Reunited and it Feels SO Good!! SBC 2011

Finally, after three, long, agonizing years, I got to return to my favorite place on earth, Shoshone Base Camp, in Prichard, ID. For those of you who don't know, I worked as program staff at Shoshone, a Lutheran summer camp that specializes in youth servant events, the summer after my freshman year of college. Until this summer, no three months had ever made such a difference in my life. The staff I worked with (Clint, Alissa, Meghan, Kimmy, Bear, Kyle, Jordan, and Dallas) truly became my family and each one taught me something extremely significant about myself and the person I want to be. Not only was that summer one of the most spiritually uplifting times in my life, but just look at the place! How can you not feel close to God in such a gorgeous environment!

Shoshone at sunrise

While I was there, I participated in a servant event painting fences (painting projects were a staple of my time at Shoshone), went to a few campfires, ate meals in the chow hall, had dinner at the Snake Pit, rode a horse (first time!) and went on a bike ride, my first one since all of my health problems began. The bike ride was especially wonderful. We rode down the Shoshone Creek Road, one of my favorite rides, for about five miles. It was such a gorgeous day and I got some great pictures! And, the best part, my knees and back handled it just fine! What a difference from just last year!

 

One of my favorite spots along the road

Seriously! Best bike ride EVER

The highlight of my trip, however, was finally getting to meet Clint and Alissa's girls. Addison and Ella were both born since I left and I have been looking forward to meeting them face to face for a long time! They were both such wonderful and sweet girls!

Addison is the blonde and Ella is the brunette

Addison

Addison and Alissa

Ella and me.... we had a special bond :)

My Shoshone family!

The weekend was full of old memories, new experiences, reunions, and fun. I can't wait to go back again!

Walk with Bear to Riverside Chapel

Bear and me!

Meghan and me!

Good old Shoshone Base Camp, how I will miss you!

Ferry Ride!!!

This is just a very quick post of a video I took when Jenn and I went for a ride on a ferry. Enjoy!

Jenn's Northwest Adventure Part 2- "I lift up my eyes to the hills..."

While Jenn was here, we also had the opportunity to drive up into the North Cascades and visit my aunt's cabin in Twisp, WA. It was the first time Jenn had seen the Cascades and my first time in the mountains since leaving Shoshone. Needless to say, we were both very excited!

Happy mountain faces!!!

On the way up to the cabin we took a hike along Deception falls. Because of the large amount of snow this year, the river was very full and the falls were absolutely breathtaking. Some of the trail was underwater at times, so we had to improvise a bit... it was definitely an adventure! :)

Beautiful pond along the trail

 Pictures do no justice to the falls, so I took some videos to give you a better idea of just how full they were:

Loop Trail

Lower Falls

Upper Falls

After spending the night at my aunt's cabin, we took the North Cascades Scenic Highway back home. We got some spectacular views of the mountains and saw more snow than either of us had seen in a long time. :)

Here are some of the best shots from the weekend:

View from the cabin

North Cascades

Liberty Bell

More happy mountain faces!

Ross Lake

Snow along the highway

The whole time we were up there, I couldn't help but think of Psalm 121:

¹I lift up my eyes to the hills.
   From where does my help come?
² My help comes from the LORD,
   who made heaven and earth.
³He will not let your foot be moved;
   he who keeps you will not slumber.
⁴Behold, he who keeps Israel
   will neither slumber nor sleep.
 ⁵The LORD is your keeper;
   the LORD is your shade on your right hand.
⁶ The sun shall not strike you by day,
   nor the moon by night.
 ⁷The LORD will keep you from all evil;
   he will keep your life.
⁸The LORD will keep
   your going out and your coming in
   from this time forth and forevermore.

God is truly wonderful and when I am in the mountains, I am always in awe of his creation, of his power, and of his incredible love for me. Praise God!

Internship Report!

I thought I should let everyone know how things have been going on the internship. This update will be in two parts: an update on my work with Next Step and a report on how things are going with Lutherans for Life.

Part 1- Next Step

Its is hard to believe that I only have six full work days left at Next Step! The summer has gone by so quickly! I cannot even begin to describe how much I have learned in the past nine weeks or how encouraged I have been by the words and directions of the staff at the clinic. Nancy, Kathy, Mary, Laverna, Beth, Catherine, Denise, and all the other volunteers have truly been an inspiration to me!

