From One To The Other

So, today has been an extremely nerve-wracking day. You would think after having both skydived and bungy jumped, and traveled to a random country without knowing anyone that I would not have been nervous on my first day back at Colorado College. Unfortunately, you would be wrong. However, loss of sleep managed to calm my nerves as I was too dazed to be affected by the stampede of acquaintances that I have not seen in 8 months. Having a schedule again has also helped calm my nerves, yet has frazzled my brain, which is wondering why I ever missed the intensity of the block plan. To break another nerve, I finally entered my essay into Nicholas Kristof's Win-A-Trip on the day of the deadline. This essay has been a long time coming (the contest was announced a month ago) and I do not believe I have much chance of winning. However, I can say that I learned a lot about myself and confirmed the general direction that want to head in life. It also gave me a lot of new ideas for this blog and youtube page, so get pumped!

Today's photos are of Spirit's Bay in Northland, New Zealand. For the Maori, it is where the spirits of the dead head off for their journey to the afterlife. Considering the pain, rubble, and shock in Haiti right now, I feel that showing images of this amazingly peaceful place brings a little hope that though we are in pain on earth, those who have left us are no longer suffering (and are perhaps, better off).

Stand Tall

Cape Reinga, New Zealand

Let Your Heart Take Over Your Mind

I decided not to post a photo of mine today because I cannot find one that adequately expresses my emotions. I am utterly devastated by the earthquate in Haiti, a country, that friends and family know, I have been trying to reach for 4 years. Now, more than ever my body yearns to follow my heart there. For a country that was just beginning to feel the signs of slight progress and hope, complete destruction. Minds cannot begin to comprehend the situation, but perhaps hearts can. Please think with your heart rather than mind and help out the way you feel is best, ignoring this tragedy is not an option if you listen to your soul.

Here are some links to help us all help out (during the initial response and long term recovery) and stay informed:
Anderson Cooper
Nicholas Kristof
Yele
Partners in Health
Huffington Post
Care.org
Charity:Water
Heifer International

First Meeting

Well, I'm not too sure who, but people say that "they" say the holiday season is the busiest time of the year and I'm not going argue. Christmas at my grandmother's house, full of introducing the puppies to the wonders of life outside of a kennel (see above), unpacking from Colorado College's spring semester and Auckland University's last semester, then packing to head out to Colorado again has taken up my life the past couple of weeks. Add in a road trip from South Carolina to Colorado during a winter storm and record lows (don't remind me), plus moving into a new house, and it's been slightly hectic over here on my side of the blogosphere. However, no worries, I am back on a schedule and ready to post some great photos to visually stimulate your emotions. So, basic message of this post: bookmark my blog and check it every day for updates because I'm back to work!