NYC 1.5 (part 1)

Over spring break this past week, I flew out to Pittsburgh ("Hellloooooo, Pittsburrrrrggggghhh!" Ando, that's for you. Can anyone else name that movie?) to visit Erika and Kyle in their new home. During that time, Shorty and I made plans to road-trip to NYC. Because, why not? We passed the time in the car by re-living our childhood and singing along to High School Musical and Hillary Duff.

We arrived mid-afternoon in New Jersey, checked into our hotel, and headed for the city. We were pretty stoked! We had 1.5 days to see as much as we possibly could and we were READY!

When we stepped out of our bus stop, I saw this. Whoah. How does one get to be a journalist with the New York Times? Takes more intelligence and political savvy than I can claim, that's for sure.

Our first official stop was Central Park, and we passed the Museum of Natural History on the way.

Central Park, with the leftovers of winter snow melting and the spring sun shining, was gorgeous!

Walking through Central Park  made me want to burst into song and dance, but we had no time for that! We had a tight schedule and were off for Park Avenue.

As we walked by these buildings, I told Erika they reminded me of the ones in Paris. Sure enough, the little plaque on the wall said they were inspired by French Renaissance architecture. #proudfrenchteachermoment

These buildings, however...not so much...

 

 
Our next metro subway (do Americans say metro?) stop took us to Grand Central Station. (By the way, Erika was Miss Navigator, having been to NYC a couple of times before. She did an amazing job! #shoutouttoshorty )

We were on our way to Times Square when we passed the Sofitel!!!!! Shorty and I both got excited, as it was the hotel our family would stay in for vacation when we lived in Ouaga. I'll be honest, I had no idea they existed in New York.

As we walked, I couldn't help glancing up, hoping to see Spiderman.

Finally, we arrived in Times Square!

Still no Spiderman...

Right by Times Square is the M&M Store. I absolutely love m&m's. This place had walls of various colors and flavors! Fun fact: did you know m&m's were initially made exclusively for the military, so that the soldiers' chocolate wouldn't melt? (Erika and I did some research on our way home on the history behind m&m's.)

We had one last stop before heading back to our hotel for the night: Macy's. But first, we needed something to eat. Erika helped herself to a traditional New York hotdog and claims it was quite good.

I chose the gyro sandwich--partly because after watching Jimmy Fallon and Luke Bryan's music video, I felt empowered to order the delicious sandwich with confidence in my pronunciation of it. Somehow, though, I still got it wrong. But the sandwich still tasted delicious!

Did the rest of you grow up watching Miracle on 34th Street every Christmas?

The old wooden escalators are pretty neat!

Once we had ridden the historic escalators and searched for the Christmas section that did not exist, we decided maybe it was time to head back to the hotel.

This is as close as we got to the Empire State Building.

We grabbed some coffee (merci Dad!), took the wrong bus back to the hotel (rookie mistake), but an hour later (and completely safe, Mom), we crashed into our beds anticipating our 5AM wake-up call.

~ O Shepherd of my Soul ~

O Shepherd of my soul,

     You know the way I take;

     How prone I am to wander,

     And Your green pasture forsake.

O Shepherd of my soul,

     You know my wayward heart;

     How quickly I forsake Thee,

     And from Your words depart.

O Shepherd of my soul,

     You bid me come and rest;

     When I am hurt and weary,

     You hold me to your chest.

O Shepherd of my soul,

     You have promised to keep;

     Never will You cast away,

     The one You call Your sheep.

O Shepherd of my soul,

     To You I bring this plea:

     Teach me joy and contentment,

     When all I have is Thee. 

"Like a shepherd He will tend His flock,

In His arm He will gather the lambs

And carry them in His bosom;

He will gently lead the nursing ewes." - Isaiah 40:11

le 2 juin

Today is Melissa's birthday, and as she is all the way in France, (and because I forgot to send a card), I thought I would write a little birthday blog post in her honor. It's a conglomeration of things I love about her, and a few of the memories we've shared together. 

Melissa is hardworking. She gets up early, and after a cup of coffee and time spent in God's Word, she is busy and productive all day. I am always impressed with how efficient she is. She gets so much done.

She has helped me move into multiple apartments and when moving into this last one, she was the main "assembler" of my furniture--futon, bookcase, etc. And who do you think painted my shelves and table for me? Yep, Melissa. I don't know what I would have done without her. 

 

Erika helped, too.

