carnival

So, something that I really love is the fact that practically every other day and at least every weekend, I accidentally stumble upon a festival, carnival or celebration of some sort. This one was after the Karlsruhe-Baden marathon came through Karlsruhe that Sunday morning. (truthfully, this picture is from something like 2 weeks ago...) The prayer during church was suddenly interrupted by loud rumbling and music...it was the festival and marathon outside, don't even worry about it! Another day, there was a kids carnival/festival outside the theater - complete with cool costumes, theater-related games, music and of course food! All over the city, and especially in the greenest areas (castle park) there is always fun to be found. I love the way it feels like walking into a surprise party every time I hear the music and see the tents in the distance...what a fun life! ~love~

The Sky is Falling

Fall is in the air. The air is crisp and dry. The leaves are turning from green to yellow and red. A perfect season except for one little glitch...acorns. I am in constant fear of being pegged by a falling acorn. The problem is that they fall from way up high and hit leaves on the way down, like a little countdown timer. As I was sitting in the woods the other day, this little fellow missed me by about 2 inches!

I have mixed feelings about fall. I am no real fan of being cold, but something about the cooler weather is energizing. Maybe its just the beginning of fall that I like: the days are still relatively long and warm, the trees are beautiful and diverse and it smells like fall! I hope you all are enjoying your fall! ~love~

A dear friend of mine decided awhile ago to be intentional about documenting her life through photos. Inspired by her journey, I have decided to try to take more "every day" pictures of my life in Germany and post at least 3 times a week with a photo and an explanation. That way you, my loyal readers, don't have to wait until something earth-shattering happens in my life to get an update, and I have a little motivation to document my daily life. Hopefully I will not lose readership with the mundane details of my life (hence the photos...motivation in case my words bore...) I have no idea how long I will be able to keep this up, but I think that beginning is a good start. That being said, here is my photo for today:

The weather here has been simply beautiful for the last week or so. I went on a long bike ride through the woods on Sunday and had a chance to sit, read and write in my journal for awhile. The power of nature to convey the presence of God never ceases to amaze me. I just had to sit in wonder at the strange path that my life has taken thus far and trust that the path ahead of me will continue to shape and mold me in a purposeful and beneficial way. I am excited for what lays ahead. ~love~

Safe and Sound

I am back and exhausted and ready to get the ball rolling with everything. Thank you for all of your prayers and support! I love and miss you all!

aaaaaahhhhhhhh

I leave on July 28. I still have to give a big presentation, take two exams, write a 12 page paper, close my bank account, work out complications with my health insurance, tell the authorities here that I am leaving, etc etc (I think you get the point). I am mostly frustrated that I can't enjoy my last week and a half here but am instead running around like a chicken with my head cut off. So...if you try to call and can't get ahold of me, if you are wondering at the lack of blogging, emailing, etc, please know that I love you all sooo much and I am so excited to be seeing you, talking to you on my american cell phone in a closer time zone very soon, I just don't have time to think about that right now :) ~love~

Hannah is here!!

...but her suitcase is not!!! This little inconvience led to a shopping spree to which Hannah said: "I've always wanted to go into a store and buy outfits, just like in the movies!!" I think she'll be just fine until everything comes. The ultimate quote of our shopping spree (don't worry, we didn't go too crazy) was when Hannah looked at a shirt and said: "Oh my gosh, I have to buy this shirt, I had a dream about it!" Apparently the forces of the universe are working together to ensure that Hannah owns a cute pink shirt with a flower on it... (more photos to come)

shock

Up until 2:05pm, this Tuesday had been fairly ho-hum. I spent the morning drinking a cup of coffee, cleaning up for Hannah's arrival tomorrow and working on my to-do list of homework and other miscellany. Since I have class at 2:15, I decided to leave a bit early and throw some wash in the washing machine before I left for class. Armed with a suitcase full of laundry and my detergent, I unsuspectingly descended the stairs into the basement where the washing machines are located. I entered the basement, turned on the light, began walking toward the laundry room when I received a sudden shock. There was a mole crawling around right in front of the laundry room door. Now, I am no fan of rodents (this may have something to do with the fact that I am no fan of germs) and I am also a girl. Therefore, I am sure you can easily imagine the high-pitched shreak that accompanied my sudden shock. Suddenly everything looked a little different. I had no desire to be within a foot radius of this blind little rodent but he was blocking my path to the laundry room...I stopped to consider my assets. A rolling suitcase can provide quite a good barrier, a though especially comforting as I considered my choice of footwear: flip-flops exposing my toes to the long nails and teeth of this burrowing creature. (side note: I am fully aware in hind sight that moles are not dangerous and not particularly scary, but I was ambushed!) Never having seen a mole in real life before, I wasn't sure what to expect. As it moved away from the laundry room door, I made my move. Alas, as I moved toward the door, he moved back toward the door. At this point, I completely forgot that moles are in fact blind, so I made an effort to scare it by making noise and moving my suitcase in its direction. Not effective. I then realized that I just needed to get in the laundry room as soon as possible. Using my suitcase as a buffer between me and the mole, I quickly unlocked the door and backed my way into the room, quickly shutting the door behind me. I am ashamed to say that I was shaking all over - that little guy really scared me. About a minute later, I heard a noise and quickly turned as someone else came in the laundry room (I was a little jumpy). I asked him if he had seen the little fellow, to which he replied no (accompanied by a look that said, man, you are such a jumpy, silly little girl!) and looked out into the hall. He then noted that, in fact he did see the mole, and that he was at the opposite end of the hall. Vindicated on all counts of making a rodent up, I just smiled nervously as he chuckled and began loading a washer. Upon leaving, I cautiously looked out the door only to find my little friend once again right near me! Turning, I made a quick run for it and made it safely out the door, up the stairs and out into the real world.

After recounting my horrific tale to Amy and Sarah, they accompaned me post-class to visit the litte guy. As we walked into the hallway, his whereabouts were not immediately evident. But my quick eye noted that he was in the men's bathroom. We turned on the lights to look at them and what did Amy and Sarah say? No, they did not scream in terror, no they did not jump 3 feet in the air, nor did they shake with fear, the let out a collective "awwwww" poor little guy. Upon second examination, he was in fact quite small and not so scary. Oh well...now I can at least say I have seen a real, live mole, and I learned the German word for mole: der Maulwurf. Maybe my heart will stop racing by the time I go to bed tonight!

~love~