Finals Week

I need to study.

But all I can think about is sleep.

I LOVE FINALS WEEK! ><

Too Late

So unfortunate when you see the value of something/someone when it’s too late.

A group of people I didn’t really appreciate before.. they were just in my life and I didn’t know why God put them in my life. And honestly, I was a little mad that they came into my life. But man.. here I am, 2 1/2 years after I had first met them, finally seeing how blessed I am to have that group of people in my life. Such great people. I don’t know how long our relationships will last but I am so thankful right now that I have them in my life and that I got to know them more in the past semester.

But…….. I feel like it’s too late now. I’m leaving. I tell myself that I’ll still see them and I’ll still hang out with them because I’ll be near. But is that really gonna be the case? I wish I had gotten close with them earlier. I wish I had seen earlier how much of a blessing they are. I wish I wasn’t stupid and selfish. I wish I could have invested more time into my relationships with them. It’s too late now right? :(

Happiness and Joy

Thinking back to the last 3 months, a lot of awesome things happened, things I definitely did not deserve. One of those things was grad school: I got accepted to all of the schools I had applied to (ALL BECAUSE OF GOD’S GRACE.)

I still remember end of February and beginning of March.. when only one school was left, the school I wanted to go to the most. I told myself that if I got in, I don’t even have to think about where I should go because I’m gonna go there. Then came mid-March when I received an email from that school saying decisions were out. I couldn’t check right then. 5-6 hours later, I checked.. my hands were shaking as I clicked through websites to get to the page. I opened the decision letter and there it was: I GOT ACCEPTED.

But something was weird. Yes, I was happy. But at the same time, I wasn’t feeling the way I thought I would feel. I thought I’d jump up and down, telling everyone around me, but I didn’t. I told my family and a couple of friends who asked but I didn’t tell anyone else. They were the ones who got SUPER excited and told others. Because I wasn’t telling people and I didn’t seem that happy, some people even asked me if it was a bad thing. That was when I knew something was wrong. It certainly wasn’t a bad thing. I’ve been waiting for this day ever since I submitted my application in January, ever since my 2nd year of college when I decided I wanted to go to that school. I checked the app website EVERY DAY in February to see if decisions were made. But when my acceptance letter came out, it didn’t even feel like a big deal. I didn’t know why.

After the decision came out, a lot of stressful things happened and thought that God wanted to humble me. PUHAHA I was wrong. (Well, that might be true also since only good things were happening so I might’ve gotten a little prideful.) But about 2 weeks ago, a friend told me she wanted to find JOY in God. That was when I realized what my problem was. (It’s so funny how God sends you a message indirectly through those around you.) Happiness wasn’t what I needed. A lot of things happened to make me happy in the last 4 1/2 months, but I needed something more than just simple happiness… happiness from school, material possessions, relationships, friends, etc.

“True joy is found in Him.” As more and more people talked to me about differences between happiness and joy, I realized that I need JOY… joy in God, my Father… joy in the fact that I am not alone and that God is there for me and will always be there for me through both good and hard times… joy in the fact that God loves me and that He called me to be His daughter.

The Mayonnaise Jar

When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day is not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and two cups of coffee.

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him.

When the class began, wordlessly, he picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and fills it with golf balls.

He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was. 

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured it into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls.

He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was. 

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. 

He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous “YES”. 

The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed. 

“Now,” said the professor, as the laughter subsided, “I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things - God, family,
children, health, friends, and favorite passions. Things, that if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full. The pebbles are the things that matter like your job, house, and car. The sand is everything else — the small stuff.” he said.

“If you put the sand into the jar first,” he continued, “There is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are
important to you…” he told them.

“So… pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Worship with your family. Play with your children. Take your partner out to dinner. Spend time with good friends. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the dripping tap. Take care of the golf balls first — the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.”

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented. 

The professor smiled and said, “I’m glad you asked. It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there’s always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend.”