your time is more precious than your money.

Tonight at Honors Forum, Leslie Tomlinson with the Womens League came to share with us about what exactly Womens League does (and especially what they don't do!) I was most impressed by her honesty...and if we're being honest, her pretty yellow skirt! It scared me a little to hear her talk about how she moved to the Shoals with roughly two and a half degrees and had trouble finding a job (even more considering I only have a little over half of one!) My intial thought was..Trouble finding a job? What kind of major was she? An English major? I shouldn't be an English major..oh..she was an English major. He was an English major. And I've come to the realization that it probably isn't ALWAYS what kind of degree you have, but rather how you market yourself. I will probably confirm that with an older, more "seasoned" and experienced person, because as Mrs. Tomlinson says, "With age comes perspective."

My favorite part of Mrs. Tomlinson's lecture was how she spoke to us as equals. Even though we, as 18-20 year old students, are considered adults, I think it's rare that a speaker can connect to our age group so well. Sometimes when you find yourself engrossed in an organization, you put "blinders" on. Everything that the group does is glorified, and those who find flaws in the group are perceived as wrong, crazy, or sometimes even evil. More often than not, that's why memberships become so private and (for lack of a better word) cult-like. Mrs. Tomlinson didn't follow this cookie-cutter behavior AT ALL. She told us the good, the bad, and definitely some of the ugly of the history of the Womens League, and at least personally, that gave a lot more merit to this organization with an educational, charitable purpose of bettering the community. If I needed any further proof, I found it through the required 40 hours of community service each year, plus 20 hours of community service simply working their events. So, maybe Junior League is more than just Apple Annie..Mrs. Tomlinson was a GREAT speaker, and I'm pretty sure her minor was Marketing (because I now want to be in Junior League when I turn 24..)

I'd like to end on SUCH a happy note; today Lilly came home with me!! The progress we're making together is seriously blessed by God.

keep showing up to the party.

So often I think we as humans like things because they are familiar...when the waiter to comes to your order and you're not sure what you want, you order the same thing you've always gotten. When you've been on a long trip and you finally reach your hometown, there's that feeling of relief that envelops you...a combination of these two feelings definitely surrounded me last Monday night at Forum when Jackie Hendrix from the Shoals Chamber of Commerce told us more about his volunteerism. (You may be wondering why, and that's because my dad works as Vice President of Business Development for the Chamber of Commerce in Jackson County..that's where I'm from, y'all ;)....) Because of this, I've spent most of my time helping Dad..or sometimes just observing him at work, so all of Mr. Hendrix's personal sentiments about questions people ask him absolutely hit home. The first: "Are you running for mayor?" Well, my dad did, and I spent four years of my childhood throwing candy in the homecoming parade because of it :) The second question: "How do you have time?" is one that I focused on intently. I think RARELY ever do we have time to do everything that we want to do. More often than not, a favorite excuse is, "I don't have time..." but what that really means is that you don't want to MAKE time for the obligation. I think that's why I have such a hard time saying no, but Mr. Hendrix admitted that he had the same issue. He also said that he thought, "If I don't do it, who will?" which is ALWAYS what I think about...if I don't do a job that I know I am capable of (and sometimes possess the talents to complete), who will cover for me in my absence?

So I'll leave that note by asking this question... What do YOU make time for?

Although I know the importance of Jackie Hendrix's job, it wasn't its description that moved me, but rather the other tidbits of information he shared with us. He simply stated that he "benefitted from being involved," but the way he explained it in debt included the relationships he had made through networking. All of that just keeps bringing me back to God's plan for my life. If I think that I have OCD tendencies, imagine God having to keep up with every single person's plan...all those to-do lists. Yikes.. Through Hendrix's service, one of the most powerful things anyone had shared with him was that he "changed the way [this] community thought about itself," and I think that ultimately describes my goal for not only myself but my job fulfillment. I want to be able to help someone (or groups of people) so much that I see not only a change in their lives for the better, but also a change in mine...to have more of a giving rather than an expecting spirit. Baby steps.

So maybe it's like Jackie said, I'll just "keep showing up to the party."

i get by with a little help from my friends.

