journey to Virginia

This weekend my life took an exciting detour... all the way to Virginia. I drove a few of my friends from GCC to Virginia to do some skiing. It was about a 6 hour drive, so we left Friday afternoon, spent the night, skied the next day, then drove back today (Sunday). On the way back, we took the "scenic route"- so, our drive was about 8 hours (including several cool stops). All in all, it was awesome. The people I went with were really cool, and I am looking forward to forging better friendships with them. We stayed with the ski-patrol at the mountain, and they were all really nice.... So, I said all that to say this. Here is what I learned from my road-trip:

1) My body was made to work. I cannot sleep properly, and still have a functional, enjoyable day unless I work my butt off during the day. It is just the way it is.

2) Roadtrips with friends are amazing. Not only are they exciting, but they teach you so much about a person. It is incredible what 8 hours in a car with someone will teach you. ( All in all, I found out my friends from GCC were pretty great, just btw )

3) The best sanctuary made for the worship is nature. Roadtrips allow you to put life in such perspective. You get to see how big the world is, and how ordered God has your life.

4) People love to laugh, and love to tell stories. It is pretty much what gets us through the days. I am not sure why this is, but it makes sense why the bible is in story format. As for the laughter, it just makes me happy. Though, I do need to work on how I make people laugh.

5) I very commonly make-fun of people for a laugh. It is in total sarcasm, so I am not actually mean, but I think I need to stop that. It just isnt worth it to slowly chop people down, even if they act like everything is fine.

6) People love when you notice the little things about them. Sure, anybody can make a comment about the generalities of your personality and such... but the little things really seem to matter.

7) Life is not about on-upping everyone. Too often we fall into the cycle of trying to prove to each other that we are equal or superior to each other. I am not sure why this is, but we all do it. Even if it is just as simple as telling a "similar story" about how we "went through the same thing". This is something I really need to work on. I need to learn to listen more and just "chil-lax" as Karen puts it.

8) "Do not worry then, saying, 'What will we eat?' or 'What will we drink?' or 'What will we wear for clothing?'...for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." - The Bible

9) I need to stop thinking about dating. My mind wonders far too often to girls and the possibility for "something more". If I learned anything this trip, it was how to have good friends... that are girls. (Thank God for maturity)

10) God has made us in His image, and has instilled in us a certain personality to exercise the Kingdom of God in our own lives. It is good to sharpen your own skills... I believe we all have areas of our own self that need improvement... but in all reality- our pursuit should not be an external, ideal personality- for that would make us all the same. Rather, we should strive to be a better version of ourself. I think that I have been cutting my own legs out from under me, trying to be a "better person"- when in truth, there are parts of my personality that could be used very much for the "good" if only channeled the right way.

11) I need to learn how to relax more, and appreciate every moment of life.

12) I know I am going against #9 here... but I think I am going to one day marry a girl from the north-east.... not any time soon, don't worry, but still... ha.

13) lastly, I love the white powdered, chocolate cream filled donuts.


Okay, I need sleep. I haven't slept well this whole week.

-Z