Merry Christmas to All!

I hope that everyone had a great Christmas! I wish everyone safe travels throughout the holiday season.

Nothing Lasts Forever

After completing another semester of college, the realization that nothing lasts forever has struck me again. Time passes us by so fast that I just want to enjoy my life for what it is at the moment since life is so good. As things in my life and so great right now, I find my heart aching for those involved in the Newtown, CT school shooting.

I cannot comprehend the kind of person you'd have to be to look at a child and take their life. There were 20 children who lost their lives before they had a chance to live and it breaks my heart. Along with the adults who were robbed of their futures, their families and friends lost loved ones and there are going to be many people mourning during this holiday season. So many people are hurting right now and I pray that they can find peace when the time is right.

Seeing something like this happens makes me very scared. I've never thought that my future profession, as a teacher, would be a dangerous one. We never know how long we have on this earth and seeing some of those teachers, so young and just beginning their careers, reminds me that nothing lasts forever and we can't pretend that it does. I don't want to end up facing death and have my mind start racing through all of the things I wish I had done. I want to do them. I hope that I have a long life and plenty of time to do everything I want to do but I don't know God's plan for me. All I can do is live my life to the fullest, no hesitation and no regrets.

To everyone affected by the shooting this past week, I pray that God gives you the strength and courage to overcome this tragedy. May everyone have a blessed, and safe, holiday season.

Christmas decorating!

We finally got to putting up a Christmas tree and it just so happened to be American themed!
MURRRRICA!

Blessed

This weekend I have been overcome with appreciation for all that I have in life. I have so much and I don't always appreciate it for what it's worth and I find that I can really take things for granted. I forget that some people struggle every single day to obtain the basic necessities of life that I have never lived without. As I was sitting around the table on Thanksgiving with my family thanking God for all that he has provided us, I thought of all the people who aren't as lucky. I pray that one day I will be able to give back to those in need and help them find peace.

I am so thankful for my family. We have had our ups and downs but I always feel so secure knowing that you all are always there for me. Love you all to pieces.

I am also extremely thankful for all my friends that have been there for me throughout the good times and the bad. I love our daily laughs and conversations. Much love!

I am also thankful for all the opportunities I've been granted in my life. All the things I've done done and will do are amazing. I'm grateful for my college education and all my college experience! It had been the most difficult and the most enjoyable chapter of my life so far.

I'm also thankful for all the gifts God has bestowed upon me and for my faith. I know I have an eternal life to look forward to.

I'm so thankful to have a life full of love bad I'm thankful for everyone in my life.

Xoxo

It's like, Christmas at Concordia

So today is a day that I am going to remember for the rest of my life--

COBBER RING DAY!

I feel like the last 8 weeks have gone by so slow but I finally have it on my finger! This ring represents so much- my college experience, all the hard work I have put in over the last 2 years, and that I'm a Cobber for life!

To all my fellow classmates, HAPPY RING DAY! It's truly a great day to be a Cobber!

Soli Deo Gloria!

Carpe Diem

Today in my religion class we had a really awesome discussion about how we spend our time here on Earth and it really got me thinking. We spend so much of our time regretting the past, reliving moments, and planning for our future that we never truly live in the moment. When asked "when was the last time you truly enjoyed the present," I really had to think about it.

I thought about one time this summer when I was home in Park Rapids and I experienced my first meteor shower. I was outside laying on the deck and I was in awe by how beautiful it was and how much different the sky looks when you aren't in the city. I felt so peaceful and my mind was at rest and I was truly living in the moment, not thinking about things I had to get done or what I had on my agenda the next day. Moments like this are so small and they don't happen nearly enough in our lives, but these are the moments we truly remember.

I know as a college student I always have so much going on, currently I'm thinking about the physics homework I need to finish tomorrow and how I need to start researching for my religion paper, and we don't take the time to just live. Just from this class discussion I've realized how I need to make time to just enjoy life and seize the moment because we never know how much time we have left.

