Sing it, baby

I'm cleaning my bedroom and I just found the song that Eric and I started writing when I was sick. Here's as far as we got:

I'm jump, jumpin' for Jesus in my soul
My feet aren't moving 'cause I might fall.
Good days, bad, they hit us all
Joy, pain, love, hurt, it's survivable.

Yay, worship!

Tonight's the first time I'll be leading youth as they lead a worship service. We've been prepping for it for about three weeks. The teens have noted that the goal of worship is "to demonstrate our love and appreciation to God" and "to build a connection with God." They've brainstormed what's structurally in a worship service, written a prayer and benediction, chosen the songs and prepared their testimonies to share as a witness to how God is transforming their lives. I did get frustrated on Monday, spending 2 hours trying to creatively make a bulletin, but otherwise, I am psyched about this time devoted to worship tonight. Even better, I've got this calm feeling-- no anxiety or fear like I often get with performances, public speaking, etc. Of course, the kids are a buffer since few people will complain about what their kids do, but I think it's going to be a great time to recognize how God is working in our lives.

Eric's first ever blog entry

As dictated by Eric for his first ever blog entry. Don't judge.

You're not allowed to do this. I told you, I don't speak the way I write. This is going to come off horribly. Heather, hundreds of people on the Internet are going to think I'm an idiot. What if I stop talking, then you'll have nothing to write. (Silence.) I feel like this is a very one sided game. (He's laughing though... Inappropriate (but not really) comment that I'm not allowed to write... Wrestling to make sure that I don't write it. More laughter.)

What else would you like to tell the hundreds of people who don't read my blog?

That they are clearly missing out.

(More safe silence.)

What? You think I'm going to start talking again? (Careful thought) I should start telling all your deep dark secrets. One time... Alright, so I've got nothing. (Silence. I don't like this game anymore.)

Baseball, sore throats, gym, pencils

So we didn't go to Ocean Grove. With more thought, we realized that a day trip to the beach on a 30 degree day might not be the most enjoyable experience. Instead, we were both happy to visit the ball cages. Eric used to go there to hit balls as stress relief and I've found that I get pretty excited trying to hit baseballs at a timed pace. Then we stopped to look around at Barnes and Noble which is a calming ritual of my own. It was a great Saturday.

Since then, my throat has healed and Eric's has gotten worse. If you're fed up with hearing health reports, imagine how much we're sick of it. In the past three months, there have only been two days that the both of us have felt good. Yes, we are trying not to get too close with each other, but it hasn't been working-- I think the nasty germs keep jumping between us.

I've gained 2.5 pounds and become a queen of the gym. I'm tracking my food intake and work-outs. Sure it takes time, but at this point with only 3 academic classes, I'm able to focus on improving my health. Gotta take the opportunity when I can.

I'll try to brainstorm more interesting topics for another post. Oh, here's one:

My youth group kids have collected a whopping 2192 pencils and pens for the 602 students at the primary school I visited in Uganda last summer. We'll be mailing them on Friday!!

My Favorite

This past week was our spring break and Eric and I took off for NH to enjoy Mom's retirement house loaded with a billard's table and a Wii. We briefly went snowshoeing as snow gracefully fell, got all fixed up by Super Chiropractic Dad and enjoyed meals and icecream with my parents and Grandma as well as the games at Mom's house. One of the best moments was me falling asleep on the floor in a pile of blankets in front of the large screen tv playing August Rush as Eric worked on a painting a few feet away-- it was very bohemian.

On Thursday, we drove back to NJ so I could work at the church in the afternoon. Yesterday, we went to the art studio so Eric could continue working on his painting and then hit the gym before getting Chinese for dinner. At one point, Eric asked what I could do that night if anything were possible. I replied, "I wish I could appear at Tricia's apartment, watch a movie with her, talk girl talk and do our nails. What would you do?" "Drive you to Tricia's tonight," was Eric's response. Since that wasn't really feasible, he suggested instead, "How about tonight be a Pamper Heather Night-- we can get any movie you want, do your nails, we can talk and you can call Tricia." And we did. I enjoyed a bath, we ate Oreo's with chocolate milk and I didn't feel guilty falling asleep before the movie was over. Eric even liked the movie I picked out which wasn't as much of a chick-flick as was expected.

