"Ralph did it."

I came across this picture and couldn't pass up the opportunity to take you back to one of the most hysterical moments of college: November 2006 in the White House, not to be confused with George W.'s current residence. Although no first lady has ever darkened its doors, our White House was proud to be the home of Miss Auburn--same difference, right? For those of you who may not know, the White House is a huge, aging, terribly insulated, ten bedroom house where 9 of my friends and I lived junior and senior year of college. We not only shared the house with each other, but also with a host of rats, roaches, and even fleas (for a summer). The house forced us to sport flannel pj's in the winter and much of nothing in the summer. There was no happy medium-- we were either freezing or hot as blazes. Yet, despite its shortcomings, I thought the house had tremendous character. And although I did my share of complaining, I loved every minute of it.

Back to the picture. Well, one November Sunday morning we awoke to find an apple in the middle of the kitchen floor. It was not a whole apple. In fact, it had been bitten into several times. Maybe a rat took a bite? Maybe it just somehow mysteriously rolled out of the trash can onto the floor? We hadn't a clue. Shortly after that Julie, Mary Lindsey, and Lauren discovered what looked to be the business of a small dog. Yes, there was a mini stool sample lying on their bathroom floor. It was too large to belong to a rat and that sent us all into a whirlwind. Not only had this unwelcomed creature eaten our food, but it had also gained the nerve to use our bathroom and apparently spend the night. We left for church with an uneasy feeling and hoped we'd find this thing when we returned.

After lunch we called pest control and they agreed to come and check it out. We had all searched our rooms and were timid to turn a corner for fear of seeing something we wished we hadn't. In the meantime, Brittany came home from her weekend in Athens. As she unpacked her bags, she nonchalantly glanced over on her bookshelf and let out the loudest shriek I've ever heard. She bolted down the stairs, sobbing the entire way, and we immediately knew that the thing was in her room. In what seemed like a split second, Ben and John David came over with a sack and a golf club, caught the little fellow, and I'll leave you to figure out the rest.An opossum had been tucked away in our house for the entire weekend as if it were a bed and breakfast, and to this day we have no idea how he got there. Not sure if he was actually sleeping or just "playin' possum." If you look close enough in the dark bottom corner, you can see his tail. We were fearful for a while after this incident, but love to reminisce of Ralph, as he came to be called. From that day forward, "Ralph did it" was our answer to everything.

Friends

There are plenty of reasons why I shouldn't start this blog. The main one being that, when summer ends, I may never venture to post another thought until summer begins again, next year. I know that my life will once again be consumed with spending countless hours learning the chemical structure of drugs, wondering how in the world I'm going to make all of them fit into my brain, much less stay there. The days of pharmacy school are returning all too soon, faster and faster as I feel August approaching.

I have had a lot of time on my hands this summer, and don't get me wrong, I am savoring every last minute of it, but lately I have found myself deep in thought. When I say deep in thought, I MEAN deep in thought. Daydreaming if you wish. Lost in Never Never Land. For the first time in my life I am experiencing what it's like to have nothing to do. Now I do go to work everyday and work relentlessly, but when work is over, the question "What am I going to do tonight?" yields a different answer than it normally would during the school year. Having nothing to do means having all the time in the world to just think. Not about anything in particular, but just time to think. So here I am expressing my thoughts. There is nothing on my weeknight agenda besides Wednesday night Bible study and the occasional babysitting job, and I have my friends to thank for that.

Most of them, besides Mary Lindsey and another select Auburn few, have graduated, recently gotten jobs, started grad school, and even gotten hitched--did I mention they now live in different cities like Charlotte, Birmingham, Atlanta, New York, and soon East Asia? It has been a rude awakening for me, especially since I shared the renowned White House with 9 other girls for the past 2 years and lived in the dorm the 2 years before that. The comfort of being surrounded by people 24/7 is something that I certainly took for granted, which leads me to the purpose of this post.

I consider myself blessed beyond measure with great friends. Whether we were hosting guests at our house, sneaking into the football stadium, watching movies in our pj's, burning popcorn during childhood sleepovers, celebrating birthdays, or yes, even streaking down Wrights Mill Road (you know who you are), the Lord used each and every dear friend as a significant instrument in my life. 1 Corinthians 12:4-7 says, "There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men. Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good." The Lord manifested wisdom, love, peace, sacrifice, compassion, selflessness, joy, kindness, patience, and a host of other qualities through the girls that I am thrilled to call my friends. I have grown to appreciate each of their silly quirks as little glimpses of the Lord. As you can see from this picture, I will never eat tortellini without thinking of Lauren and her "unique" way of nearly flooding the entire pot with water to boil it just right.

Although miles and different phases of life may separate some of us for now, I can rest in the fact that we share a common foundation in our Savior, Jesus Christ. He is the one assuring constant in an all too unassuring world. I visited Briarwood Presbyterian this past weekend while I was in Birmingham and Harry Reeder mentioned God's providence in all things. You would be more inclined to understand if you'd actually been sitting in on this sermon Sunday morning rather than listening to me butcher it. I'll attempt anyway. To me, God's providence signifies his hand at work in ALL aspects of ALL things. I know that the friends who are so strategically placed in my life are not a coincidence, they are a mere illustration of God's divine providence. So, there you have it. I've actually started a blog. Thanks to my friends for skipping town and leaving those of us here in Auburn to think-- and study before too long.