When I'm older I don't want to have to look back on my life and regret not living it to the fullest, even though the whole point of this idea is to not live in the past. I challenge you all to take a look at your life and try to remember the last time you truly felt at peace and enjoyed the moment. Embrace the small things and just live your life.

Remember the past, plan for the future, but live for today, because yesterday is gone and tomorrow may never come.
-St. Luke

I get by with a little help from my friends

Well, I've officially hit the mid-semester "slump" (that's an akward word to see written down). I feel like I can't read another page, write another paper, or take another test. Within the past two days, I've stared at a book that I have to read for my religion class and barely made a dent, oops. It's getting cold outside and all I want to do is curl up in bed and watch reruns of One Tree Hill with a cup of hot apple cider. Well, I know that I can't do this so I decided to google "How to get over the mid-semester slump" and this is what I came up with:

1. Go to class- easier said that done! I've only missed one this semester but every morning when my 13th alarm goes off I'm still groaning in bed but I'm determined!

2. Prioritize- But I've become so good at procrastination! I haven't filled out my planner in 2 weeks so it looks like I need to get organized again.

3. Use your friends- Thank goodness for my awesome physics partners, ya'll keep me sane, and all of my other study buddies! Life would be sad without you!

4. Take a break- Rachel, you best be ready for a few dance parties! Plan ahead and pick a night when you aren't going to do any homework and get shit done beforehand! This sounds impossible but I am going to try it since there are a so many movies that I want to see.

I hope these tips help anyone else struggling along with my right now. Only 3 more weeks until Thanksgiving break, thank goodness!

Happiness

This weekend I was at home for fall break, which was so wonderful and it was so nice to have a break from the pressures of school, and I got to hang out with some of my best friends from high school. We were talking when one of my friends asked, "Where do you want to be in 2 years?"

This question really got me thinking because 2 years seems like a long time but I feel like it is going to fly by. I can't believe that I'm already over halfway done with my undergraduate degree and all of my elders keep telling me that time keeps moving faster the older you get. Well, we decided to write down where we want to be in 2 years and we are planning on getting together to go over these lists when the time comes to see if we achieved everything we were hoping to.

So, where do I want to be in 2 years?

I hope that I have a teaching job somewhere and I hope that I am enjoying it as much as I am hoping that I will. I don't have a place where I want to teach but I'm hoping I can stay in the Minnesota/North Dakota area. Along with having my first "real" job, I also want to buy my first car!

Within the next 2 years I want to travel outside of the US, preferably outside of North America. Everyone says to travel while your in college because you may never find the time when you are older and I'm hoping that I can embark on some amazing journeys, hopefully with some of my amazing friends!

I would love to be in a relationship, maybe be in love, or even engaged! I hope that my special someone is out there!

There were many other things that I wrote down but as I was reading through my list I thought, what does all of this really matter if I'm not happy? In 2 years, no matter where I am in the world, what I'm doing, or what I've accomplished, I hope that I am happy with all of the decisions that I have made and where I am in my life.

"Remember this, that very little is needed to make a happy life." -Marcus Aurelius

Appreciation

So recently I went home for the weekend and I realized how much has changed in my life. I spent my first summer on my own and had to start being accountable for many new things in my life. I didn't even consider going home for the summer because there was no way that I wanted to live with my parents again. I couldn't wait to get out of Park Rapids and I had no desire to ever go back.

I think that living on my own really made me grow up this summer. I miss my family more than ever and I feel like I have really started to appreciate all the things that they have done for me while I was growing up. I appreciate all of the little things that my hometown has to offer with the lakes and it is so gorgeous in the fall. I'm not sure if I want to live there right after I graduate college but I could definitely see myself settling down there in the future, preferably with an amazing husband and kids.

Being away really opened my eyes to how fast I'm growing up and how I'm going to be an adult in less than two years. Thinking about having my own classroom and living by myself is a scary thought but with my amazing friends and family I know that I can face anything that comes my way.

Lots of love to my amazing parents, sisters, and friends! I can't thank you enough for all you do for me.