It's hard to get back into writing after taking such a long break
So much has happened since I last posted, I don't know where to start. The holiday season for me was a very strange combination of being good and really hard. I already wrote about the roller-coaster circumstances of wrecking my car and obtaining a new one.
Probably the biggest joy for me with being on staff with Crusade is being in the business of changed lives. The Winter Conference is one of those times that God uses to change a lot of people's lives, so it is always fun, yet tiring to put together and run.
Many staff leave conference feeling exhausted from the lack of sleep, hard work and social overload, but all the excitement charges me up. However, coming back home with a ton of stuff to do has been kind of daunting. I'm leaving town again on Sunday for a training conference in Denver. I'll be getting back on Thursday, yet another week of not being around.
To add to the strange mixture of emotions, I received some really bad news a few days ago. Blake Morestad, a friend of mine from Bozeman, died in an avalanche while skiing in Montana on New Year's Day. His wife Adele is eight months pregnant.
I've never had a friend die before. We weren't really close, but I do know Adele pretty well. We took quite a few classes together, having the same major. I think the primary emotion for me has been shock. I'm not really sure how to grieve. Another close friend was in the same party but was not injured by the avalanche. I need to call him, but I don't know what to say.
Just yesterday I saw a guy that lived at my house for a little while. After talking to him must a little bit, I could tell that he was really emotional. I asked him what was the matter, and he broke down when telling me that it didn't look like the relationship with his fiancee was working out, and that they probably wouldn't get married.
All this has really distracted me. At staff meeting today, when trying to tell people how I'm doing, all I could say is that I'm distracted with everything going on, a lot is on my mind. I have a lot that I need to focus on, too.
Probably the biggest joy for me with being on staff with Crusade is being in the business of changed lives. The Winter Conference is one of those times that God uses to change a lot of people's lives, so it is always fun, yet tiring to put together and run.
Many staff leave conference feeling exhausted from the lack of sleep, hard work and social overload, but all the excitement charges me up. However, coming back home with a ton of stuff to do has been kind of daunting. I'm leaving town again on Sunday for a training conference in Denver. I'll be getting back on Thursday, yet another week of not being around.
To add to the strange mixture of emotions, I received some really bad news a few days ago. Blake Morestad, a friend of mine from Bozeman, died in an avalanche while skiing in Montana on New Year's Day. His wife Adele is eight months pregnant.
I've never had a friend die before. We weren't really close, but I do know Adele pretty well. We took quite a few classes together, having the same major. I think the primary emotion for me has been shock. I'm not really sure how to grieve. Another close friend was in the same party but was not injured by the avalanche. I need to call him, but I don't know what to say.
Just yesterday I saw a guy that lived at my house for a little while. After talking to him must a little bit, I could tell that he was really emotional. I asked him what was the matter, and he broke down when telling me that it didn't look like the relationship with his fiancee was working out, and that they probably wouldn't get married.
All this has really distracted me. At staff meeting today, when trying to tell people how I'm doing, all I could say is that I'm distracted with everything going on, a lot is on my mind. I have a lot that I need to focus on, too.