It's hard to believe that 2015 is already here. It's seems like 2014 flew by and yet so much went on. I find it incredible how much can go on in one year. As I look back and ponder over the year that just ended, there were both some good things and some trials that were faced. I dealt with a shoulder injury that made it difficult to work and required physical therapy and not doing some activities that I liked doing. And yet with time and therapy I was able to overcome that injury a little bit. It sill bothers me from time to time, but it has healed and definitely improved.
This year I also decided to switch majors. The deciding factor on that was my smaller build and some physical limitations. Also after having done work in the veterinary field for about a year, I decided that it really wasn't for me. It was not an easy decision to make, but I think it was for the best. I will no longer be pursing a vet tech degree, but will be doing something else. This also means that I will be leaving the veterinary hospital where I have been working for almost two years. I had interned with Greencastle Veterinary Hospital my senior year of high school and then worked as a paid employee after I finished high school. It has been a wonderful place to be and I am very blessed to have had the opportunity to work and learn there. At this point I do not know what I will be doing for school and what I will be majoring in. I would love to be able to do something involving American Sign Language (ASL) but I am not sure what. Right now I am looking at different things and praying and seeking God's will and direction. I know that He has a plan and a purpose for my life (Jeremiah 29:11) and take comfort in that. Sometimes I wish that I knew what I should be doing with my life. It would so much easier if I did and if I was the one in control. I think it can be so easy to want to be in control of our lives and what happens. But in His goodness and His mercy, God does not allow that. If we were in charge of our lives, it wouldn't be good and I am pretty sure it would be a mess. So, even thought we want to be in charge, it is God who has written our story and ordained our days. Through this i have been learning to trust Him more and lean upon Him as he guides my steps. I am excited for this new adventure though!
One of the other trials that I faced this year came at the end when my grandma passed away on December 31st unexpectedly from cancer. That was hard. That was very hard. I loved her so much and miss her terribly. I take comfort in knowing that she is no longer suffering and is with Christ. I was not expected the year to end that way. I am so very thankful that God does not abandon us during those difficult times and that he stays right by our side and carries us. He holds us in His arms and gives us strength when we need it. He grows our faith through trials and works for the good of those who love him and who he had called according to his plan and purpose.
Even though there are trials, there are good things too! One of the good things is that God brought a really wonderful guy into my life. Collin is a huge blessing and I am SO thankful for him. We have been seeing each other for pretty much six months. It was all in God's timing and His will that He brought us together. I am excited to see what God has in store for us in the future and where He leads us.
This year I also made a wonderful group of friends from my church that I get to spend a good deal of time with. They also introduced me to hot tea and I am not sure how I have survived without it so far because tea is FANTASTIC.
As 2015 begins, I am excited to see what it holds and what God has in store!
Tuesday, January 13, 2015
Thursday, January 1, 2015
A Hard Goodbye
Goodbyes are never easy. Goodbyes are never fun. Goodbyes are a part of life.
Yesterday on New Year' Eve around 4pm, a very near and dear family member of mine passed away from cancer. My grandma, or Maw Maw as we called her, was someone who I loved very much. We spent a lot of time visiting her when we were growing up and she often would babysit us if my parents needed her to. So to me she was someone that I knew very well and was very near and dear to my heart.
When I think of my grandma, so many good memories come to mind. When I was younger and my family still lived up in Carlisle, we would go and visit her sometimes on Saturday afternoons at her home in Dillsburg. She and I would make macaroni and cheese, jello and sometimes even pizza. I can still clearly picture she and I standing in her kitchen making jello together. I loved getting to help her with that! She also usually had some fruit snacks or fruit by the foot on hand for us when we came, especially when we were younger and visited her so much. I always enjoyed getting to eat Scooby Doo fruit snacks and watch Scooby Doo on her big TV. Then there were those times when the whole family would go and see her and we'd have a really nice dinner together and then spend the evening playing games. I can remember that she and my parents always played a game called Sequence. When my sister and I got older we were able to join into and that made for a fun game night. Out of all the memories that I have, one of the best is when we got to spend the night and she would make us big pancakes in the morning. These were not just your normal sized pancakes I'm talking about. When she made them she filled the whole skillet with the mix and you ended up with a very large and delicious pancake. My sister could down about two or three of these pancakes in one sitting. My paw paw wolf, which was her husband, would make them that way and I guess that it's something that she kept on doing for us.
When we got older and our family moved in 2006, we didn't get to see her very much anymore. I look back now and wish that we could have seen her more, but it was harder due to the drive and being busy with school stuff. She would still come down on Christmas morning each year and we would have Stromboli and sparkling grape juice. She also would come to the Dinner theater plays I was in in high school and I am so glad she was able to. She also made it down for my graduation when I finished high school.