Besides my day to day activities at the clinic, I have had several education experiences in the last few weeks. I have now presented at the Newman Center at the University of Washington for their Respect Life group twice. The first presentation was more of an informational question and answer session about my experiences at the Coalition for Life and how college students can get involved in the pro-life movement. The second presentation was a viewing of the Unplanned documentary. I briefly introduced the film and then gave a short speech on my experiences and how much of an impact students can make in their communities for Life. Over 40 people showed up for the movie and everyone in attendance seemed very enthusiastic about getting involved in 40 Days for Life and volunteering at local clinics. I think that this opportunity was a great start to a pro-life presence at the University of Washington.

I have also gained a greater respect in the last week for our volunteers who actually counsel abortion-minded women. I spoke with an abortion-minded client over the phone for the first time last week and, I have to admit, I was terrified throughout the entire conversation. In my limited exchange with her, I felt the full weight of the life-or-death conversation that was taking place. I was silently praying the whole time. I was able to convince her to schedule an ultrasound, but she did not show up for her appointment and we haven't had any contact with her since. I am still praying for her as she makes her decision and hope that she tries to contact us again.

Part 2- Lutherans for Life

I was officially elected into the National Board of Directors at the LFL conference last week in Dallas. I am extremely excited to begin working with this wonderful group of men and women. I am serving on the Generations for Life committee, working to recruit young people for Life, and the Development committee, working on fundraising and grant writing. Both committees are in such different areas, but I am excited to help in any way I can.

I was extremely blessed to finally meet Karen last week at the conference. She was my first contact with the organization back in high school when I started the Facebook cause page. She and I had remained in touch via Facebook the last few years, but this was the first time we had met in person. She was just as wonderful in person as she was online and I am so excited to get to work with her at LFL. Karen was not the only person I met who was an encouragement to me. There were so many delightful people at the conference! Almost everyone I met was passionate about Life and diligent in their efforts to help the church navigate Life issues. Everything about the week confirmed for me my calling to continuing working in the pro-life movement. I am so excited for the future and cannot wait to see what God has in store for me next!

Karen and me!

I am the WORST EVER

....although I cannot say that I didn't warn you! Since I haven't posted in a VERY long time, I am committing to a new post everyday this week, to catch everyone up on what I have been doing... starting tomorrow :)

Jenn's Northwest Adventure Part 1- "One Short Day in the Emerald City"

The first part of Jenn's Northwest adventure was a trip to Downtown Seattle. We only had one day, so we decided to start early and see as much as we physically could... and we were definitely successful. The key to our success? The CityPass (*disclaimer* this is NOT an advertisement.... I was just really impressed with this wonderful deal and just had to share it will all of my poor college student friends). We paid about $60 and got to see the Seattle Aquarium, go on a harbor boat tour, go up the Space Needle, visit the Pacific Science Center, and go to the Zoo. Not bad, right.... we also did all of that, except the zoo, and a couple more things all in one day... we were quite the sightseers! They have these city passes for several major cities, including Houston... I will definitely use one again next time I go on a big city adventure....

Our first stop was the famous Pike Place Market, where Jenn got a glimpse of the first Starbucks and we shared a delicious breakfast of fresh doughnuts and rainier cherries. We also got to see the famous fish throwers actually throw a fish at someone (she caught it) and watched the flower-sellers put together gorgeous and rather inexpensive bouquets.

After that we stopped at the Seattle Aquarium. This aquarium is kind of small for the size of the city it is in, but what it lacks in size it makes up for in educational value. Rather than simply entertain, I have always been impressed by how this aquarium focuses on education the public on the wonderful wildlife that lives in Puget Sound. The highlight of the visit was definitely getting to watch them feed their giant pacific octopus.

All those fish swimming around in the aquarium made us a tad bit hungry, so we headed to Anthony's for lunch. I branched out of my restaurant comfort zone and ordered fish tacos with mahi mahi... and really, really enjoyed it. Success! Jenn picked the ever popular fish and chips. She tried to get the recipe from the waiter, but he told us that he had to sign a confidentiality agreement to never reveal the secret of the delicious batter.

