Coming Soon.....

From my understanding, this is the time of year when many international students are visiting the U.S. Embassy in their country to interview & apply for visas to come to America for what could be the opportunity of a lifetime for many of them. Some, will already have made it through the interview process, obtained their visa & are now preparing for a huge move to the United States. In less than a month, 100-200 new students from all around the world will step foot onto the grounds of Lindenwood University. Most likely, I will meet just a small number of those new students. Still, I will greet new faces. I will eagerly await getting to know some of them at the airport as I'll pick them up & give them a ride to their new "home" at the college. I will meet some for the first time at an ISI meeting & others, I'll meet through various people. Though I am missing so many of the students that are no longer here, I am anxious for those that I know to return from their summer travels & for new students to arrive. I am excited for the year ahead & for the memories to be made up the road.

The Miles Between Us Do Not Stop the Memories

I was told this would get easier. While in some ways it has, many days are difficult. I know you are not here. How could I not notice? You may think I have moved on, that others have taken your place. Others have entered into my life but no one will ever be you. Though you are not here & adjusting to that truth has become easier, I miss you no less than the day you left.

I miss having you sitting beside me in Busch Stadium to watch the Cardinals play.

I miss dancing with you.

I miss going to ISI Dinners with you.

I miss not being able to take you to the Zoo in warmer temperatures.

I miss playing in the snow with you.

I miss helping you prepare Nepali meals.

I miss sharing those meals with you in my home and your home.

I miss relaxing in Spellmann with you - sitting on the sofas outside of the computer lab or down in the Connection.

I miss helping you with papers, projects and reports.

I miss waiting for you to appear at ISI meetings.

I miss you showing me your favorite Nepali music videos.

I miss you trying to teach me Nepali.

I miss you laughing at me as I tried speaking Nepali.

I miss seeing you looking sharp in your traditional Nepali clothing.

I miss getting to celebrate birthdays with you.

I miss your hugs.

I miss you telling me of your hopes and dreams of the future.

I miss hearing about those you love the most - your family...your mom, your dad, your brother, your sister.

I miss being honest and sharing things with you.

I miss your trusting me & your opening up & sharing the difficult times of your life with me.

I miss you being here to care for me, give me advice, encourage me & attempting to protect me from those that aren't the best for me.

I miss playing board games with you.

I miss your being at my house till 2 or 3 in the morning while I try to keep my eyes open.

I miss your not wanting to leave our house to return to school.

I miss asking you questions to get to know you and then hearing your responses.

I miss you waiting for my answers to those same questions.

I miss you making up your own questions.

I miss grocery shopping with you.

I miss going to the movies with you.

I miss allowing you to get in the driver's seat of my car and drive around.

I miss the smile that came upon your face when I told you that you were doing a good job driving.

I miss driving down the road wondering if you would ever decide where you wanted to eat.

I miss hearing you say, "Let's move."

I miss hearing you say, "Let it be."

I miss eating Indian food with you.

I miss having slushies with you.

I miss going to Steak & Shake with you.

I miss your going to church with me.

I miss your being in the Realm with me.

I miss searching the Loop for things with you.

I miss singing Taylor Swift songs with you ("You Belong With Me", "Romeo & Juliet", "White Horse") in my car.

I miss hearing you sing James Blunt's "You're Beautiful"

I miss hearing you sing Guns & Roses "Knockin' on Heaven's Door"

I miss hearing you sing Bryan Adams' "Everything I Do, I Do For You"

I miss singing "Must Be the Money" (Monkey!!) with you.

I miss your getting excited when my phone would ring & play "Boom Boom Pow"

I miss picking you up at the airport after returning to St. Louis.

I miss you always wanting my camera so that you could get "snaps."

I miss you making me pose for photos.

I miss walking with you, hiking with you...you patiently waiting for me.

I miss sitting on the grass of the riverfront letting the cool winds blow through our hair.

I miss fighting with you in the kitchen as we got icing all over each other...and water...and ice.

