I'm satisfied.

I Will Always be Joyful

Had a pretty nice day. I'm pretty sore, and my cough is getting worse (though I'm faithfully taking medicine), but I had my favorite teacher (one of them) for ballet today, and now he knows my name and calls my by that rather than "Smiley." Artistic Director was again very encouraging, and one of the girls made my day by asking if I plan on going professional.

Partnering today was great--we did lifts/jumps, which was fun, but means I'll be sore again tomorrow. Again, I was hugely impressed. I partnered with a man at least my dad's age, and in no better shape (probably worse, to be honest), and he lifted me really well. Like picked me up and then just carried me off the stage rather then putting me down and letting me run off. Just goes to show how much of partnering is really timing and technique not just brute strength of the guy. My toes fared much better today and only look as bad as they did yesterday (not any worse!) I figured out some great ways to prep my toes to really reduce both the stabbing blister pain, and the dull, muscle achey pain. It was awesome.

On the spiritual front, one girl commented to me today, "You're always smiling." The implication was, "How can you still be smiling after a combination that hurt so much." And my response was, "Well, I smile because I'm happy.", but it made me think of my bible reading I did on the bus this morning that explains pretty well why I can always have joy:

Psalms 16:11 "You have shown me the path to life, and you make me glad by being near to me. Sitting at your right side, I will always be joyful."

Nothin' Special

My toes hurt, (shredded a blister on my big toe), muscles hurt, had a pretty good day. Favorite teacher for ballet. Learned a great variation. Killed my toes. Like brutally murdered them. So bought some good toe protecter stuff and also got my inhaler and some cough meds for my cough. I came home, soaked my feet, stretched really well, ice massaged everything, doctored up my toes, had a nice dinner with Aunt Janet,  got everything ready for tomorrow and now I'm just going to relax. I'm understanding more and more Spanish every day and C has set out to rid me of my weird Spaniard accent.

Song lyric for the day is:

Nothin' special, I'll take what you've got and be satisified. No need to be greedy or dignified, all I need is you here by my side (bam wham wham) nothin' special for me.

It Is Well

I had a really marvelous day. It was one of those days where I just felt in love with Jesus. Some days I have to remind myself of that, but it was really just pouring out of me today. In ballet that manifests as it being one of those days where I really didn't care if it was a turning day or not, I just truly enjoy a delightful time dancing with Jesus. Today he was just reminding me, "Yeah, I'm still here" and I was mainly just telling him how much I love having him around. Ballet class itself was very fun--dancey, the teacher wanted expression (which is easy when you're dancing with Jesus--he just makes me smile sometimes), and very helpful.

We learned a lovely piece from Giselle in Variation and I was surprised by how much of it I could do. Hip hop was actually very fun as well--the teacher went slowly and showed us the technique of how to be "groovy". I actually really enjoyed it. Then we had Ballet History which didn't require dancing so was relaxing and we got some good laughs.

The big drama of the day was that the highest level (Diamond), was split into two groups (Diamond A and B). So the lower group (Diamond A) had several upset persons, but it was quite pleasurable in Diamond B--smaller class size and a harder class with LOTS of much-appreciated corrections. I also talked to the artistic director after she watched our class do the Giselle variation. She was very encouraging and kind, and it was fun to tell her that I was from Ms. Cynthia's studio.

My cough was better today, as I'm staying on top of taking decongestants. Fun fact: all the other "foreigners" (as in A and C) were also having cough fits over the weekend, so we've determined it must be some plant blooming that we're not used to. My toes are meh-- 1 new blister today and 2 broken/bruised big toenails (small cracks, but still painful.) My muscles feel pretty good and I can walk like a human still, but we'll see how I feel in the morning. Relaxing at home tonight with Aunt Janet, so I'll probably eat some really tasty food, and maybe read some of my book. Life is good.

CoughCoughNiceDayCoughCough

So I have a cough. Not really just a cough. But my cough. And it's back. Didn't sleep super well last night (I was up coughing), but I did get to sleep in.  Then tried (mildly successfully) to not cough all through church. Then had some yummy mexican food, did my homework for my computer class, then was picked up by Katie (friend of my parents) to go to the National Gallery of Art to see a ballet russes exhibit. Had a nice time visiting with her, and the exhibit was stunning. The era of the ballet russes was super original and it was fascinating to see the different costumes and styles of ballet typical of the russes. You can visit http://www.nga.gov/content/ngaweb/exhibitions/2013/diaghilev.html to see some of the stuff. It was pretty interesting. Unfortunately, while we were watching a documentary in the exhibit (in a nice, quite room), I had a coughing fit. I tried to suppress my coughs which only made me feel sick and I had to run out of the exhibit. That was exciting. So then Katie and I walked back, grabbed some decongestants and cough drops.

