I am painfully aware of the fact that i am in need to update, but you see i haven't been home very long enough to do so. i now have a few entries planned (pictures and all to make it more interesting) but they will have to come another time. Probably after i get back from camp next week. for now i will leave you, at least, with something.
so our pool in our backyard is very old so just recently (about 2 weeks ago) we installed a new liner in it. (we being my dad, Carmen, and i) this invovves many things but also, a lot of sand. So my dad went and got lots of sand filled into the bed of his truck and had to go and refill it a few times. When we got done though we realized that we had bought just a little too much so my dad was going to go and dump it. Before he did though, i was bored, hopped onto the bed of his truck and started messing around with the sand. before you know it i have created these truck-bed sized "masterpeices" in the sand. They are just little doodles. (and yes i am aware that my unnamed guy has no eyes, i just didn't feel like giving anuy to him. I guess he's blind. Maybe he should've lived in Bible times then Jesus could've healed him.)
I am extremely aware of the fact that i should update, but nothing really interesting has happened to me lately, so that's why i haven't. If you want a quick run-down though, i pretty much have track practice everyday after school. We've had a few meets, but i'll wait to maybe tell you about one when i've actually done GOOD for a change. See, i have something wrong with my hip, seen a Physical Trainer, hopefully am getting a deep tissue massage soon to get my knot out.
With each new day it's getting hotter and hotter and i am reminded more and more that i only have 40 something more days till school is out and a little more till camp! Today in track we played ultimate for a while and if that didn't get me pumped i don't know what can.
Tomorrow i am going to the Indiana FC banquet! i am very excited about that! it'll be my first year attending any of the FC banquets and my official first year date is Ashlyn if you ask her, she'll agree with me.
Anyways, i think i will take some pictures from that. Maybe that'll be my next 'coming soon' post. We'll see.
Love
Hannah
sweet. I've gotten into running lately, and my hip has hurt some. I finally figured out that it was the muscle or ligament or whatever on the very front of it, not the actual joint that was hurting. I'm sure you wanted to know that...:) Will you be at the Beckham's Saturday?
I tried to call your cell today a little after 7pm your time. I think you might have answered but i'm guessing you didn't have a good signal. Well, considering I'm not sure what I'll be doing consider this message your reminder for everytime you get on pleo. Hope you're having a great night, actually you are probably sleeping at this point, so sleep good!
miss keehn...i'm disappointed in you. it's been weeks and i haven't heard back from you. i'm leaving in an hour to fly down to alabama to camp in north carolina and go to the fc camp in georgia, so i guess i'll just see you at indiana camp. then you had better email me. ;)
hey Hannah, i'm already missing your smiling face. this is Dan from camp, you know, the one you enjoyed picking on so much. ;) i hope your doing well! later
I know, it's a scary post, i don't blame you for thinking so, it's what i thought when i first saw it too.
Over the past few days I have thought of about three or four things that i want to update about, and I was having a difficult time deciding just which one I want to update about first. This is very unusual for me because usually it's a amazing thing for me to think of just ONE thing to say, so i decided to just ramble on about everything that has happened of late, and maybe we'll get somewhere with it.