I miss photo shoots with you.

I miss your holding your country's flag proudly while allowing me to join you for a picture.

I miss you asking me about my day at work.

I miss showing you the St. Louis Arch.

I miss beating you at tennis on the Nintendo Wii.

I miss singing Karaoke on the Wii with you.

I miss getting to watch the joy on my parents faces when they see you.

I miss watching you play football (soccer).

I miss hearing you talk about Cricket.

I miss seeing you uneasy with "Easy" around. Funny time.

I miss picnics with you.

I miss sitting with you on a park bench and sharing our hearts through conversation.

I miss driving you to the India Market and your introducing me to new things there.

I miss hearing you say, "I love you."

Mainly.....I just miss your being here. I miss everything about you. Miles may be between us but my love for you is no less. My thoughts of you are not less frequent. Actually, my thoughts of you are daily. You may not be here but you can rest assured that I certainly have not forgotten you. Each day, these things above or the thinks I think of. There are many more that I did not even mention too. They come to mind and I smile, laugh or fight the tears. You are remembered. You are loved.

I Wanna Be a Billionaire

"I wanna be a billionaire, so freakin' bad. Buy all of the things I never had." These are the first couple of lines to a song being played on the radio regularly today. Go figure that immediately after our pastor preached on materialism & covetousness, I would hear this song on the radio. Though I am not a fan of the vast majority of the lyrics, I must admit that the tune is rather catchy & I cannot get the song out of my head. I know a few of the other lines from the song sporadically but don't really know the song. I just find myself singing the opening lyrics repeatedly. Pastor Bob asked on Sunday morning if God were to never give us another blessing, would we be satisfied with what we have. I was thinking for certain that I would be. I am not a materialistic individual...of course I'd be content. Until....he mentioned relationships. If I were being honest, I don't think that I would be satisfied if I were to never marry. I long for that precious gift. Facing the hard truth, I know that this is continually an area of my life in which I must ask God to give me peace & acceptance about. Moving beyond that aspect & back to the thought of wanting more money & more possessions, I did examine myself for a moment. Thankfully, my parents raised my sister & I emphasizing that money was not the most important thing in the world. Yeah, there were times when Haley & I requested certain things (Umbro shorts, Adidas jackets, Hypercolor t-shirts, a Nintendo, etc.) but for the most part, neither of us have sought to have the best of everything. As I think about the things I own, I truthfully cannot even think of one thing that I own that I would not easily be able to walk away from if need be. Of course, I'd like to be able to have my computer to communicate with everyone around the world but if I had to give it up, I could. Aside from my laptop, I don't have anything that I absolutely couldn't bear to be without. Days ago, one of the international students and I were in a discussion about my car. The suggested that I should love my car. I let them know that I like my car but I don't love my car. I'm pleased to have a car for getting to & from & I'm pleased that it is a nice car but the car is not my life & the car has no soul. The car is not my baby, child or anything else. The car is temporary & I choose to invest more time in people. All this being said, I'm thinking about that billion dollars. Would I love to have a billion? Of course, who wouldn't? Most likely, I will never be financially wealthy (& if I am it will not come by way of lottery or gambling since I do not play) & even if I were, I don't see myself wishing for the finer things in life. No, I don't care about an expensive car, diamonds galore do not appeal to me & I don't need a mansion in Malibu. Instead, I would immediately quit my job & embark upon a journey around the world. To do so, is a dream of mine. A dream that I am doubtful will ever become a reality. Even still, that would be my wish. While traveling, I would not only want to see the many sights but also be able to leave a lasting impact on all that I would encounter...an eternal impact. For now, I'll choose to trust that God has given me all that He wants me to have. I may not be a billionaire in the eyes of the world. My bank account does not have zero after zero behind it. However, I am rich....much more wealthy than I ever could have imagined. Rich in my walk with the Lord, rich in family, rich in friends. Rich in those things that truly matter.