Minus the incessant coughing, it's been a nice and relaxing day and I'm ready to begin week two!

It's Free in DC

I had a lovely day today. I slept in, (til 8:30ish), had a nice Einstein bagel for breakfast, took my time getting ready, youtubed some ballet, left the house at 12:30 and then my day really began.

Step one: Walk to Virginia Square (about 5 blocks away)
Step two: Metro out to Foggy Bottom (about 4 stops west)
Step three: Meet the lovely, Sara Kellenberg, outside the metro
Step four: Walk up to Georgetown, tour a little/try decide on where to eat lunch
Step five: Take a bus for about 20 minutes up a ginormous hill, past a huge cathedral, and to our chosen lunch spot.
Step six: Eat way too much delicious Mediterranean food at a "Mediterranean Chipotle" style restaurant (Basically a build-your-own salad/pita bowl thing.) It was quite tasty
Step seven: Walk a few blocks to the metro
Step eight: Metro up to the zoo stop
Step nine: Walk a half mile to the zoo
Step ten: Be amazed that it costs literally nothing to enter the zoo. Like it's completely free. My mind is still blown
Step eleven: Visit the animals. No giraffes, which I do find inexcusable, but there were giant pandas, so that was pretty okay.
Step twelve: Get overpriced frozen lemonade, but I was willing to pay that because, hello, entrance was free...and it was hot outside.
Step thirteen: Walk the half mile back to the metro, realize the lemonade had to be the grossest thing you've ever tasted as it was super sugary and processed and nasty. But then it was still hot outside, and the lemonade was still cold so continue to eat it anyways
Step fourteen: Metro to metro center and change from the red line to the orange line
Step fifteen: Catch the orange line back to Virginia Square
Step sixteen: Walk the last few blocks home.

I got home, put my feet up, then Aunt Janet and I went to El Pollo Rico for dinner, and I tormented my dad with pictures of his favorite restaurant. Then we ran to target to grab some things I'll need for the week--most notably my "Swag" clothes for hip hop. Dear me. Then home again to Google Hangout with my sweet sister and mother for a few hours.

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I'm not really the type to get homesick, but today I am extremely grateful for my family and would love to be able to laugh at them to their faces rather then via text. I've been realizing again how blessed I am to have parents that can make me laugh out loud from 400 miles away and will talk with me for hours just catching up on the past week. I'm also grateful for a sister who sends me pictures of completed puzzles along with texts of "I miss you", and even for my goober brother who sends me pictures of funny comics he finds on the webernet. You know you've been raised well when you can come and live without your family in the nation's capital for a month, and when you pass McKinley Street, even without your daddy there, your first thought is still in a twangy, bluegrassy tune, "McKinley hollered, McKinley squalled, Doc said McKinley I can't find the ball, you're bound to dieeeee, you're bound to die."

Remembering Why

Einstein was really onto something with that theory of relativity. Each class has felt forever long, each day moved so incredibly slowly, yet this whole week seems to have passed in a blur. Today itself was pretty good. My body is feeling great (comparatively), my heart is happy, and my weekend is here. As I was thinking back on this past week, it occurred to me that I remember being told by a dance teacher sometime that you don't remember the pain of dancing, you just remember the fun parts. Alas, that has not been true for me. One of my first memories that comes to me when I think of the intensive last year was pouring alcohol on my blisters. I can't forget that kind of pain.

As I look back on this week, I remember a lot of pain--legs shaking uncontrollably, feeling my toenails bruising, blisters popping, muscles aching, headaches from the weight of my cinnamon bun, and indentations from tying my ribbons to tightly. I also remember the fun parts--the feeling of weightlessness in a grandjete, landing that perfect double that had a nice balance at the end, and laughing at mistranslations/mispronunciations.

But I absolutely do remember the pain, and I think it's good that I do. Pain makes you consider carefully the actions that are causing so much hurt. If it hurts, you have to think, at some point, "Is it worth it?" Thus, this week I've asked myself, "Is ballet worth the pain?"

No.

Ballet is absolutely not worth the pain it requires. I cannot comprehend why people can push themselves through so much, to just walk away with feeling weightless, or balancing for a long time. There are plenty of other ways to experience weightlessness/balance without putting yourself through the sacrifice ballet requires.