First, it goes without saying that I had a wonderful time this weekend at the Whitsitt's and it was a really good middle of the month 'booster' to hear Gary Henry present a few encouraging lessons. We studied a LOT of the Psalms, but i have to say, this month the studying and encourgement didn't end there. I had some nice talks with Gary who drove me there and got to know a new member of my church pretty well on the ride as well; these were all very thought provoking discussions. I was also pretty excited that i got to say a prayer for the girls devotion discussion class led (very well) by Ariel Whitsitt on Friday night. I am in no way placing myself upon a pedistal by saying this, it actually was a little nerve-racking because of the fact that i don't have much experience with praying in front of large groups since i'm not a guy. I was told though that i had an encouraging prayer though, so i'll take other people's words for it :)
Today, i went for a run with my team like every other day after school, but today was a little different so i want to share my thoughts that i had during my run with you all. Usually while we are doing our ab workout and stretching and drills before our actual run, i have a negative attitude. I usually am saying how maybe i'm sore from the day before's running or it's too cold, i'm tired, i'm hungry (which i always am) or something to that negative effect. Lately i have been trying to not complain as much (if none at all), and i am getting better at maybe not speaking my not-so-possitive-comments out loud, but i still think them. The same things were going on today, i kept thinking about how i just wanted to hurry up and start so i could just go home, and so were my teammates. Well, the two oldest runners who i run with every day decided that we were going to run a rather hilly course today (our 'run for the hills' course, imagine that) and of course the first thing to come out of my mouth was how i had just run that loop twice last week and didn't feel like doing it again. They payed no heed to my complaints though as we started off. The whole time running behind them i could hear their comments to each other about how they had so much stuff to get done because of all their senior work and how they didn't feel good and so on. About two miles into the run though we came across a part of back road that is pretty open and treeless with fields and it hit me, it was really nice out. For a minute i, not consciously trying to, blocked everything that the other two were saying and couldn't help but just look up. For the weather that we have been having lately, it was very warm and spring-like and i never even noticed even though i had been outside for the past 15 minutes. The whole rest of the way back my outlook on the run was completely different. I started noticing how the air was very warm and the sun was shining brightly melting away all the black and trodden snow. I just thought to myself, "Why have i been complaining all these weeks? There really is nothing to be complaining about." I also started thinking about how my experience could be compaired to my life and what complaining can do to it. See, when i was complaining i had been staring at my feet or the road. What is there to see there anyways? All i saw was trash, dead things, and black spots, sort of like the ones that had been staining my thoughts and the attitudes of those around me when i carelessly tossed about my negative thoughts and comments. But if i just took that moment to look up and notice how beautiful everything was around me, then i would realize that it had been there all along, i just had been to blinded by the road where my feet were. I needed to just stop staring at my progress (i mean, my feet weren't going to go anywhere so, why did i keep staring at them as if they were about to fall off?), and to look up and focus on the goal, what was ahead of me and around me.
I also found that when my attitude was positive, so was my ambition. the last few times i had run this road, my two running buddies had beat me really badly and i usually couldn't see them when i got about a mile away from the school. today though, i decided that i would stay up with them and be strong, and guess what? i did! All it took was a little positive thinking and i was staying up with the other two fastest girls on the team ( and they even kicked it up a few notches there about the last mile :) )
I don't really know what the moral of the story is here but you can figure it out, i guess good for you. Maybe though it's one of mine:
--Think postitve thoughts and you will overcome through focusing on God
--Don't complain and you can see the beauty in life
--or maybe a mix of both or maybe you got nothing out of this. The point is i hope that my run today helped you as much as it did me.
God blesses you all, you just have to look up and see it.
Hannah
P.S. I really don't think that the color black does my page any justice right now, and if i could have my way, it would be bright yellow. ;p
Very good thoughts Hannah! It's amazing the good things that come from not complaining, or how much more you can get done if you don't complain and just do it. I learned that lesson forst hand a couple weeks ago.
yup they do. Haven't you seen the group Daniel made on facebook: Thursday night Bible study or something like that? Umm, well I was thinking we could start it out with You, me, and Kels. As far as I know, kelsey isn't busy in the evenings, and she can't read right now. So I think it would be good for all of us. And then whoever else wanted to join us could, your sister, abby, jojo, I'm not saying it just has to be girls either though, so yeah it's an idea:) you can let me know what you think and maybe we can set a day for it:)
it is the National Honors Society which opens alot of possibilities for scholarships and to qualify you have to have a GPA of 3.5 or higher and fill out alot of forms and get teacher recomendations to get accepted so i was pretty excited. mainly for the scholarships
AHHH! *cry of joy* it was? You're soooo super cool! I can't wait till the next barker study to get a picture with you! Girl your voice is absolutely fabulous!
What do you mean I wasn't driving? That was Noble video taping. Okay.....you're right. I can drive and have a whole buch, just not by myself. I could legally get my license April 9, but can't get all the test stuff scheduled untill the 14'th. Watch out!
here its all water and mud, i look around to see what green is left, and all i see are baren trees, water and more mud. and now its raining again...i hate being wet.
I am just so anxious about this summer that i just couldn't help myself. A few days ago i sat down at the computer and made a (rather long) list of everything that i will be doing this summer. Some things aren't happening until August, yes 6 months away, but just thinking about them makes me feel a little closer to all my brothers and sisters out there. Yes, you. I am happy to announce that i only had 2 conflicting dates, and the activity that caused the conflict was (of course) the only thing on my list that didn't involve seeing my 'family'.(like all the 100 camps that i am going to, teen lectures, recharge, and others). It was my school's cross-country camp interfering with Recharge weekend at the Whitsitt's. I would NEVER want to miss an opportunity given to me to go to the Whitsitt's, but, we'll see what happens.