Today, we're headed to Ocean Grove, a UMC retreat center in NJ that I've never been to. If there were anyway I could find baseball cages along the way, it might give me the opportunity to express my appreciation to Eric.

"Healthy" Relationship?

My sore throat's just about gone after a week of Tylenol and Day/NyQuil!

Bad news: Eric's throat is now sore.

For the record, he first gave it to me, then we were both good for two days and then I got it again. So now it's my turn to share, right? Just kidding, I had been trying hard not to give him the cold but you can bet I'm going to try even harder not to get it back since I've only been healthy for two days since January. Obviously our strategies for a "healthy" relationship haven't been working.

Pretty Much Over

Eric and I have been slowly processing our experiences in January and February. While being very glad that it's pretty much over, I think we're starting to realize how bad it was. I've heard a couple people mention colonoscopies with lowered voices as if they're really terrible-- I had one and was only upset that I awoke and wasn't singing with the celestial choir. I had been in isolation because my roommate the first two nights had influenza-- and, praise God, Mom, Dad, Eric, my other visitors and I didn't catch it. I've barely gained any weight back which is probably related to me getting a sore throat and not eating a lot (I lost a pound in the past week, but the doctor said not to be obsessive about it). When I think about how proud I was to lift my arm to take papers from a professor, to stand at the sink to water my poinsetta, to walk up the stairs without stopping to rest, to be able to change my clothes and wear jeans rather than pj pants, to sleep through the night... Thank You, God, for carrying us through all of those challenges and please have mercy on those in pain today. Bless the doctors, nurses, attendants, care takers and loved ones who are striving to care for others. Thank You, God.

Saving the World, or Not

Four hours with nothing to do. Of course, I need to print off some homework and should clean my room and wash dishes, but I had the fleeting thought this morning, "You've got time! How can you save the world this morning?" Seriously, I was ready to live my life for others while remembering that I'm not actually the one who can save. But then I realized, "Girl, you've still got a sore throat and ear ache and you really need to use this time to relax and heal." Some people teach that Christians should always put themselves last but Drew's recognized the terrible general health of clergy and is trying to teach us that we'll be ineffective if we're down and out. It's true-- how many more people did I need to care for me when I got sick in January compared to the number of people I helped? If I had been healthy, then I could have helped a lot more people. Thus, I'm going to use these next four hours for personal well-being. I'll do the dishes and maybe clean, but I'll also pamper my throat and appreciate this opportunity to avoid talking.
* Disclaimer: This isn't an argument for laziness or selfishness but rather a recognition that we are to "Love others as much as we love ourselves." We can't love others if we don't love ourselves.

Almost Perfect

What an almost perfect morning: Snow is falling on NJ, somehow the early spring birds are still chirping, Eric's sound asleep in the extra bed, I'm cuddled in my favorite green recliner with a cup of hot lemon-water and honey and the Tylenol's finally kicked in so I can ignore my sore throat and ear-ache for a few hours.

Spring break is next week and Eric and I are going to head up to NH to have Dad fix my throat and to relax at Mom's retirement house complete with a Wii, billards table and movies galore. I'm hoping there's snow so I can take Eric snow shoe-ing which is one of his dreams. Hopefully a few days in an empty house in the middle of nowhere will help me heal and Eric de-stress.

I've gained two pounds in the past month. A woman laughed at Eric and I giving each other high-fives as I stood on the scale in the gym. We've been to the gym more times in the past few weeks than the total number of times I went as an undergrad. It's great to have Eric point out muscles that have developed since I was skin and bones in the hospital. It's also great to be able to eat whatever I want to (when my throat doesn't hurt). Believe it or not, I actually haven't gotten back on coffee. I've probably only had four cups in the past few weeks. What's wrong with me? ;-)