Obviously, however, if ballet itself isn't worth the pain, then there must be something else that makes this sort of insanity worth it. For some, I suppose, it's self-expression or freedom that makes ballet worth it to them, but that really doesn't cut it for me. I can express myself many ways that involve considerably less pain than ballet.

Thus I conclude, ballet itself is absolutely not worth the pain, but my relationship with Jesus absolutely is. And I experience him most intimately when I dance, thus the pain of ballet is worth the enhancement and personalization of my relationship with Jesus. And seriously, the hurt my toes feel is absolutely nothing in comparison to the pain he willingly underwent so that he could be near to me. I can't even call it meeting him half-way--I know I could never do that. But ballet does allow me to reach up to him, and he infallibly reaches down to lift me up and remind me of his unconditional love. Everyday, when I walk into class and put on those pointe shoes and think, "Why do I do this?", I can remember, "Oh yeah. I do this because I am closest to my God when I'm dancing." And that's worth anything.

This past week in particular, I've been blown away by his faithfulness. It shouldn't be a shock anymore, but I am still amazed in all the ways he's provided for me. He's protected my body, provided great friends to laugh and enjoy spending time with, he's made sure I've had rides home when I need them, helped me find things in a frantic search, he's comforted me daily, and given me strength. And to think I was worried that this week would be too much for me to handle. Psh. I know, as he's proven time and time again, I know I can do all things through Christ, who gives me strength.



This is a lyric from a dance I did a few years ago, and this verse has been playing through my head all week as it has been so incredibly true:
I can't remember a trial or a pain, he did not recycle to bring me gain. I can't remember a single regret in serving God only and trusting his hand. All I have need of, his hands will provide. He's always been faithful to me. 

I Love Ballet, I Love Ballet, I Love Ballet....

Today was interesting. Okay not really. It was pretty boring actually. Ballet class was forever long (2.5 hours) and we only spent the last 15 minutes doing "the fun stuff", as in dance-y combinations across the floor with lots of jumps and fun things. Variation was with my favorite teacher, but was only 45 minutes long, and my toes hurt a lot and my shoes were pretty dead by that point. (No pun intended). Then we had contemporary, which I like. Generally, it's very dance-y and dramatic, but the combo we did started on the floor. As in laying down, on your back for the first 20 seconds with small, isolated movements. Really hard to not fall asleep. Then we had a seminar on nutrition which was fine. I learned some newish things, like it's better to drink ice cold water because it is emptied faster from your stomach so you can drink more, but other than that it was pretty basic stuff. AP Bio pretty much covered it. (Unsaturated fats good, Saturated fats bad; fats stay longer, sugar isn't harmful in small quantities, but it isn't necessary, Diet products are evil etc.)

If you can't tell from my writing, I'm super tired. Just every muscle and joint and even my brain is just moving slowly today. I'm not in as much pain as I was; I can walk like a human being again. My toes, however are in some pretty intense pain.

Okay so yeah. This is hard. But I'm going to try to think positively here, so here' a list of some the good things that happened today:

1. The little toe saver things I bought from CVS that go over blisters did really reduce the sharp, blister popping kind of pain so there was only achey muscle and bruised toenail pain.
2. I'm getting more comfortable with my Spanish and with my Spanish speaking friends.
3. My friend from Spain did try a Pop Tart today, though she still refused humus.
4. I accidentally swore in Spanish. I was actually talking a pointe shoe in English, trying to break the shank of the shoe to better support A's foot (the shoe was not being cooperative), but I sort of mumbled in English and it sounded like I was swearing in Spanish. It initiated quite the laugh in my Spanish friends and lots of "Where did you learn that?!" and me being all confused as to what was possibly wrong with saying, "Come on, you" to the pointe shoe. It was great.
5. Found out there IS microwave at the studio that I can use so I can take leftovers (yum.)
6. I did not have to take the bus because I was offered a ride. That was super fantastic.
7. Only had to wait 45 seconds for the bus to pick me up to take me to the studio this morning. That was also really great.
8. I'm in considerably less pain in most of my skeletal muscles than I have been. Or at least I've grown accustomed to it.


So see, not an entirely terrible day. But I do definitely need sleep and a weekend. 5 more classes until I can let myself heal a bit.

