10. Flying is quite an adventure. The first week of break, I stepped foot on a plane for the first time ever with my friend Andrea, bound for Massachusetts (more on that later). I learned that vertigo is no fun, but when the song "Vertigo" starts playing while you're experiencing vertigo, the situation is quite humorous. My solution to flying: sleep it off. And the free in-flight ginger ale works wonders, too (thanks, Cameron).
9. Working retail on Christmas makes one feel dirty. Anyone who talked to me the week before and the day of Christmas knows that I took being away from my family for the sake of running a cash register. I was actually quite bitter about the whole situation (and cried multiple times about it). I've decided that I never want to work retail on Christmas again. No amount of money is worth it. And people need to be with their families anyways, not checking to see if our Christmas cards are on sale yet.
8. Snow has a tendency to perfect every occasion I love snow. It's a bit of a quandary for me, seeing as how I tend to have no ability to stay warm in cold situations, but I'm slowly learning to adapt and overcome that small problem. Snow is, quite literally, the icing on the cake for me. It's almost as if for a moment one can forget the dead and dying grass that lies below and just enjoy the pristine beauty that is encompassed in a snowy day.
7. New England looks just like the postcards. Speaking of snow, I thought those picturesque "picture prints by Currier and Ives" were really just part of the song, not real life! I saw 14 inches of snow on the ground, made a snowlady who was almost as tall as I am and even jumped into a snowbank! Visiting Massachusetts was a true learning experience, and it is something I will not forget for a very, very long time. Thanks, Andrea, for sharing your home!
6. Even if the movie isn't that impressive, the soundtrack could still be gold. This is the case with New Moon. I was actually fairly disappointed with the movie. (Made from my least favorite book in the Twilight series anyways, it really didn't stand a chance, I don't think.) I was actually very skeptical about the soundtrack, too, since Carter Burwell was no longer composing the score. I've actually found myself liking it more and more, though. Deathcab's "Meet Me on the Equinox" is swiftly becoming my favorite, while the driving piano in "New Moon (The Meadow)" had me quite aurally captivated when I first heard it. Even the remix of "I Belong to You" was to my musical liking. That just goes to show you: don't throw the baby out with the bathwater. And don't write off every aspect of a production; read the fine print, too.
5. The "real world" just isn't worth the paycheck they give you. For all the long hours, cardboard cuts, heavy lifting, difficult customers and, above all, time missed with loved ones on account of going to work, it's not worth the paycheck that comes in. Yes, I have to have money to live in this world. But money and I are no good for each other. We just don't like each other at all. So why should I do anything for it? Ah the cruelty of life in this world! This is why I'm going to school. If I have to work for a paycheck, I'm going to at least do something I love.
4. It's the small things in life that really matter. Yes, I hate my job. But I can't say it's given me nothing but grief. Walgreens has afforded me some great opportunities to truly help people. From translating for the Hispanic patrons who come through the doors to helping customers find what they're looking for, it's nice to know you made a difference in someone's life. And one meets some of the strangest people. For example, on Christmas Day, a lady came through my line who had been alone all day because her mother was in the nursing home and her boyfriend was...well, he was with his wife. The lady just looked at me calmly and said, "I know, I'm horrible." Strange, indeed.
3. Sometimes you really just have to let go. It's amazing how simple this idea is, yet how reticent I am to enacting it in my own life. It's something I'm working on. When God tells me it's time to let go, I need to trust that if whatever it is is really supposed to be in my life, I don't have to hold onto it to keep it there. And some things are just better left on the highway in the rearview mirror. It's painful; sometimes you don't feel like there's any resolution. But sometimes that's just how it has to be.
2. I get by with a little help from my friends. Simply put, without mis amigos, I would drive myself crazy. I am very thankful that God has allowed my path to cross the paths of so many wonderful people and that He has seen fit that they would be with me through thick and thin. It's been an amazing journey, and I couldn't imagine it without my friends.
1. Nothing takes God by surprise. This is a lesson that wasn't learned over break; it was just proven to me time and again as it always is and always will be. Through the good and the bad, the easy and the hard, the understandable and the incomprehensible, one thing remains constant: God knows what we're going through, and He will never leave us nor forsake us. His infathomable love washes over even the greatest of disappointments and His intoxicating joy moves in our lives as the basis of every surge of felicitation. He is the everlasting King, and He guides each of our lives. We are where we are because He has a plan. We may not see the big picture, but we must learn to unconditionally trust the Creator of this magnificent work of art.
And finally, something that I keep going back to: "Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but when dreams come true, there is life and joy." Proverbs 13:12.
May all your lives be filled with life and joy as your dreams come true in 2010 and in the years to come.
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