This past weekend I hosted a dinner for some of my friends and it was so great! I think I have a pretty awesome place to call home and this was the first time I got to really share it with others. My set up has an outdoor patio and rooftop access -- bliss -- and I finally finished the majority of decorating so I felt like I had to show it off. Really though, it's just nice to finally have everything in its place for the most part. Needless to say, I'm going to really miss my apartment because so much of my stuff that is a part of me, in a sense, is there and I'm going to live in a place that has nothing very soon.
Another unique thing in life is that I work with a chef and so I got up the nerve to have several courses at dinner. Mind you, I am no chef. I think it's fun to cook and bake but I am definitely not a trained professional! I had success and I had failure. My friends were gracious and said everything was wonderful. Thankfully, the point was not to have the most amazing food ever but to get to know my friends better. I feel like that happened.
My chef had just made Panang shrimp curry for a chef tasting dinner that was 10 courses long! I helped her serve and dish up all those courses, but the curry stuck out to me so I wanted to make that. I didn't know what else to serve with it so I went with a curry theme! I had an appetizer with curry in it, currywurst, as well as a salad with curry vinaigrette, and truffles with curry powder in them for dessert ...so yeah curry, curry, curry! I don't think any of my friends had any clue but it was fun for me, haha! *I say "my chef" not because she is actually mine but because she's my landlord and boss and I love her to death! She teaches me so much and not just food-wise. She is one of the most patient people I have ever met, for instance.
The dinner was a success in the end, and it reiterated the fact that it's okay to ask for help and that it is sometimes necessary. It also brought back many memories of me cooking for friends back in grad school as well as having people over to teach how to cook or help me bake something. Those are some really great memories.
That's one thing that has been cooking lately, literally. Something else that's been boiling as of late is the fact that I am learning so much and am having my eyes opened in new ways. For example, I have had the time to get together weekly with a sweet friend and really delve into both big and small life issues while we read a study together. This has helped immensely in many ways! I also recently had the pleasure of sitting down with two older couples from church who gave me several insights into life. I had basically asked a question regarding how to relate and talk to others who just are different from me in some ways. What they had to say was timely and good. One gentleman even said that it sounded like God was using me, which is true! Praise God! But there's no doubt about it, I need Him to know what to say and do. *I know this example is vague. It's just that so many things I've been learning dovetail together that it's hard to pick just one thing to say and it's also difficult to write out now because there seems to be many moving parts. It's definitely a "let me thrash it out in person/over the phone" kind of thing.
On a lighter and much different note, I am learning that people are really interested in my love life and are slightly confused. Apparently one Facebook post is all that is needed! Haha! At least some have asked for clarification, which I don't mind at all and actually appreciate. I can appreciate them trying to set me up, too :) And who knows what will happen while I'm on my next assignment!
Which brings us to the final thing that has been stewing in life: my going to my next work assignment in Iowa. People keep asking if I'm excited... Yes and no. Of course it's exciting to go somewhere new and start something that I think will be a good experience, because, big picture-wise, I feel good about it since I prayed and got the job just like the SD one and since I've been reading about (and consequently putting into practice) God's peace. Still, there is the other side of me that doesn't want to work (yep, a month off will do that to ya!) and just wants to stay home where it's familiar and I have a routine.
However, getting out of my bubble, in any facet of life, enables me grow and is a shining light to the fact that I need to lean on Christ. I also think that I was made for this, in a sense. My brother once told me that he thinks I adapt to change quickly and well. Beyond that, a friend once told me he was giving me the spirit animal of a Chameleon because I blend in well with my surroundings. In essence, I adapt to change. It's pretty awesome to hear what other's see in you!
I pray this continues to ring true along with my newest tagline, "See you in three months!" After which I hope to hear in each one's way, "Talk to you before then!" I know it will happen, especially since one friend told me he'd miss my Pikachu voice and another reminded me of the truth that it is so nice to hear a friendly voice. Until then, I'm going to keep on trekking, learning, struggling, laughing, smiling, thinking, and more.
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