Some days, like today, I have to intentionally remind myself: "I love ballet, I love ballet, I love ballet..." Because really, I know that I do, and I know there's not many other places I'd rather be right now. (Maybe somewhere in Canada, but that's beside the point). I do love ballet. I love feeling like I'm flying and floating and falling. Mostly, I love what I experience of Jesus through ballet.  But just like anything in this world, ballet itself is imperfect, and some days it's just hard to love. And it's on days like today that I'm most grateful for a God who is constant and unchanging and who loves me through all my days:  the good turning days, the bad balance days, and even the ugly arabesque days.

Here's my adaptation of a saying I've known since before I can remember, and my anthem for the day:

 I can trust that God loves me, no matter what.

Hump Day

Wednesday is Hump Day. If the work week is like a mountain, with Monday being the start of the trail at one base of the mountain, and Friday is the end of the trail at the other base, then Wednesday is the day you reach the pinnacle. That is to say, you make it over the hump of the mountain. It's all downhill from here, right?

As far as Hump Days go, this one was pretty easy. Maybe I just thought it was easy because I was mentally prepared for a much harder day. Today was all ballet. Ballet class, pointe class, floor barre, variation and partnering. That's a lot of ballet even for this ballerina. But ballet class was relatively simple, but still a good workout. Pointe was dreadful, but just because my toes were all bruised and achey from yesterday. Floor barre was much easier than anticipated, but still super helpful and relaxing--I almost fell asleep mid-stretch. Variation was a lot of cardio, but it wasn't on pointe which was an unexpected blessing. And partnering was fantastic. They brought in 4 guys, all over 30, but most closer to 50. So it felt like partnering with your dad or grandpa even. My partner was very friendly and helpful as he offered a lot of corrections and advice. I learned a lot about the simple technique of partnering, so that was great.

Today was also highly successful on the making friends front. The group I'm sort of "in" has some serious language barriers. There's me, who is willing to speak my terribly broken Spanish, and is fluent in English. Another girl (we'll call her H), who doesn't speak much Spanish willingly, though she tried a little more today. Another (we'll call her C), who is nearly perfectly bilingual, with fluent Spanish and is very intelligible in English, and another girl (calling her A) who speaks beautiful Spanish, and is hesitant to try English.

So conversations had been awkward as someone was always left out. So I just said today that whatever we say in any language needs to be translated so everyone is in the loop. And it worked great. We had a fantastic time learning new vocabulary in each language and comparing differences in English they learn in school (British english) to American English, and the differences between Spanish spoken in Spain versus the Dominican Republic.

Overall it was a pretty good day, but I'm still really tired. Prayers for my feet are welcome, and really for my body in general. I've just got to survive 2 more days and then a much needed time of rest is mine. Puedo hacerlo.

Take Two

Second day's a killer. Oh my gracious. I'm already sore and tired, and then we had a pretty tough ballet class for 3 hours, then a 30 minute break, then another hour and a half. Then jazz. Then modern. Then taking the wrong bus. Then walking up a really huge hill to catch the next bus. Then catching the next (correct bus). Then taking the metro one station because you're too tired to walk. Then stopping by starbucks for some motivation to walk the last 3 blocks to my house.

I'm tired.

But wow, today was a great day. I was hugely encouraged especially by my ballet teacher and also by other students. My ballet teacher commented on my "artistry" during few dance-y combinations. What I can't get over is that the combinations she appreciated my "artistry" were definitely the combinations I felt I was most worshipful. The grand allegro (big jumps) was very flow-y and I had a marvelous time jumping and spinning with Jesus. I was just doing my leaps as he was holding me up and loving every moment of it and my teacher noticed and called it "artistry". Which in the dance world is a good characteristic to have. I'm absolutely flabbergasted that worshiping actually enhances my value as a dancer in the secular world. Jesus is so cool like that.


Prayer requests:
Strength, endurance, TOES, avoiding injury, my muscles and tendons and joints in general.
That I grow as a dancer and also as an independent person (safety and wisdom in transportation/city life)
but mostly,
Opportunities to share why I dance and what it means to dance for and with Jesus, and the wisdom and words to express my beliefs appropriately and tastefully.

Fun Anecdote:
I have a friend at the studio from Spain, and she only speaks Spanish. At lunch she asked me what it was I was eating. And I was speechless. I was eating humus, but how do you explain humus in English, let alone try to explain it in Spanish? She asked is it sweet or salty, and I was still speechless. I told her it's not really either but it's still good. Apparently I did not, in my broken Spanish, convince her it was "muy rico" as she strongly declined my offer for her to try some. I probably shouldn't be a salesperson. In any language.

