Dandelions and Daydreams

When I grow up, I want to be a flower. I can dig my bare toes into the cool soil all day and the roots will go deep. I can pleasantly wave in a gentle breeze. I can lift my face to the sun. When it rains, the cool drops of water will splash upon my cheeks and trickle refreshingly down my throat. I will stand defiantly against the storms and wait for the sun to come again because it always returns. I will always be dressed in my gayest apparel because I strive to impress my Creator who cares for me.

Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
(Mat 6:28-29)

Being at LU has been a blessing for me. I have had to learn to depend on God completely and trust that He will come through for me in my deepest need. I have seen Him work miraculously day by day. This faith building excercise really began on Wednesday, August 29. I was still at home, but I was getting ready to leave for LeTourneau. I called my Financial Aid advisor to get an estimate on what my first payment would be for the semester. She looked at my file and said, “Oh! You have 67 hours, I can give you another $1000 on your Stafford loan if you want it.”

Up to that point, I didn’t know how I was going to pay my first tuition payment and buy my school books.

I was able to make my first payment with the money I still had no clue about the second $1300 payment due at the end of October and even less sure of the December one. There comes a point where you know that there is nothing in your power to do but pray. I am certain that God wants me here at LeTourneau, but I guess this is my faith building excercise.

My mom lost her job in July, so we filled out a special circumstances form. Friday, I got the results back and they equal up to about $1200 in grants. He has provided me with jobs to work and I actually have payments that are feasible to make on student worker pay.

I don’t know if I will be here next semester. I must depend upon God for that too. I am thankful that I at least have this semester, and I’ll let God worry about next. I’m flexible.

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Nothing says summer quite like sitting in the grass in the semi-darkness of dusk. You just can’t have the picture complete unless you add a few of your best friends and a very seedy watermelon. The grass is itchy under your bare feet, and you wonder if there are fire ants about to bite you. All around you are the sights, sounds, and smells of summer. The sky above has faded from brilliant oranges and pinks into a dusky purple. The grass is fresh cut and you can smell it all around. The wind gently blows your hair back from your face, or it blows it into your watermelon. The watermelon is fresh and ripe.

You take a giant bite letting your teeth sink into the fleshy melon successfully covering your face in juice. The juice runs all over you hands and down your arms leaving your sticky for the rest of the evening. A few drops of the sticky nectar drip down and splash upon your pants legs and feet. You thoughtfully chew on that bite and mischievously separate out the seeds.

After swallowing the melon, the seeds become delightful ammunition. Your best friends are sitting on either side of you and you spit seeds at them until that gets boring. Then, you take the slimy little brown seeds and squeeze them between your fingers until they shoot out. The challenge is to try to hit your neighbor in the ear. Peals of laughter can be heard ringing all around.

Sadly enough, this must end. The last few bites of melon are taken until only the rind is left. The seeds are all spit, and you are left with the sudden realization that fall is coming on and the drunkeness of summer must end. The sobriety of the school year is upon us and there is homework left to be done.