fresh start

Dad and I ventured to Boone this weekend to look at a couple of apartments. I decided on a townhouse in Vilas (with a view!) that I'll be sharing with a marriage and family therapy grad student (Mallory) and an as-of-yet-undecided-mystery-roommate. The fact that her name is Mallory kept causing communication breakdowns between Big Jim and me; our default Mallory is obviously Mallory Lee. I met the Gregory family for the second time. We first met five years ago in Croatia when they were working there for Campus Crusade, but now they're with Samaritan's Purse (Operation Christmas Child - the shoebox ministry). We had breakfast with a girl that is in my major at App and will hopefully be starting the grad program in the spring. The pair of us immediately hit it off, so I'm excited to have at least one friendly face to look for in Edwin Duncan Hall.

One issue that dominated our conversation on the journey home was that of vehicles. Because the townhouse situated on a bit of a hill about four miles from campus, and therefore, considered "out of town" for Boone, I will inevitably face a handful of days with perilous driving conditions, at least for me and my Accord. So we kicked around the idea of trading Chileno in for something with four-wheel drive. I know I've always said that I will never drive an SUV, but it might be happening. Dad pointed out that a small one might fit my lifestyle a little better than my Accord, so we are going to look. Problem is, I really like my car. He's been good to me.

I'm excited about this fresh start: new town, new furniture, new school, new church, new friends, new grocery stores, new mountains, new gym, new teachers, new home, new routines, and now possibly new car [well, new to me, anyway]. But change is always a form of loss, and at some point, I'm going to need to lament the end of my time at UGA and in Georgia, especially in light of the possibility that I may never again claim permanent residence in this state.

I was thinking in the shower this morning about all of this. I don't know about you, but I do some of my best thinking in the shower. For some reason, I find it easier to invite God into my thoughts in this setting - perhaps because its so private. We were mulling over all of this "fresh start" stuff and I just had this peace about all of it. It was as if He was reassuring me that He doesn't change, but that He loves the idea of a new day for us. That's why I love mornings so much: its a reflection of His image that I bear.