A woman named Nika.

Some of you may know that I live in the inner city as part of a program for my school, the Walden Park, Mark Twain neighborhood to be specific. The neighborhood itself had the most murders in the entire city of St. Louis last year, the people here are crying out for hope. Five of us college students live on this beautiful old Catholic compound, complete with a school, house, convent and breathtaking sanctuary. It's really an incredible opportunity to live among the people I have been called to serve.
Anyway today while we were eating lunch, we heard a knock at the door. It turned out to be this adorable bubbly woman named Nika who needed some "personal girl things". Hearing this, the guys awkwardly turned her over to me and my friend Haley. We gave her the basic sanitation needs, toothpaste, toothbrush, tampons, deod. etc... Thanking us profusely for everything, she put everything into a black trash bag and slung it over her shoulder. As we stood there I was struck by that image, this black trash bag and this woman. This black trash bag. That was all that she had in the world. Everything. And she was grateful. No home, no stability, security, no place to rest. Just this black trash bag.
That's why I'm here.

Does anyone want

I dunno. I just don't know.
I hate making decisions like these.
where should I go to school, when should I go. Is this what I really should be doing. Is this really what God wants me to be doing? Maybe I should just flip a coin ya know?
all right it's decided. I'll flip this sad little 1972 penny.
Heads I go to Milligan this fall.
Tails I go sleep in a box in China.....
bummer. cardboard it is.

Life is Exciting.

Life is exciting. I'm just wondering where life is going to take me, where God is going to lead. Vast, with endless possibilities, the world is before me. Not to say that I have these grand visions for my life, I don't. It's simply that there are so many cultures to taste, so many personalities to meet, sunsets to drink in, changes to happen. I want to experience so many things, dive into life. And beyond all this, I have the blessed promise of the presence of God Almighty. How wonderful. Beyond words.