And then yesterday, i was just so excited that i couldn't help asking daniel when the very first 2008 Beckhamball was going to be. (He informed me that a few guys were thinking about going in March but i'm afraid that that will mainly be the 'hard core' guys that would never let me be on a team, not to mention i'm not sure if i would SURVIVE if i was on their team. lol. Besides Ashley, i think i might just be the only girl who would show up anyways. lol
haha, that's okay. actually, i'd really like to talk to you about that (or anything) but with everyone else around it was kinda difficult. you pointed out that i was shy and then got a taste of it. so i'm sorry about that. we'll have to talk sometime...even though we keep saying that and never do. we really will have to soon. :)
I hadn't really been sure of what to update about recently, so that is part of the reason for such a long delay. For that I apologise. I had been thinking and I really wanted to do an update about maybe some awesome verse that I had read recently or a good thought that I had had( I don't have many of those ) but I haven't really come across any, or the ones I did, I wasn't sure how to put in words. But then, just this last weekend, I had so many wonderfully good and encouraging things thrust at me that it was overwhelming!
It shouldn't be very hard to realize from the content of many other's blogs around me where I went this weekend. I spent my weekend up in Indianapolis at the Whitsitt's singing and annual talent show, like I have done a few times. (The singing and Bible study, not the talent show, this was my first time.) Since everyone else updated about the weekend, I didn't really think I wanted to, but i just couldn't help myself! It is just too WORTH mentioning that it wouldn't feel right not to!
My sister and Ashlyn and I were allowed to ride up to Indy with Gary who so graciously accepted our request ride with him in the famous Whitsitt's van. It was a little snug, but all 14 of us fit in there and had a wonderful time. For most of the ride up there we goofed off and swapped stories to pass the time (which went by so quickly!), but I think that next time we ride up there we have decided to have a little study group. That would be good.
As always, the singing alone could've brought me to Indianapolis. It is such a wonderful thing to be able to sing with people who you know only came because they wanted to and really sang with meaning in their hearts. Not to mention the fact that it always sounds so beautiful. The next morning we ate our delicious breakfast, courtesy of Debbie Whitsitt and the few of those who pitched in, followed by our Psalms study lead by none other than Gary Fisher. Now, I have been to quite a few Bible studies in my not-so-long life, but the one we had on Saturday was way up on my top 10 list. There were so many good comments made, a couple of the better ones were made by mere teenagers! Wow! It was so inspiring! It really helped hit home just one of the many scriptures that we studied.
"From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise..." Psalms 8:2
So maybe they weren't infants, but they were young people that some adults have been christians longer than they have even been alive, and they had wonderful thoughts.
The talent show was..interesting. Haha, there were some funny ones, some talented acts, and some...not so talented acts ;P Some of my favorites were Chelsea Babcock and Molly's duet, Jady Copeland, Podunk and Noble, and Jamie's.
When all was said and done, it felt like I was back at camp, and how do we always end camp? of course, in song. The singing in the shrine room was one of the most breathtaking things I think I have ever experienced. It also felt like camp when it was time to say our goodbye's. Some of these were to people that I maybe only see a few times a year at most. And then of course there are those that leave before you are able to say goodbye to them.
I am going to take something from that weekend. I am going to take those wonderful feelings, encouragements, and lessons and use them to improve my life and the ones of those around me. I am going to try to not let this experience be put in the back of my closet like some old seater that I never wear. I will choose to put on that sweater and wear it proudly, even if it happens to be one of those atrociously hideous ones your grandma knits you for Christmas, because you know that it was made with love and kindness.
May God continue to bless you all,
Hannah
P.S. None of this would've been possible without the Whitsitt's and I just wanted to say thanks, if they happen to see this. I appreciate all that you do for us young people and how you always think about us and not leave us out.
haha I love that picture. I'm also going to try to keep the thoughts and attitudes we've studied recently at the FRONT burner and not the warmer drawer.
That weekend was great minus a little drama (which we will not discuss) Im sad I didnt get to give you a ggodbye hug! oh and i loved the birthday song song sang by 3 "special" boys!!
hahaaaaaaa! i dont really even know why i just wrote that but oh well! so when am i getting my birthday letter? and i think i get a cell phone for my birthday!!!!!!!
