Starbucks, Rifles, Karaoke and Porta-Potties

So this week has been awesome. I feel like I have lived a lifetime in the past 11 days.

My highlights so far:
-Learning to manipulate a barracks bunk bed so that I don't wake my snoring roommates with the sound of metal hitting metal as I climb to my sleeping place
-using my metal wall locker as a make shift night stand fully equipped with the necessities... surefire flashlight, water, and my Bible...(my ipod stayed on my ears at all times in order to drown out the snoring roommates)
-Realizing that modesty goes out the window when your only option for cleanliness is to suck it up and get used to a group shower where there is absolutely NO privacy
-Being able to wake up 5am to ensure that you actually make the scheduled "eating hours" at the chowhall being grumpy about it but then realizing that for the next 6 months you can just wake up and have an egg white omelet, oatmeal, and all the fruit you want and not have to lift a finger.
-Having the opportunity to learn to suck up my pride and my own sense of smarter than thou and follow orders that I think are ridiculous but I realize are the rules so I have to follow them.
-Standing in formation with a bunch of contractors and other non military and making fools of ourself as we sloppily march up a hill in formation and create our own cadences
-Being surprised on the plane as I realized that the annoying thing hitting the back of my ankles over and over again was the barrel of a really big rifle
-waking up in the middle of the night from the sound of boots marching outside of my tent
-walking in the cold to get to an OUTDOOR bathroom and shower only to find out the lights have gone out AGAIN and realizing that you have to wait til the morning before you get to be clean
-Getting excited that your shower trailer actually has CURTAINS!!! Oh what a happy day that was
-Sitting in the middle of an MWR and seeing a lit Christmas tree, watching soldiers sprawled across recliners watching 'Munich', listening to the sound of soldiers talking to loved ones, and hearing the glorious sound of the clicking of fingers on guitar hero guitars
-Listening to horrible singing during the live outdoor karaoke night in the middle of the communinty area
-Sitting in Starbucks with my friends, my Americano, my Laptop and forgetting that I am miles and miles away from Dallas
-Listening to the sound of our feet trudging across sand and stone mixing with the voices of a gospel choir as we walked past the chapel to dinner
-Laughing like I haven't laughed in years with some of the coolest people I know and realizing that they care about the same people that I care about and that now that we have taken this journey together we are going to be bonded forever
-Seeing a shooting star in the middle of the Kuwaiti sky right when I needed reassurance


Today I had my best day in weeks...God was EVERYWHERE.... in the people around me, in people's emails, in my thoughts, in nature... EVERYWHERE

The sunrise was like the sunrises that you see on prayer post cards... rays of light shining into the clouds like I have never seen, I got reassurance from a friend that I need to stay fast on the path I have been on and not falter, I met some people who gave me the reassurance I have been seeking from the Lord in regards to my ability to do my job successfully, during dinner I bowed my head in prayer for my sister and me before dinner, said Amen, and opened my eyes to find my three friends (who never pray before meals) around us making the sign of the cross and opening their eyes also... Praise the Lord for totally moving!!! I realized today that no matter what is going on around me or what I think might be the reason for my being here... that as I prepare for my flight tomorrow which I am kinda antsy about as I keep hearing stories of mortars and gunfire... I need to just realize that the Lord brought me here so that I can live my life, I need to live day by day and not worry about tomorrow or the challenges I might encounter. I need to focus on loving the people here and being Faithful to my Father. Today I have just felt this crazy sense of joy in realizing that I am back on the right path... the Lord had to move me to mold me and I am grateful for him doing that cause already I feel alive again!! Today has been Awesome I just can't describe it...