Retreating...

Attended Impact 2010 in Des Moines with 25 awesome high school students and 3 amazing leaders. Here is a random summary in list form because it's so much easier to unload the jumble in my brain when I don't need to find a way to tie it all together in a narrative.

1. Jarrod Jones

2. Rooms on the 22nd floor. Broken elevators. Student in wheelchair. Thank you, Lord, for people who know how to fix things that are broken. Eventually.


3. 1 Corinthians 13:7 Lord, help me to persevere in love. Help ME to PERSEVERE in LOVE. *pounds head on table*

4. Before I state the following, I want to say,"IT WAS ALL WORTH IT AND I WOULD DO IT AGAIN." I took six Ibuprofen the morning after rollerskating. As soon as the retreat was over yesterday, I allowed myself to actually feel the even more intense aftermath and ended up taking 1/2 a stolen Darvocet. (Stolen from Mara's wisdom tooth prescription. Not stolen from, say, a MediCap pharmacy. Christmas trees? Yes. Pharmaceuticals? No.)


5. Talked too much in small group. Ugh. Why must I do that? *sigh* I really am awful at leading small groups. Seriously. I should be banned from ever doing that. *laugh*


6. Tasty pastries!

7. Northwestern's Black V has two very funny members. Just two, though. Or maybe I was just tired?


8. Pens don't particularly care for glossy paper. That might be a little known fact.


9. Buzzword!


10. Drunken hotel guests. Thank you, Lord, that I had no students with me on the most awkward elevator ride of my life. *laugh*


11. Spaghetti Works!


12. Family turmoil. It's not so convenient having your heart break when you can't come home.


13. Minato is adorable. She squeaks and sighs a lot when she wakes up.


14. Dear Wendy,


I apologize in advance for giving you a hotel bill with a big grease spot. It is the fault of the Marriott muffin in my book bag. I wrapped it carefully in napkins, but it still found a way to somehow wreak havoc. I do bear some responsibility, though, given the fact that I smuggled it from the hotel in the first place. And darn it all, it ended up being chocolate chip instead of blueberry.


Sincerely,
Cinnamon


15. Dear Marriott,


Quit tricking people with your blueberry-looking chocolate chip muffins.


Very Sincerely,
Cinnamon


16. Iowa can be very cold. Thank you, Lord, for the genius of skywalks.


17. When you request Family Force 5 or TobyMac from the rollerskating DJ and the only song he has is "Gone" by TobyMac, the obvious answer is to dedicate it to Pastor Gabe while he finishes up his time in Saudi Arabia. Wish he could have heard his kids cheer when he was given a shout-out. *smile*


18. Assault by foil ball!


19. No Carcassonne. :'(


20. "Loving people is simply our love for God made public." ~Jarrod Jones