I feel like the past week has been full of coincidences...in two of my classes, I have speakers that present new material for us to consider and build on. My favorite two speakers have presented right after one another, and they were both dentists. Throughout the past year and a half, I've realized what I value in speakers (and in people in general.) I loved Dr. John Lane (who spoke at Forum Monday night) just as much as Kay Parker because they both opened up to the classroom about their life journey. As cliche as that may sound, I believe it's a lot harder to reveal your innermost struggles or the obstacles you've faced along the way rather than simply mask emotions and pretend your life has been picture-perfect. Picture-perfect people aren't relatable, and I've found that the more upfront and honest you can be with me, the more likely I am to listen to what you have to say.

The beginning of Dr. Lane's speech definitely hit home for me. He shared that he was talented at math and chemistry, so he naturally thought he would pursue a degree in chemical engineering, until he figured out that it wasn't what he wanted. As crazy as this sounds, I've considered picking degrees just because I thought I could do them...not because I loved them, or I had a passion for them..but simply because they were "esteemed" majors and it was possible. The most important thing Dr. Lane said is that "your life will lead you." Sometimes we don't end up exactly where we'd thought we'd be in life, but maybe my faith in God makes that easier to accept. I've hoped that my life would lead me to a major, and this week, it has. On Friday afternoon, I made the decision to change my major to Interdiscliplinary Studies: Social and Behavioral Sciences after MUCH consideration...and second-thoughts :) With this major, I'm thinking that grad school is definitely in the works, and I'm currently thinking about pursuing a job that involves counseling at some level..which leads me to Lilly!

If you saw me on Tuesday afternoon, you saw me giddily walking home from Kilby School, grasping the hand of an energetic kindergartener. The more time I spend with her, the more I realize that she is impacting my life too. This week, she counted to 40, with only a little help on the transition numbers (twenty, thirty, forty)..which was incredibly exciting. Seeing her and observing the noticeable change that I am making in her life is a constant encouragement and reassurance that I'm making a difference. Even if she didn't learn another number or letter with me, the confidence I see building within her is enough to make me proud.

Dr. Lane shared that buying things to "feel good" gives you a happiness that has an expiration date, and after you invest time or money on them, you realize that you could've done without them. I realize that there are plenty of things in my life I could live without...the stress, the silly frustrations, and the constant worrying about small details that never really surface. But in the midst of this madness, I realize that maybe this semester was meant for me to find myself. So far, I'm liking what I see.

a planner a day keeps the doctor away.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zm5oirhXl7I

Songs have always been able to change my mood completely, and driving home after Pink Party (Zeta's AMAZING philanthropy event) Friday night, I heard this song and thought..."Wow..what a great song!" A few minutes later, I grew irritated with myself for not remembering the name or artist, then scanned the radio only to find it playing on another station. It's definitely been my song of the week..or weekend, I guess I should say.

This may seem off-topic, but I met with a professor today who gave me a really thought-provoking assignment. He told me to flip through my catalog and find courses that I would take in an ideal environment. My initial thought was to worry about choosing too many classes in one subject, not having the right prerequisites, or scheduling classes when they weren't being offered (BUT this was precisely his point!) When people told me to choose your job based on what I would do for free, I just grew irritated. Last time I checked, no one got paid for eating, spending time with friends and family, or sleeping...but after evaluating my schedule a little closer, I looked at what ELSE I did besides school. :) More details to follow. Y'all, I am SO excited about the changes that are coming in my life.

The last week has held both challenges and rewards. Starting the week off with Forum and THE CIVIL WARS gave a refreshing mental break, which was well-needed to say the least. I've thought and thought about how else to say this, but I've gotten nowhere...so here it is. Ms. Mashburn from Big Brothers, Big Sisters made me leave Forum wanting to be a black male. She told us that she had thirty white female volunteers waiting for someone to be paired with them, but she was in desperate need for black males; this totally discouraged me from thinking I could be a Big Sister for someone this semester. I did love, however, that she graduated from UNA and chose to stay in the Shoals area, and as weird as this sounds, I love when speakers tell me their majors so I can see how a area of concentration in an academic setting parallels to an occupation.

Looking back though, the role of a Big Sister is very similar to my relationship with Lilly, who just happened to count to 38 this week! :) I am seeing such progress, and more importantly (in my personal opinion,) more enthusiasm to learn. As her confidence in her abilities improves, so does her willingness to pay attention to the activities I plan for us each day. She's definitely becoming a highlight of my week.


Even if I feel like I am constantly on-the-go this semester, I've really loved the experiences I've had so far in the semester. I couldn't imagine having better people in my life...God has blessed me! Love y'all! :)