Melissa is wise, and I often go to her with life's important questions, such as, "Which mattress should I buy?"

But seriously, knowing she is grounded in God's truth, I love having heart-to-heart's with her on the phone, Skype, Facetime, etc. What a blessing of an older sister! She is someone who I love to model my life after. Even when I was little, I copied every thing she did. Melissa loved it! 

Melissa is also super creative. She has helped me organize and decorate not just my apartment, but my classroom on multiple occasions.

She's hilarious and totally goofy. She wears hot pink plastic sunglasses because they were a great deal!

Not only is she funny, but she makes everyone around her laugh and have a good time.

It's a little hard to tell, perhaps, but my brother is dying laughing from something Melissa said or did.

Melissa makes you do crazy things as well.

Like pose as a statue in a French zoo...

 ...and do random one-legged push-ups on the side...

...and jump off of super high dives off the coast of St. Malo.

She is super intelligent and loves to play games. 

Melissa is also a huge encourager. She encourages me in my writing and is the first person to whom I send my new works. When I would go on runs, she would come meet me at the end, cheering me on to finish well.

She loves the country--and thinks she is country! 

She loves with her whole heart.

And personally, I think my sisters are simply stunning!

I was able to spend one summer with her in Rennes, which included picnics on the beach, lunch dates at cute cafés, and castle road trips.

Roadtrips with her are the best. We've been on several. She tolerates my overly enthusiastic (dramatic) appreciation for everything. Our favorite roadtrip pastime was choosing a book neither of us had read, and then my reading out loud to her while she drove. 

I got to spend Melissa's 29th birthday with her in Rennes, and today, I'm sorely wishing I could be back there with her again.

I love you, Ita. 

You're the best big sister a person could ask for.

Happy Birthday!

A Hidden Grief, A Silent Sorrow

Have you ever lost someone who was so close to you that you didn't know how to explain life without mentioning their name? Remember the tears? The twisted anguish--like two metal rods twisting around in your stomach squeezing so tight you weren't sure you would be able to catch a breath? Remember how suddenly alone you felt? 

Remember all this. 

Now, imagine that same person actually isn't dead, but alive. The only problem: you will never see that person again. At least you don't think you will. There is always the possibility, but never the certainty. The hard part is, you can't talk to anyone about this person because they just wouldn't get it. They would try. A few might come close. But unless they actually know the person they will never fully understand the hole they leave.

So, what do you do? 

You cry when no one is looking. You hang up pictures in your room. You talk less about the person in public, but your journals are filled with their name. Years pass. People remark how well you've healed. They don't know that one sight, one smell, or one triggered memory can cause the tears to come flooding back. It's a sorrow you can't explain. The wound is re-opened. The pain is deep. 

For me, a TCK, this grief is not caused by a person, but a place. 

when left alone with my thoughts on a cold winter's night...

The Furlough Year

It is,

a Paradox of Time: 

     at once both exceedingly long and much too

          short.

It is,

a Physical Irony:

     meant for rest and yet constantly

          on-the-go.

It is,

an Emotional Whirlwind:

     sorrowful goodbyes swirling into joy filled

          hellos.

It is,

a Returning Conundrum:

     where is home and do I belong

          there?

It is,

a Weighty Transition:

     pack. what?  settle. temporarily? explain. 

          how?

It is,

an Awkward Intermission:

     Lingering remnants of the past bleeding into unknowns of

          the future.

It is,

a Comical Relief:

     laughing over habits of the third world showing up

          in the first.

It is,

a Distinct Dichotomy:

     belonging here, belonging there, but never belonging

          anywhere.

It is,

an Unspeakable Loneliness:

     cannot be explained, cannot be seen,

          simply is.

It is,

a Well-Versed Speech:

     pictures that show four years of life and ministry,

          any questions?

Hello 26!

This past Monday was my 26th birthday and it was the first time I've ever celebrated my birthday living on my own. 

For several days leading up to it, I started celebrating in little ways here and there. After all, what's a birthday if you can't celebrate all week, right?! :) It helps build lots of anticipation for the big day. My students decided to help out with the week-long celebration. One day, a student brought me a yellow doughnut! My favorite color is yellow! I was so excited to eat a it!!!

On Friday, the weekend before my birthday, my students threw me a surprise party. They made giant posters and brought food. 

They bought me not one, but four special helium birthday balloons! I've never had balloons like that for a birthday before. One student remarked, "Poor Miss Dorsch didn't have a childhood."

They made me wear this pin all day! 

