Well, here it is–the first day of the new year….2005. Crazy to think how fast it has come up on me. I remember like it was yesterday (haha how cheesy does that sound…) being in 8th grade and wishing I could stay there for just another year or so. And then high school went by so quickly… And here I am a freshman, again, and all I really want is for things to slow down a bit so I can just sit and enjoy for a while! I guess that’s what this break is good for…..realizing just how far I’ve come and figuring out how to deal with that. Making goals for the coming year and this second semester. It should be lots of fun.

   Anywho, I’m just enjoying the moment right now, sipping chapagne at my grandmother’s house, waiting for dinnertime. It’s a beautiful day here in the sunny South….an outstanding 68 degrees (!!) on the first of January 2005. Had a great time last night, celebrating New Year’s Eve with friends, watching movies, eating half-baked cookies and watching the ball drop in Times Square on TV. I must say that I was a bit sad to think that I was missing a great time up North with my ReRe and Nessa, Evan and Jacky, but I had a smashing time here as well. No worries there. So, cheers to all, wishing you the best of this New Year. All my love and God bless!

Today, for the first time since being in college, I started to miss being in high school. Weird, I know, but I was dropping off my younger sister at my old high school for her basketball practice and as I was driving out, past all of the familiar buildings and landscape, I could not help but feel the sharp twang of nostalgia. Realizing that my high school experience–four of the most secure and fun years of my life–is over….that is a scary and saddening thought. And it all went by so very quickly. Thinking back on those years, I have so many good memories, but I also know that by the time second semester of senior year rolled around, I couldn’t wait to get out. Strange how, looking back now, I wish I could have stayed just a little longer. It was a fun time–academically challenging, yes, but that is a good thing–my friends were there for me and we had our good times… Sure, some of the people there were not my favorite, but I realize now how close I was to all of those people in a very different way than I am with people at Hillsdale. In most ways, I am much closer with my Hillsdale buds, and in some ways I love them much more dearly, but simply having gone through so much with my high school classmates, I can honestly say that I feel a certain connection with all of them. That connection is obviously deeper with some than with others….the name Jake comes to mind…..nonetheless, we were all friends. That is a good thing to remember. So, yes, I miss high school.

Maybe I’m jumping ahead of myself here, but I can already see time flying past me and before I know it……well, who knows. I’m enjoying myself so much at Hillsdale, I can only imagine that it will go by even faster. I’m just praying that the next four years will be even better than the last.

It is so truly good to be home. Just today, as I was driving home from church–on the back roads that wind through acres of pastured farm land,some still green in the mildness of a Georgia winter, cradled by rolling foothills of the Blue Ridge and dotted with leafless copses of tree–I cannot help but feel an overwhelming love for my Home. Each day it is something different that reminds me of how blessed I am. My family–immediate and extended–my friends, the beauty of the land itself…I am constantly amazed by how many things there are to be grateful for. And yet, so often , I go through weeks at a time when all I can think of are the bad things that happen to me. Especially with today’s sermon, I’m pretty sure there was a special message in there for me: living for Christ is not simply taking 5 minutes a day to read a Bible verse or have a quick devotion; it is living in total self-denial–the type of denial that attests all daily goodness, all gifts and talents not to myself, but to God and living each moment in order to be more Christ-like and aligned with his will. haha This calls to mind something unexpected…. Dante’s Purgatorio. It is definitely a good read and, although he was Catholic, Dante certainly knew what he was talking about when it came to being aligned with God’s will. Anywho, this is what I’ve been thinking about today. Yes, Christmas was good, but, all in all, today was much better.

The Jago Girls reunited!!
Tia Magbee’s Christmas Tea
December 2004

Why could I see this happening to me….?

All right. This is my last post in Hillsdale for the next month or so.
Sad…. It’s been pretty stressful last few days but, all in all, I
am just thankful for those who love me–the near and dear ones–without
whom my life would be much less worthwhile. God has blessed me in so
many ways with family and friends and I see how, over time, He has used
them in my life to nudge me this way or that and ultimately to help
shape me (and will continue to do so…). So thank you, God, for
knowing best!! It can only get better….

So over this long break, I hope and pray that everybody enjoys time
spent with their family, make sure you go to church every Sunday
(because that is important, right Jacky? ) and don’t forget to just
get a little rest and relaxation (what with opening presents and
all….) Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!! Love to all.