It was different this year because she got put in the hospital a couple weeks or so before Christmas an then we found out the Thursday before Christmas that she had cancer. So Christmas this year wasn't like the others because we went to visit her in the hospital and spent some time with her then. My cousin Ryan was able to come too, so all three grand kids were there to see her. I think she really enjoyed that. I am so glad we could go and see and brighten up her day.
No one knows how much time they have, I guess we were all thinking that she would have a little while longer. The last time I got to see her was about a week from last Friday when my boyfriend and I went to visit her at the nursing home where she had just been moved too, I had no idea that that would be my last time to ever see her. I was hoping to get up to Carlisle and see her again. But we are not in control of our lives or the time we have. I am really thankful that I had the chance to go and see her and spend that last bit of time I had with her.
We believe that Maw Maw was a Christian and was trusting in Jesus Christ. Therefore we can take hope and comfort in the promise of the Resurrection. Jesus said in John 11:25: Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; 26 and whoever lives by believing in me will never die" (NIV). So we can take comfort in this if we are believe in Christ for the forgiveness of our sins.
I am thankful for her and for the time I did get to have with her from when I was little up until that last visit that I had with her. I am going to miss her so very much. I will miss her coming to visit and getting to go see her. I will miss her joining us on Christmas Day for lunch and to visit for the afternoon. But I am glad I have such wonderful memories to hold onto and remember her by and will always treasure them. She was sweetest and gave the best hugs and took up a special place in all her loved ones' hearts. Though she is gone now, I will never forget Maw Maw and will always love her.
When I think of my grandma, so many good memories come to mind. When I was younger and my family still lived up in Carlisle, we would go and visit her sometimes on Saturday afternoons at her home in Dillsburg. She and I would make macaroni and cheese, jello and sometimes even pizza. I can still clearly picture she and I standing in her kitchen making jello together. I loved getting to help her with that! She also usually had some fruit snacks or fruit by the foot on hand for us when we came, especially when we were younger and visited her so much. I always enjoyed getting to eat Scooby Doo fruit snacks and watch Scooby Doo on her big TV. Then there were those times when the whole family would go and see her and we'd have a really nice dinner together and then spend the evening playing games. I can remember that she and my parents always played a game called Sequence. When my sister and I got older we were able to join into and that made for a fun game night. Out of all the memories that I have, one of the best is when we got to spend the night and she would make us big pancakes in the morning. These were not just your normal sized pancakes I'm talking about. When she made them she filled the whole skillet with the mix and you ended up with a very large and delicious pancake. My sister could down about two or three of these pancakes in one sitting. My paw paw wolf, which was her husband, would make them that way and I guess that it's something that she kept on doing for us.
When we got older and our family moved in 2006, we didn't get to see her very much anymore. I look back now and wish that we could have seen her more, but it was harder due to the drive and being busy with school stuff. She would still come down on Christmas morning each year and we would have Stromboli and sparkling grape juice. She also would come to the Dinner theater plays I was in in high school and I am so glad she was able to. She also made it down for my graduation when I finished high school.
It was different this year because she got put in the hospital a couple weeks or so before Christmas an then we found out the Thursday before Christmas that she had cancer. So Christmas this year wasn't like the others because we went to visit her in the hospital and spent some time with her then. My cousin Ryan was able to come too, so all three grand kids were there to see her. I think she really enjoyed that. I am so glad we could go and see and brighten up her day.
No one knows how much time they have, I guess we were all thinking that she would have a little while longer. The last time I got to see her was about a week from last Friday when my boyfriend and I went to visit her at the nursing home where she had just been moved too, I had no idea that that would be my last time to ever see her. I was hoping to get up to Carlisle and see her again. But we are not in control of our lives or the time we have. I am really thankful that I had the chance to go and see her and spend that last bit of time I had with her.
We believe that Maw Maw was a Christian and was trusting in Jesus Christ. Therefore we can take hope and comfort in the promise of the Resurrection. Jesus said in John 11:25: Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; 26 and whoever lives by believing in me will never die" (NIV). So we can take comfort in this if we are believe in Christ for the forgiveness of our sins.
I am thankful for her and for the time I did get to have with her from when I was little up until that last visit that I had with her. I am going to miss her so very much. I will miss her coming to visit and getting to go see her. I will miss her joining us on Christmas Day for lunch and to visit for the afternoon. But I am glad I have such wonderful memories to hold onto and remember her by and will always treasure them. She was sweetest and gave the best hugs and took up a special place in all her loved ones' hearts. Though she is gone now, I will never forget Maw Maw and will always love her.
Visiting Maw Maw on Christmas Day
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