Some Statistics:

Blister count: 4 (one popped, three nicely juicy, two of those on one toe)
Percentage of muscles in the body that hurt: roughly 97% (The other 3 percent are smooth muscles like the heart and stomach)
Percentage of skeletal muscles that ache: 99.9%
Number of hairnets used: 2
Number of bobby pins used: 43

First Day

The Saga of My First Day:

8:45 am: I was dropped off at the bus station and began the arduous wait of standing awkwardly in the way for a while.
9:15 am: I finally got on a bus, prayed it was the correct one, and set out towards Ballet Nova. My nerves were pretty bad--not knowing anything about what the next hour would hold tends to do that to me--so I pulled out my iPhone, hid it behind my lunch box, and just read from the New Testament. Remarkably, I did not get motion sick, and non-remarkably, reading the words of Jesus calmed me just enough to walk steadily again.
9:30 am: I walked into the studio and waited. No signs, nobody available to assist me, nobody offering to show me where to go, so I waited. And waited. Eventually I was able to talk to the receptionist and she started to take me to the dressing room when the artistic director interceded and showed me herself. I walked into the dressing room unnoticed, or if noticed then ignored, and tried to figure out what was going on--if I needed flat shoes, pointe shoes etc. A few minutes later a girl walked in who looked what I imagine I did: confused, nervous, and alone. So I walked over to her and just asked if she was new too, and we both sighed of relief to not be the only ones terribly out of place. It turns out there are roughly 6 dancers from different studios. Their hometowns range from Fairfax, Va, to Columbia, SC (me), to the Dominican Republic, to Spain. And yes, the latter two speak amazing Spanish. I will definitely be talking to them a lot, as one is bilingual and willing to talk in either language, and the other doesn't speak very much English, so if I can talk to her that would be super great for both of us. Because, hello. I love Spanish and am desperate to practice so yay! Fun fact: When I was praying for this trip, I threw in as a little bonus request, "Oh and I'd be great if there is a person who spoke Spanish and would be willing to help me." I asked for one, he gave me two. God is good.
10:00 am: We had a meeting where people were introduced and the artistic director just gave some general business stuff.
10:30 am: Ballet class. I felt totally comfortable in the class, definitely not out of my league, but not below it either. There were between 15 and 20 girls in the class, which is a little large, but not bad. The teacher was lovely and gave many helpful corrections. My poor body was sweating and shaking like you would not believe, though.
12:00 (ish): We went right into pointe class. My feet were already dying and pointe did not feel good, but does it ever? Same teacher and it was pretty basic stuff, but still helpful
12:45: Lunch! Got to talk to some of the girls from the studio and it was fun to learn about how (differently) their studio is run. I love hearing about different methods of organizing studios, and the pros and cons of each
1:15: Variation--we learned a bit from the ballet Giselle, which has to be the most balletish ballet of all times. We learned about 4 of the variations of the Ghost Queen who has girls who died of broken hearts torment their boyfriends who broke their hearts by making the guys dance to death. (It's ballet...)
2:15 Ballet history seminar was really interesting, the teacher was funny and made the class pretty interactive. Plus it's information I'm so ignorant of but so necessary in my career as a dancer. I quite enjoyed it.
3:30: Hip hop. I'm leaving it at that.
4:30: Went and waited in the sun for the bus which arrived about 20 minutes later, managed to not pass out of exhaustion on the bus for 15 minutes, then walked the 15 minutes back to my Aunt's house (figured out how to do that all on my own).

Now to stretch, ice, and mentally prepare for tomorrow. And I think we're going to get some great Thai food tonight. It's been a fantastic day overall, and I think it's going to be a great 4 weeks.

First Impressions

Talking about first impressions is cliched, I know. I do, however, think it's important to address these first impressions because it makes you realize what you value, or what you look for first. It doesn't matter so much if my first impressions are correct or not, it matters that I know what I care about. So here's a not-so-brief analysis of my first impressions from this first half-week in D.C.

First impressions of the city: Truly multicultural. Wow. It's amazing. Everywhere you go there's people of every nationality, speaking their native languages, dressed in anything from traditional Indian-wear to girls with burkas under their red, white, and blue plastic hats. This is what all of America should be like--a true melting pot and proud of it.