Lunch at Anthony's

After a satisfying lunch, and a quick stop at Ye Olde Curiosity Shop, we went on an Argosy Harbor Tour, a boat ride that takes you all the way around Elliot Bay with wonderful views of the city and the surrounding landscape. All the times I have been in Seattle and this was the first time I ever went on a boat ride in the actually city. Here are a few snapshots from the tour:

View of Downtown right after leaving the harbor

Jenn and I with the Seattle sky line in the background from across the bay

After completing the harbor tour, we caught a bus and went up to the Seattle Center, home to the Pacific Science Center and the Space Needle. We spent a little less than two hours exploring all of the exhibits at the Pacific Science Center. These exhibits were much more hands on than the ones in Houston and we had tons of fun. I think our favorite exhibit was the one the tested facial symmetry by taking a picture of your face and then putting mirror images of one side next to each other.... we came up with some thoroughly amusing faces. :)

After that, we headed up to the Space Needle. This was another Seattle staple that I had never visited. After waiting in line for a bit for the elevator, we were treated to spectacular views of the city and Mt. Rainier, on an unusually clear day for the area. We spent probably close to an hour just taking in the views and taking pictures from every angle imaginable. It was a great way to end our trip.

Jenn and I at the top of the Space Needle!

Beautiful view of the city and Mt. Rainier

All in all, I was extremely proud of the fact that we were able to fit so much into one day. We even made it back to Edmonds in time to see a glorious sunset down by the beach. The amazing thing is though, we never really felt that rushed. I think most of the time, actually, we were pretty relaxed, and took our time to see and experience everything. We were pretty lazy on Sunday, though, so all the activity must have caught up with us. :)

Perfect end to a perfect day!

Internship Update!

I can't say that I didn't warn you that I was really, really bad at this whole blogging/journaling thing..... but I am sorry it has been so long since my last post. Things have been crazy busy (and super fun) with Jenn's visit... but more on that later.

Anyways, here is a quick update on how the internship is going:

I have started observing patient ultrasounds and it has been, by far, the most rewarding experience of this whole summer. It is hard to put into words the intense joy I felt the first time I saw a tiny little heartbeat on a 16 week old baby. The technician was able to make out a beautiful profile with a complete view on the spine, hands, feet, and even individual fingers and toes. It was truly breathtaking. If that wasn't amazing enough, last week I witnessed an ultrasound for a baby that was only 7 weeks along. At that point, there wasn't as much to make out in the way of individual limbs and fingers, but that beautiful heartbeat was still there, pumping sure and strong, a wonderful reminder of the beauty of God's creation and the significance and importance of every human life. It never ceases to amaze me that something so small can be so powerful and that God would so carefully knit together such a glorious masterpiece. I feel so privileged!  Jesus loves us so much!!!!

In the next few weeks I will also be starting to research ways in which Next Step can take their ministry just a little bit further. Two options they are currently exploring are STI testing and parenting classes. The first option, STI testing, would be pretty difficult with the facilities and staffing they currently have. It would require intensive doctor supervision and oversight, with possibly the use of on-site MD's, PA's, or nurse practitioners. Right now, however, we are just looking into what it would take to provide that service. Parenting classes may be a more immediately achievable goal.They already have resources available for the classes themselves, the only difficulty would be scheduling, finding volunteers, and facilities. Their current office is lacking in meeting space, so if more than a couple people show up for a class, finding room for everyone could be a problem.

I will also be starting to organize a viewing of Abby Johnson's Unplanned documentary in conjunction with the Newman Center at the University of Washington, which is the Catholic ministry there. The associate director, Father Raphael, has asked me to make a short presentation about my experiences with the Coalition for Life and sidewalk counseling with some of the greatest warriors for Christ I have ever met. I am truly humbled to be included in such a wonderful group and I hope some of my experiences will inspire these college students to take a stand for Life on their own campus and in their community.

Not quite related to the internship, but wonderful and relevant news nonetheless, I have also recently been selected to serve on the national board of directors for Lutherans for Life! I am extremely honored to be asked to serve in such a position and pray that I can contribute positively to their mission during the next three years of my term. I know at this point that I will be working with the Generations for Life committee to develop ways to energize and empower younger generations (high school, college age, young adults, etc.) to stand up for Life in their churches and communities and educate them about Life issues. I agree with the  current board members that the current generation and the generation after us will be integral to changing the hearts and mind of the world about abortion, euthanasia and other important social and moral issues. As cheezy as it may sound, we are the future of the movement and we can make a great impact if equipped with the right tools. I pray that together we can figure out what those tools are and get them into the hands of the right people. I will officially start the first week of August at their national convention in Dallas, so I will actually be coming back to Texas mid-internship for a couple of days, which should be fun!

As always, thank you for all your comments and prayers! I couldn't do any of this without the wonderful support of my friends and family!

Gig 'Em and God Bless!

Coming soon... Part 1 of Jenn's Northwest Adventure!!!