Admission

Dear Ms. Hawkins,
It is my pleasure to inform you that you have been admitted unconditionally to the Master of Education, Elementary Education program at East Tennessee State University for the Fall 2010 term.

That is the beginning of the letter that came today. After a week of questioning whether I am doing the right thing, I see it as my own personal letter from God. I know that sounds right, but make no mistake: It's hard. This has been the toughest thing that I have done in a long time. In the past, adapting and changing has not been my one of my strengths. Today, a new future is before me. One that is blessed and anointed by my Lord, Jesus Christ. It might not be easy, but it will be the most perfect one for me.

Ever Learning. Ever Growing.

Today was my first day for summer school. I am taking a math class. I have not been overly excited as math is not my favorite subject. I believe it is something you either love or hate/scared of. I have never really liked math. I come from a family of engineers and I have always been the oddball. (in more ways than one)

I am excited to be back in school and back to learning. In reading the first chapter of my math book, there was a teacher who put the following phrase up in her class: "Ever Learning. Ever Growing." When a student was asked what that meant, he replied, "We're never finished with our work here. There is always something else to learn." I LOVE THAT! I really believe that is one of the reasons why I have enjoyed returning to school so much. The more I know, the more I know that I don't know it all and the more I want to know. I want to be ever learning, ever growing.

Chimney Top

A couple of weeks ago, I hiked up Chimney Top Mountain in the Smokey Mtns. with Gary and some friends. The hike was only a few miles so I hardly gave it any thought when asked if I wanted to go. (Hey! Sure, I'll go. I like nature.) I was not really prepared for what I encountered. It ended up being a pretty strenuous hike. Not only was it an extremely steep climb but I also had to constantly watch my footing due to the roots and uneven path. At one point, I made a statement that I was going to stop looking up because I was just getting discouraged: the climb seemed never-ending.

On my morning walk today, God reminded me of that hike and that statement. There were two things that impressed me most about the entire experience. (1) It really matters who I surround myself with. On that hike, we all wanted to finish that crazy climb and finish it together. If one of us needed a break, we would take it. We cracked jokes, laughed and just enjoyed achieving it together. Despite how hard that climb was and how much I sweated and how bad I smelled, I had the best time because of the people I was with. (2) I should not become so focused on the step right in front of me. If I want to enjoy the beauty of my surroundings then I need to pick my eyes up. It doesn't sound so difficult, does it? Well, I did that on my walk today. I realized how often I walk with my eyes focused on the ground. Ugh!!! I started getting mad at myself because no matter how great the view was, my gaze automatically kept drifting down. Now, not only do my neighbors think I'm a little coo-coo because I yell at myself when I walk, I also recognize maybe I need more practice on this looking up stuff.