First impression of the transportation: Surprisingly clean. We actually saw a guy going up and down the escalators to the metro, cleaning the handrails and the silver space between them. It's quite nice. There are maybe 2 more lines here than in Toronto, so it's not terribly confusing and relatively easy to memorize, especially when all the stops I need will be basically on two lines.
              Impression after using transportation: Not too bad. Could be better organized, and the resources they provide to tourists need to be updated, but everyone in the metro (security, workers, even natives of the city) is very friendly and eager to help. No one looks super sketchy while you're riding and asking for help is easy.

First impression of the studio: It's absolutely gorgeous. Spacious rooms and changing areas...it's beautiful. Haven't been terribly impressed by the organization and communication of the studio, so I'm being stretched to "go with the flow", which is a bit stressful for me. More analysis of the studio to come once I actually start dancing.

First impression of the people: So far I've really only met people who my parents knew when they lived here. But everyone I've met is very friendly and welcoming. Only a few awkward instances of "Do you remember me?" and me honestly not remembering at all. Overall, they're clever and funny, I can tell why my parents love these people and why these people can put up with my parents. My Aunt Janet (not biologically related, but may as well be) is absolutely wonderful, and I think we'll get along quite well for the next month. (I'm living with her during my stay in Washington). The Snyders, Neffs, and Randolphs, have all been extremely kind and I feel quite safe in that there are so many people willing to come pick me up or have me over when needed.

First impression of the climate: I did not leave SC for this. This heat and humidity is absolutely not okay. Bleh. And here you have to walk around and do stuff outside, which is miserable. At home, I only had to be outside long enough to get in the car, but here you need to walk to the metro, which isn't over-airconditioned. But this weather shouldn't last long, or so I hope.

So there's my raw, qualitative data, and here's my analysis:
               In a city, I value cleanliness, organization, friendliness, and diversity. The cleanliness, I think, is really just something anyone values--who likes to live in a dirty city where everyone's smoking or throwing trash on the ground? I probably value organization because of who I am--I like things to be logical. Friendliness and diversity I probably value because of South Carolina. Friendliness is common in the south, though I do feel it's pretty fake sometimes. Diversity I value because South Carolina is so lacking of it. Everyone merges to a common culture, and you just don't see the variety of backgrounds in the quantities expressed in D.C.. In studios, I love space--wide floors, high ceilings--it's just easier to dance when you don't worry about traveling too much, but I also value organization and communication because they offer a sense of security, especially when you're coming to a new place. In people, I appreciate humor and wit, which is found in abundance in this circle of friends.

So what does it matter that I know I value these things?

Well, college is coming relatively soon, and I need to be thinking about the places I want to live and the people I want to be around. Already, in 4 days, I've learned that I want to live in a city that has many cultures well-represented, that is clean and organized with well-designed public transportation, and I want to have (and keep my) clever friends that 15 years after I move away, I can sit around a dinner table and pick up right where you left off.

These past 4 days, I've been learning a lot about my birth-town, and the people who shaped who my parents are and who I am today. These past 4 days have validated the part of 2 Timothy 3:15: "You know they are true, because you can trust those who taught you." So incredibly true in my life. Thank you, Paul for your wise teachings, and also a thank you to my parents, Ms. Cynthia and my other beloved ballet teachers, cabin crew, and so many others I know I can trust and hold onto the things you've all taught me so I can go and uphold my faith on my own.

Explanation

I'm an introvert. Being with people makes me tired, and I thrive when I'm by myself. By all measures, I'm just a highly socialized introvert, except in one way--I have to process things out loud, or by writing them out. Thus this blog has been created. Not for you, but for me. So that I can process and remember the things I learn in my stay in Washington D.C. this summer. But because this blog is online where you can see it, I'll offer some background information:

What I'm basically doing in D.C.: I'm taking an intensive at a respected studio for 4 weeks. This requires a lot of strength and endurance physically, but also emotionally and spiritually. I'm far away from home and dancing in a secular environment where my faith and morals are bound to be tested in some shape or form. 

Name of this site: 2timestimpi is my nerdy way of citing the verse in 2nd Timothy 3:14-15: "But you must remain faithful to the things you have been taught. You know they are true, for you know you can trust those who taught you. You have been taught the Holy Scriptures from childhood, and they have given you the wisdom to receive the salvation that comes by trusting in Christ Jesus." 

    This is my "lifeverse" maybe not forever, but definitely for this summer. Paul basically sums up my challenge for this summer--remember what I believe and to not be shaken from it.

So there's just a little background information that may be helpful in giving some context of what I'm here to do. I'll post more about the day to day happenings of the intensive and how I'm growing and being challenged physically, spiritually, and emotionally.