I felt so loved and so special. I love my kiddos. 

The week before, the organizer of this party had sent around little notes that looked like this:

One of my students kept it in his wallet, which I was so thankful for. What a sweet memory!

By the way, none of them dressed up. We did take a bunch of photos, though. 

Another one of my birthday week traditions is picking out a box (or two) of cereal. I typically never buy cereal except for this week. I love it too much to keep it around. 

I entered the aisle and behold:

How in the world was I supposed to make a decision? I have so many favorites! Next time, I will walk down the aisle blindfolded and randomly point at a box. Trying to be clever, I decided I would choose the cereal that had the coolest prize inside. (I know, very mature.) Can you believe it?! There were no cool prizes to be had! Plan B--quickly grab a box or two and walk away as fast as possible without looking back. I tried...but before I reached the end of the aisle, with my choices already in hand, I saw this:

Are you kidding me? Below my beloved (and Uncle Gordon's beloved) Raisin Bran were cereal boxes with superheros on them!!! Whaaaat?!?!?!?! Now I was really in a predicament. I love my superheros. How cool to have a box of cereal with their face on it! Let's be honest, though, the only time it is exciting to eat cornflakes is when you live in Africa and you've been eating the French brand for the past 3 years. I slowly walked away and went home with Cinnamon Life (because it reminded me so much of my mom) and Frosted Mini-wheats. Did I leave thinking I had made the best choice--no. I don't think anyone walking away from a cereal aisle can have that level of confidence. But I did leave knowing that my choice would be just as enjoyed as almost any other. 

Sunday, after running 13.1 miles with Sherlynn, we went out to eat at Olive Garden with Erika to celebrate my birthday. Look how big the plates are!

 We convinced our waiter to bring out a free dessert.

I also got to enjoy some quality time at Panera--one of my most favorite places. They give you a free birthday treat if you have their card, and I got my favorite blueberry scone. yummh! 

On the eve of my birthday, French Club had its end of the year party. The students turned it into a birthday party by bringing cake and presents.

My French 4 students all pitched in and bought me the coolest lamp EVER!!!

They thought it looked cooler without the lampshade. Hmmm.....

On my actual birthday, students did not have school (though some of them sent me birthday emails), but teachers had meetings. I was blessed to be able to talk to each one of my family members--which is saying something when that means communicating between 3 different continents. 

In the evening, I was invited over to the Dogotch house for a birthday dinner. When I walked in, all the kids jumped out and shouted Joyeux Anniversaire! They made signs, cards, and put up pictures and everything. I couldn't believe it!!! 

After a scrumptious dinner, there was even birthday cake with candles and ice-cream!

 Thanks, Kandi, for loving me and spoiling me and helping me feel so appreciated and special.

To finish off the night, I went to see the new Avengers movie!!!

It was a wonderful evening and a wonderful birthday week. God is so good to me. Even with no family in town, I was not forgotten. He has blessed me with so many dear friends, caring students, and with the technology to be able to communicate with loved ones far away.

25 Bucket List #13-25.1 : Half-Madness

Well folks, it happened. Sherlynn and I completed 25 (technically 25.1) items on our bucket list in our my 25th year! The list was completed the day before I turned 26. 

On May 3, we ran 13.1 miles together--the furthest we had ever run side-by-side. 

We counted every mile.

It was early morning on race-day. 

We wanted to get a picture with the river in the background. Please ignore our half-asleep faces. 

Sherlynn bought us matching headbands and we both happened to choose gray t-shirts to run in. Our pacer in the race called us "the gray girls." 

(I didn't realize until later that I ran in this exact same shirt during my last half-marathon. Oops!) 

It was a long arduous race. To pass the time we shared memory verses, commented on the scenery, made jokes about meaningless things, ate snacks in the form of Gu and milky-gummy things that Sherlynn brought, and yet, after all that, there was still so much farther to run! The route was a great one and we got to see parts of Wichita that we did not even know existed. Sherlynn was the photographer during the race.

The sky was beautiful! 

I've said it before, and I'll say it again, there are so many great spiritual lessons to be learned from running. Sherlynn and I were both tremendously blessed by the experience. Despite the blessings from the pain, we were both equally thrilled to cross the finish line.

We drove off with our tinfoil very thankful to our Heavenly Father for keeping us until the end and teaching us to trust in His strength for every literal step of the way. 

P.S. Thank-you Stephanie and Angela for being the best cheerleaders EVER!