Apartment Life

Apparently I'm a grown-up now. Well... almost.

I wear my teacher badge, dress "professionally," and go to school. I live in an apartment where I make my own food... that's mostly edible. I find cleaning and organizing enjoyable. I do grocery shopping once a week or so, always looking for the lowest bargains. I do laundry... and other people's laundry. I meet new people like it's my job....

I still have classes, I still don't have a car, I still miss my parents, and I still don't like folding socks.

I'm in the awkward in-between where I'm more than halfway to adult. To be more exact: a year away from it... if going by college graduation. My face looks young; people assume I'm still in high school. They ask me when I graduate (and they're not talking about college graduation). I grit my teeth and pretend that it's a compliment. Maybe one day when I'm forty it will be...

I live with three amazing roommates. We get along splendidly, even though we come from very different backgrounds. We haven't even known each other for that long. That's why our lives must operate by grace. Always grace. Our days are up and down, but it's in the extension of grace that we truly live well. Willing to understand, willing to do someone else's chores, always saying thank you, and always always communicating. It's been great so far, but I know hard times may come. Still, I embrace this year, excited to see what the last fourth of my time at Grace holds for me!

Three years ago I embarked on this journey at Grace College. I arrived feeling shy and very overwhelmed, certain I would never make friends. I was also convinced I knew most things in the world... that I was a capable, confident, smart person who was ready to take on the world. During my years here at Grace, I have been humbled. I have realized how little I truly know. I have found great joy in learning, in taking the initiative for my own learning. I have learned to be healthier, to have a more balanced life and schedule, and how to make lasting friendships. But most of all I have grown so much spiritually, continually desiring to grow more and to continue on the course I have started on. As campus is flooding with freshman, I am so excited for all of the transformations that will occur in their lives in the coming years. Energizing.