Cloud Nine

With everything good comes something even better.... -This pretty much sums up my entire life.

I am lying here in bed, trying to think of what to write about for once. This is the first time probably EVER that I have not been able to sit here and spit out word vomit consisting of the excitement and chaos that surrounds me week by week. Considering it has been a few weeks since my last post, this is especially odd and surprising. It's been a stressful couple of weeks, with a lot of unethical crap and aggravation going on at work... but for some reason I really don't care to vent about it. None of that matters to me right now. Maybe it's the resilience.... maybe it's the optimism.... maybe it's the sunshine....

In all the stress (and tears) my job has brought thus far, you know what I see? I see joy in a toddler's eyes when she gets pushed on the swing, even though she can't see the smile on my face because she is completely blind. I see her wondering around the playground aimlessly, yet independently, trying to find her way to the stairs and to the top of the slide until she eventually reaches her destination with an accompanying, "WEE." It only took her 15 minutes, until she started the journey all over again. And to think of the small things we for granted. Or how about the boy with Spina Bifida who is paralyzed from the waist down... who sits and watches the other kids climbing on the playground or going down the slide??? I spent about 45 minutes carrying this 3-year old boy up the stairs and going down the slide over & over & over with him on my lap, seeing the smile on his face every single time. Was this speech therapy? Nope. Was this language therapy? Nope. Does the boy speak or understand English? Nope. Was he communicating with me? Yep.... with that simple little smile. I may get frustrated about the job I am doing and how it is different than I expected, but when I see these kids all of that frustration disappears. They are the reason I do what I do... the reason I love what I do... the reason I am determined to be good at what I do.

California is still treating me well. I love my apartment and the friends I have already made. I seem to always find amazing people to add to the overwhelmingly amazing list of friends I already have. How do I end up so lucky? And speaking of lucky.... how have I managed to find the most incredible guy in the world whom I call my boyfriend? We had such an incredible weekend here in CA, filled with beautiful sites, fun activities, and, most importantly, time together. Everything we did, from the Winery & Vineyard tours, walks & talks on the beach, drive up the coast, picnic in the park, drive-in movie, bowling with friends, sushi & smoothies, to cooking dinner together was more than I could have asked for in a weekend. I'm so thankful for a 3-day weekend. It went by surprisingly slower than I anticipated, which was nice. Spending time with Jason just confirmed what I already knew..... I'm happy and in love.













I swear, I'm on cloud 9. I like this cloud. I think I'll stay here a while... in the dream some people keep calling my life....

Life is good. Love is good. God is good.