Cowtown 10K

I registered for the Cowtown 10K today! Training starts January 5th. The race is the February 28, the day after my birthday. Don't you think that's a great way to start out my 28th year? ha.

Anybody wanna join in the celebration? You can register too! Consider it a birthday present to me if you do.

Happy New Year!

A New Version of Sad

Today I told my principal that I will not be returning for the 2009-2010 school year. His reaction was that of shock and disappointment. I guess that's a good response, better than indifference or joy. : ) It was one of "those conversations." You know, the kind you'd do anything to get out of, but there's just no way around it. I really struggle with people pleasing, and I know he had no clue this was coming. It was hard to let him down.

It's even harder to think about leaving the kids, though half of them will be moving on to 9th grade. They expect me to be there. They always ask, are you coming back next year? I'll have to answer that question differently this year and that breaks my heart! I'll probably end up crying in front of them and then they'll know for sure that I'm a lunatic.

Telling my boss that I'm leaving after next semester was the next logical step towards working as an artist and sharing my talents with a broader community. I have never lived life this way before. I'm afraid of what I don't know and there's A LOT I don't know in this situation. It's the perfect opportunity for me to learn to really trust God and allow Christ to lead me in ways I have not allowed him to in the past. NOT EASY!

One Holiday to Another

I sincerely apologize to my blog whom I have neglected for over a month now.

It's time to follow up on the sugar skull extravaganza. As you can see we had many a successful sugar skulls. However, I was lazy and didn't make as many colors of icing as I could have. It was an extremely messy undertaking and I decided to simplify for my own sanity. The party was enjoyable. I was especially pleased that Sheila made the trip over. She is a kindred spirit!

Thanksgiving 08 has come and gone. I am sad to see it go because I had such a memorable holiday. My good friend Tandy and her husband Dwight live in Anchorage, AK where he has been stationed in the army. He is in the process of transitioning out of the army and they are packing up to move back to Houston. When I bought my plane ticket to Alaska I didn't know if they'd be moving or not. So, I'm glad that I was able to take advantage of their last holiday there as I have never been to Alaska before.

The trip was a quick one, but who can complain about good food and good fellowship? I missed being with my family on the holiday, but I am so thankful that God has blessed me with friends who are as close as family. I could not have invented better people than Tandy and Dwight in my own imagination!

So, in honor of Thanksgiving and the spirit of giving in this holiday season I want to say THANK YOU and I LOVE you to all of the people that God has put into my life. You are the experience. You are part of the abundant life that Jesus promises.

So... I'm the WINNER! (and other sugar skull non-sense)

Ha ha. I found out a few weeks ago that I did receive the Teacher of the Year award. CRAZY! I was very honored and shocked. It seems humorous to me in light of the fact that I'm not planning to return next year. None-the-less, God is good and it's all because of Him that I've made it this far in wild and wooly world of public education.

On a completely random unrelated note... I made sugar skulls earlier this evening! I'm having a Dia De Los Muertos party on Saturday night. We're going to decorate the skulls which is part of the holiday tradition. I would have taken a picture to accompany this post, but alas, I left my camera at school. I'll be sure to take photos after they're decorated. I snagged this photo from the web link up above.

Adios!

Affirmations from God

While I was in Lubbock this weekend I randomly picked up a real estate guide. Low and behold... on the front page was a listing for a retail space with apartment units on top (exactly what I envision for Sparrow Nest). The address was 701 Broadway and I figured it had to be somewhere near downtown, so I decided to go and see for myself.

I found the building and slowly pulled my car over to get a closer look. The cornerstone caught my attention and I remember it almost like I was experiencing tunnel vision. I could not believe my eyes when I realized the the name on the cornerstone was "Stewart". CRAZY!!

Don't get me wrong, I'm not jumping to conclusions here. I have no idea where I'll move to start the studio. I'm completely relying on God to open those doors for me. I do believe 100% that the building was God's way of saying "stay the course... you're headed the right way!" It was an experience that will be forever burned in my brain. Thank you, God for this adventure!

On another note, I was nominated for "teacher of the year" by one or more of my colleagues. The leadership team at our school will make the final vote in the near future. The list of nominees includes some AMAZING teachers who have many years experience on me. I'm just happy to make the short list!

A New Calling

I had a huge Ah-hah moment the other day that is going to become my new topic of conversation. I've shared this plan with several people... but now it's time to really get this out there. I wrote the following to a very close friend and I'm going to re-post it here as a commitment to what I believe God is calling me to next. Please feel free to pass this on to whomever and give me any feedback that you might have. Prayer is always welcome!

So basically, I want to have an art studio in an urban/downtown area. 3 days a week open the studio to people for free. 2 days a week close it and work on my own art. I'd like to get a place that has an apartment or living space attached. The open studio would be run like a ministry focusing on people who are in poverty or living on the streets. However, all people would be welcome to come. I'd like to create an environment that fosters meaningful conversation and ultimately, conversations about God.

This all came to me so suddenly. I was doing a bible study about completely committing my life to God...reading verses from Matt about God protecting and providing for the Sparrow. Before I started the study I was feeling very distracted and anxious. I really felt the devil trying to distract me and keep me from giving that time of study to God. So, I prayed for God to bind up that force and send it away and I started the study. I just felt God saying, TRUST ME MORE! In the past, the thought of giving up a steady income has terrified me. Now, I feel like I'm ready to trust God to provide for me and a ministry. I don't care where the money comes from or what the place or the ministry actually ends up looking like. I don't even care where it is for that matter. When I visualize myself trusting God enough to make it happen I can't help but smile ear to ear. It would be a dream come true for me. It would be in line with my deepest desires and I believe it is in line with God's will for me.

I've always known that I'd like to do something like this, but for the first time in my life all the pieces seem to fit together. I'm open to the possibility and I'm totally okay with God leading the way and completely shaping the finished product. Right now, I've decided to start talking about it with anyone and everyone who will listen and just see what kind of connections I can find. I know God will open the right doors and the right minds.

I also know that the devil will be attacking me through pride. I don't want to be come self-righteous in my dependence on God or feel like I am better than others for trusting in him deeply. I know that could be a stronghold if I don't constantly stay in check. I want God to keep me aware of my personal motivation and to keep that motivation pure... that he would be the sole source of my desire to see this happen.

I'm going to finish out the school year and this lease and then, with God's help I'll move on to this adventure. Until then I'm going to keep talking, looking and planning... but most importantly, I'm going to keep listening to Him. He is the beginning and the end... with God all things are possible.

As a testimony of how the Lord is working in my life I want to call it Sparrow Nest Studio (which is really an idea that came from Jesus, not me). Keep this in your prayers and let me know what you think.

The Sparrow

I was reading about how God protects the sparrow... a verse and concept I am very familiar with, but somehow this time it resonated with me more than it has in the past. So, I think the sparrow will be a reoccurring theme in my art. This is just the beginning. Thank you God for self-expression and metaphors. They're brilliant!