The Kaleidoscope

Wow, what a weekend. I can't seem to summon the ambition to do anything besides sit in my wonderful bed and browse the internet in an ADD-type fashion. I think my short attention span is a symptom of utter exhaustion.

The Quick and Dirty Breakdown:

• Up early, skipped lecture on Thursday, eventually made my way out of the house to head back home (Oh, how I love driving back to Milwaukee after a long time away...)
• Hit up the mall and visited Tracy at Starbucks - and found out Grandma Frega isn't doing too well at all
• Sat through a cut / highlight appointment (So worth it because I Love my new hairstyle!)
• Visited an old, tired, and frail looking Grandma and tired visitors at her nursing home. So difficult.
• Up early the next day for a dentist appt. - nothing is acutally wrong with my tooth, but yet it still hurts. Grr.
• Got a pedicure ($25 that I never regret spending)
• Went out to lunch with Tracy (I'm no longer a Sushi Virgin! Yummy!) and spent the day shopping with her for wedding-ish type stuff. We bought her and Doug's wedding bands. I realized I desperately want someone to buy me a ring and take me away and marry me (there's probably a white horse involved somehow, too). Ha, that's wishful thinking if I ever heard it!
• Laid around the rest of the night, too pooped to move or do anything worthwhile. Did get to talk to Grandpa though, which I was happy about.
• Left Saturday morning for Madison again - Camp friends were in town!! HUGELY fun.
• Saw Madison at its finest - gorgeous day to wander State St., eat ice cream at the Terrace, and lay on Bascom. Crowds everywhere, fans excited. It's an experience like none other, and I'm so happy I got to share it with people I love so much.
• BADGER GAME. NIGHT GAME. SO FUN. It was looking scary for the first half, but we pulled through in the end. Omigoodness, I love my school.
• At least 25 people in our house after the game. WOW. Food galore, games of Warewolves, 6 people spooning on my bed ... it was mad chaos. And so fun.

And now I'm here. Exhausted. My room is a mess (if you can imagine). My brain is mush, and my body is rejecting the massive amounts of empty calories that were forced into it over the past four days. None of these things really facilitate reflection.

This weekend had its dark moments, and it had it moments of glorious, life-giving color.

There's no denying it: There's a lot of darkness in the world. There is the black sting of death and sickness, the grey tiredness that comes from deep emotions, the ugly hughes of stress that we feel when we are faced with the pressures of life and worry about how quickly time is moving past us.

But, there's also color. God didn't have to make the leaves turn into their kalidescope of reds and yellows and greens - but He did. He didn't have to make the skies and the waters deep, brilliant blues - but He did. He doesn't have to warm our faces with the golden rays of sunlight - but He does.

God doesn't have to give us the sensations of joy that we get when we are surrounded by those we love, but he does.

He doesn't have to love us, provide for us, desire us ... but He DOES. More than we will ever understand.

God casts away the dark shadows, replacing even the darkest things with the light and color of His presence.

Yeah, He's pretty cool.