The February Roundup

I actually didn't realise until just now that I had promised to do this post on the last day of February instead of the first day of March. Which (1. Makes a lot more sense than the way I thought it was and (2. Makes me two days late with this post, instead of just one. Not that that seems to affect me much.

It's kind of ironic, actually. I ended up reading exactly the same amount of books this month as I did last month. Which I guess is kinda impressive, because February has WAY less days than January. Like, three less days.
  Speaking of which, if someone was borne on the 29th of February in a leap year, what day is their birthday on on all the other years?

  Anyways. This month has been insane, and only partly because I read way too many books and my computer has all but prepared itself for cremation. Fortunately, some of the craziness is genuinely exciting at the same time as being intimidating and scary. (We just started the process to adopt a child from China!! Well, my parents did;) In fact, there's been so much going on that I am surprised I found time to read at all. Which, you know, explains why I ended up reading a ton. #LOGIC

The January Roundup

Hello all fellow Bloggers and Blogreaders alike!! Today is the last day of the month, and as I promised before, the last day of the month post is a roundup of the books I've read during said month;)

I'm pretty sure I already covered the first few in a previous post. (which I will link to when I get on something other than my iDevice ;) 

So!! Taking up where I left off, we'll start with:

Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brönte. I love this book. It never gets old. Seriously. Read it. 

Contending For Our All, by John Piper. This is the fourth in a series called the Swans Are Not Silent. I was assigned this series for school, and it was the best thing ever. These books have brought about a sort of personal revival in my own spiritual life. I can't give a higher recommendation;)

Something I Have Not Done That Most People Have

Guyyyyyyyyysssssssssss guess what!!! My computer's fixed!!! I'm using it right now as I type this post!! As you can probably imagine, my exuberance is unbounded. (that just means that I'm really, really happy;) Also, I went to the library (aka Heaven to my friends who know me well xP) AAAAND Taco Bell. It's been a good day.

..Which is what I needed since I finished reading Les Miserables yesterday. Which is what I will need when I finish A Series of Unfortunate Events again. Which is what I needed several years ago when I read the Count of Monte Christo.
  While we're at it, why don't we just change this post to "Things I have done that most people haven't"??
Just kidding. The ratio of things I have done to things other people have done is like 6:3900.

So, let's begin the list.

1. I have never seen Twilight
2. I have never had my own bedroom
3. I have never been to public school
4. I have never been on Facebook
5. I have never petted an alpaca

I think that's the end of my list!! Have a nice day=)


~Margaret

A regret

Today, I am supposed to talk intellectually and concisely about something I regret not doing in the last year. Actually, it never said that. I'm just reading between the proverbial lines. 

I think this is an important topic, because it says a lot about the character of the person who speaks on it. If it's something stupid, that person is either shallow or a comedian. If it is deep and heartfelt, that person may have something to them. Heaven knows what your opinion will be of me by the end of this post.

It's actually a difficult question, because if it were narrowed down to this past day, rather than this past year, it would be a much more limited scope and therefore much easier to answer. Alas, it is a year, not a day. But Rome was not built in a day. (just nod knowingly. That's what I do whenever my brain turns off and I continue to speak)

Aha! My brain is still on. And with all of my wits about me, I am fully fit to answer the question at hand. 

Blogosphere, my greatest regret of the past year is not having eaten more pizza.

~Margaret

My Relationship With Food

Is this seriously something on the list??? I- well.....

Yeah. Food and I are pretty serious. If I could, I would insert a badly-photoshopped picture of me and a hamburger making a heart with our hands. But alas, I am not photo-editing savvy. Here is an accurate picture modelling two other people:

 

Also illustrating my naiveté and Food's inevitable betrayal.

Sometime in the Future:

Food: Mwahahahaha!!!!

Me: Agh!! Curse your sudden but inevitable betrayal!!

~Margaret

Someone I Want to Meet

Hannah, because I haven't seen her since New Year's.

Someone I Miss

Every time a topic such as this is brought up, I can't help but feel a momentary (at least) sense of loss. Who doesn't? It is in our nature to love deeply, and when the people who we have formed these kinds of bonds with are not with us, we inevitably miss them.

But it's also a happy day, for though I'm taking about someone who I miss very much and wish very much to see, I also love her very much, and look forward to the day (less than 8 months!) that I get to see her again.

This is Lunevia. She is a beautiful, radiant, funny Haitian girl. I first met her in 2012, on my first trip to Haiti. That was a very interesting trip, and I ended up with a rather odd set of memories, most of which did not include which unusual Haitian name went with each beautiful Haitian child. I do, however, have a thing for faces, and I remembered many more children than I thought I would when I returned to that village one year later. But, I can't remember names worth a flip, which proved rather awkward when they came up to you, grabbed your hand, and asked you their favourite question:

"You remember me? You remember my name?" to which I made the sheepish reply, "Nooooo..." :/ This past trip, I uttered a short fervent prayer that God would somehow grant my unwieldy brain the ability of retention! Lo and behold, He did!

I perceive that I have strayed from my original topic. I could rattle on for hours.

But Lunevia, though I adored all of the children there, is one of the most special to me. She was a hoot! She came with a new hairstyle every day, (though in the picture it is neatly plaited in cornrows) and one day she had six-inch plaits that stuck out from the back of her head!!

Every Haitian child, when they're around you, will cling to you. They hold your hand. They play with your hair. They pull on your clothes, and sometimes try to pull things out of your pockets! Lunevia, with a few of the others, was different. We saw hundreds of children, but these children, only a few of the hundreds, came back with startling regularity. It was truly delightful to see them, not only because we had not seen them in such a long time, but because they had unique, wonderful personalities all their own!!

Lunevia is one of the few privileged children who has the opportunity to access a decent education. The ministry we are guests of during our stays in Haiti runs a school, where generous sponsors can donate small sums to give these children food for the body and the mind. There are so many left. So many who will never have that chance for mental freedom. The percent of illiterate children and adults is very high, and it's truly heartbreaking, none less for me, who is a voracious reader and has been blessed with practically unlimited books to my disposal. There is so much I want to do for these people, and seemingly minuscule resources.

Sorry. Doing it again x) I told you, I can get side-tracked for hours.

But I wholeheartedly do want to help these people. They are delightful people with many delightful customs, though, due to the voodooism that is prevalent in that society, some are not so delightful.

I do always leave the country, while sad, with an indescribably sense of gratefulness. Sure, I miss them, all the people there that I love to pieces. But it's because of that that I feel so blessed. Blessed to have met these beautiful people, who are so worth every moment of longing for them.

They're so worth missing.

~Margaret