My Kid Sister and Disgustingness

I woke up at 3:55 this morning and stayed up (our plane departed at 5:30, crazy huh?), so please forgive me if my sentences are incoherent or if I nod off… Well, I’m finally back from our vacation (a.k.a. road trip) through Washington and Oregon. Now I have the weekend to pull my life back together until school starts on Monday—yikes! Today I feel like sharing with you all a little bit about my kid sister Hannah. Let us make a chart.

Hannah

Hair: Brown and curly (which turns golden in the sun.)
Skin: Brown (why on earth does she get the ‘bronzed Amazon queen’ look when I am as white as a goose—a white goose, obviously—?)
Eyes: Brown (wouldn’t that be something if she had gotten hazel or blue eyes? But Hannah got the nice skin and hair, I got the green eyes. Anyways…)
Species: Packrat (I mean that in the best possible sense, Hannah… and you really have been doing better lately.)
Interests: No running, no writing, no reading, no drawing. In other words, nothing I’m interested in. Actually, Hannah likes to cook and would enjoy being in the Coast Guard.
Skills: She’s, like, a handyman or something. She can build anything and is a computer whiz. I can barely figure out how to turn on a computer… Déjàvu.
Good for: Making me laugh (hysterically, uncontrollably, anaerobically, at times—yes I know anaerobically is not a word.) Encouraging me to step out a bit. A good old argument. Hugs. Nice, long, heartfelt hugs.

Alright, now that you know a little more about Hannah than you did before, let me give you just a quick peek into her life. (I hope she won’t kill me for telling you all this…)

This occurred in a little village in Austria. Hannah was attempting to ride her bicycle through the center of town. She was having difficulty maneuvering around the light posts. I was riding in front of her, so this is what I heard.

Some grunting and other noises of exertion.
“Oh, almost hit that one.”
A moment of concentration.
“Whoops.”
Another minute of silence.
The distinct sound of metal on metal. Then,
“I hit that one.”

Thank you, Captain Obvious.


Alright, well, I guess I’m just feeling all mushy from our family trip and everything (which is weird, I’ve been sharing hotel rooms with these people for the past eight days), so here is a verse to go along with my thoughts,

“Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves.” Ecclesiastes 4:12
Or, in the New Living translation:
“A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back-to-back and conquer.”
I’ve been trying to go at my troubles and temptations pretty much alone lately. I know God is always there to help me through (and He’s the one who will truly help me succeed), but the periods of spiritual dryness and testing are the times we should draw our friends closer, not push them away. A good friend will not despise you even when you are ashamed of yourself. I’m always amazed at this. When I tell someone I love one of my darkest deepest sins I fully expect them to shrink back, disgusted at the sight of squirming, worm-like me. However, I have found that this is not the case. Instead they love me, pity me, pray for me (my mom is a champion at this sort of thing—thanks Mom.). How amazing is it then, that the God of the universe, who feels more and sees deeper than any friend, does the same thing. We come to Him covered in refuse, completely revolting, and somehow He still loves us! Even after we come to Him again, and again, and again, and again, and again with the same sin, He forgives us and loves us.

This is another topic I’ve been learning about recently. I found this verse again recently, in the exact moment that I needed to hear it more than anything else. I love how that works.

“He does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him.” Psalm 103:10-11.

Okay, it’s about time for dinner, so I’ll sign off now! Hope you’re all having a fantabulous Friday.