The City That Never Sleeps-NYC

Thanksgiving break was exciting and fast paced. Unfortunately it was everything but relaxing.

November 22-27^th my friend Brittany and I went to New York City to celebrate Thanksgiving. We landed late Tuesday night and stayed with her family for the remainder of the trip in a small town, outside of the city, named Merrick. Our New York adventures did not begin until Wednesday morning at 6:30a.m. Unfortunately 6:30 became the standard time we woke up for the remainder of the trip. The train left at 7:00 every morning so we were able to be in the city by 8a.m.

Our first day in the city we arrived at 8a.m. We spent most of our time walking around and familiarizing ourselves with the new and fast paced environment. We also spent time with Brittany’s older cousin who gave us a “private tour” and showed us around the city. He showed us Time Square, Radio City and so much more. 

Thanksgiving was on Thursday so we got up early again and went to the Macy’s Day Parade. It was an experience of a lifetime. The moment Santa reached the end of the parade, the Christmas season officially began. We noticed the streets were filled with Christmas music as we rushed to make the train back to Merrick. That night we shared Thanksgiving with all of her aunts, uncles and cousins, watched football and shared stories.

The next day was Black Friday. The amount of people on the streets rushing into stores to be the first to get the best deals was insane! That day we went sight seeing: Staten Island Ferry, Statue of Liberty, the Mo Ma, Top of the Rock, saw Chicago on Broadway and of course a little bit of shopping

Having the opportunity to be in New York for Thanksgiving was a once in a lifetime experience and I am blessed for every New York minute I was able to experience during break.

The Stresses of School

College can be such a stressful time in life. One of my residents called me today in tears because she is so stressed about her courses. Currently she is a neuroscience major and says she is struggling to maintain her grades. She is taking 3 of her major courses as a freshman and is having a hard time managing and adjusting to her first year! I have tried to encourage her that it is still only the first semester of her college career.

As a Resident Assistant my goal is to remind her to take it one step at a time- one day at a time- because according to Matthew 6:26, "therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." It is good to set goals, but putting too much pressure on ourselves can sometimes cause us to perform worse in regards to academics.

As one of her peers, I too find myself worrying too much about tomorrow. Matthew 6:26 is a great reminder to be in the present, at peace and content with my life as it is now.

High Schools- State Championship Football Game

On November 4, my sorority Kappa Kappa Gamma had a formal with the fraternity Phi Delta Theta. Instead of going to the formal I chose to go to the Texas private high school state championship football game between All Saints Episcopal Schools and Oakridge School.

The game was Saturday at 7:30p.m. at Pennington Field. All Saints is the school where I am a YoungLife leader so it was great getting to go and support the team.

The group of girls I mentor is growing larger in number as the year progresses. Going to this game was a great way for me to get to know the girls better. We were able to talk and get to know each other a little more. Going to this game was worth missing my formal for because I was able to meet new girls and begin forming new relationships.

I am really looking forward to establishing a set small group of girls that will stick together and carry over into the next 3 years. A group that can all get together and share with one another about what is going on in each of our lives.