Grad Parties

I sincerely hope your summer is eventful and you're staying cool in the heat wave.  I hear it's supposed to last all week. Oh well, it's a taste of what the New Orleans trip might be like. ;) Two weeks!  I can't contain myself much longer.

Summertime for us freshman coming back home and for the graduating high school seniors means one thing: Grad parties.  In my area, they last well into July if not all summer.  I hear that's a little bit strange but it's how we do. Last weekend I went to parties for my friends Sabrina, and Taylor.  This weekend I went to the party for my friend Kendra (who is a future Cobber!) and next week I'll go to a party for my cousin,William.

Grad parties are epic for several reasons.  You've got the food, everything from taco bars to pulled pork sandwiches, all sorts of salads, and ice cream!  Oh, and anyone with a chocolate fountain gets some major points from me. Grad parties have been a wonderful opportunity for me to see friends who weren't in my graduating class, and to talk a bit about college and answer any questions. It's been lovely, but coming back and going to all these grad parties has made one thing painfully evident... how much of a difference a year makes.

We, meaning my graduating class and I, are in a completely and totally different phase of life than just a year ago. I don't necessarily believe it's an issue of drifting apart, but everyone is off doing their own thing, living their own lives. I expected to see certain people, and I didn't.  In some ways the grad party ushers in this phase of consciously removing yourself from a group state of mind and basing your decisions on yourself and what you need.

I always say that leaving my hometown for college was one of the best decisions I ever made.  I will always stand by that statement, because I didn't compromise my happiness for ease. To their credit, I believe all my graduating friends have understood the importance of doing what's right for them and have acted accordingly. I'm proud of all of them.  I think the summer before you leave for college is the best and worst possible.  You do whatever you can to have as much fun as possible, but the impending separation is too tangible to ignore.

It may be painful, but it can also be exciting and wonderful at the same time. I guess a lot of changes in life are like that...

Be well, stay cool.
All my love,

Megan

When Life Gives You Lemons...

Woah Readers, woah.  I know I haven't blogged since the last days of college, and I know it's been FOREVER, (literally it has been over a month) but I needed some time to relax and not blog and the time has also let the epicness accumulate so there's more excitement for you to come back to when I finally decided enough was enough. Here we are, June 12th, and My Epic Life is officially off hiatus.

You know the saying, "When life gives you lemons make lemonade" right?  Who doesn't know that saying?  Long story short, I take it to mean something like, "When life gives you an opportunity, take it and do something good with it."  Well, about three weeks ago, life gave me lemons.  Here's the story:

So I had been going to church with Nicole (the mastermind behind Dorm Room 718) almost every Sunday ever since the beginning of the school year.  I think the first time I went was in October?  Anyways, I got to know people there and soon I had a church family.  I didn't really see that coming, but I figured I would just go with whatever happened.

Throughout the entire year I kept hearing about this July trip to New Orleans for the ELCA National Youth Gathering and thought, "Hey cool, I can't wait to hear about it in the fall when I see people again."  Now here's where the lemons come in.  On May 23rd, Nicole told me they had someone drop out and people wanted to know if I would consider filling the slot as an adult leader.  *CUE FREAKOUT*

After losing WAY too much sleep over it, I said yes on June 5th and here I am, trying to mentally and physically prepare for an intense 11 day trip in July.  It all feels a bit surreal, like I never imagined I would be doing something like this or taking such an opportunity despite the financial strain.  At the expense of my dignity, I will use the acronym YOLO just this one time.

I'm feeling overwhelmed... this is like, SO MANY BUCKET LIST ITEMS BEING CROSSED OFF AT ONCE! Here are some of the things I'm excited for:

1. I get to lead amazing kids and hopefully be the most epic leader with the most epic discussions ever.  If I remove my playful side for a second, it means I get to do my best to help them learn from each other, learn from themselves, and learn from me.  As an added bonus, I get to learn from them as well.

2. I might get to see my old roommate who lives in Omaha, NE

3. Seeing Switchfoot in concert and all the events at the Superdome in NO.

4. Getting to see the cities of St. Louis, Memphis, New Orleans, and Kansas City, and see states new to me which include the following: Nebraska, Kansas (if we drive through it), Missouri, Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana, and Arkansas. 

4. Just plain traveling and all the shenanigans that'll be happening. Oh, and did I mention I get to go to the Civil Rights Museum, French Quarter, Beale Steet, and go on a swamp tour? EPIC!!!

As you can see, my life has taken a turn for the even more epic. I'm sure more blog entries about NOLA are to follow. I'm so excited, and suuuper nervous at the same time. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go pinch myself repeatedly.

I send ALL the love!  Be epic and be well.

-Megan