* tiny but powerful *

Today was a big wedding-planning day, what with (separate) meetings with both our reception site coordinator and our officiating pastor. It was a bit intense but good to see what we already know and what we still need to decide/get done. Interesting that the meetings happened to fall on our 50-day landmark! Wow, 50 days... :)

I'm also starting to tackle the disaster zone that is my apartment. It totally deteriorated into various piles (some neat, some not so neat) over the last couple months. Now the task is to identify, categorize, sort, and either throw out or pack in a box. I'm going to start moving gradually into our future apartment in a couple of weeks, since my current lease is ending and also so I can minimize the amount of stuff I need to get done after the wedding and before school starts again. We'll be living in Sunnyvale, pretty close to my school (I'll send out new contact info when the time comes). I'm excited about our new place! I'm told I should hog all the closet space before Brian moves in after the wedding. ;)

It's fun to finally be able to focus on the wedding and getting moved. As I've told a couple people recently, I feel like all year I've only been able to do a little bit at a time, just enough to "keep the plates spinning". I've been itching to CLEAN THE DARN APARTMENT but just haven't had the time. Some of you know that the first thing I used to do after a midterm was clean up my room! It makes me happy. :-D So now this is pretty awesome, even though it does involve some icky tasks. And I normally hate moving (and still do), but as moves go this one should be relatively unstressful, since I have a couple weeks to spread out all the work. It's also nice not to move in at the same time as Brian, so I can spread out all my junk and get it organized before he brings in all *his* junk. The timing has all worked out pretty well.

Off to be productive! YAY!

After a week-long marathon of grading, grading, and more grading, I am finally DONE WITH THE SCHOOL YEAR!!! I can't believe it. My mind is still cranking and trying to find the next thing I need to get done. (Well, actually, there is still stuff I need to get done, but nothing more than involves both students and deadlines. I need to check in textbooks and assess damage, for example, but that's cakewalk compared to the last nine months of neverending lesson planning.)

I definitely couldn't have done it without Brian, my Super Duper Helper who does all the totalling for my test scores (via computer spreadsheet, of course) and staples all my packets and brings me food and kicks me awake when I zonk out and otherwise just provides moral support when I'm too depressed to look at my students' wrong answers anymore. THANK YOU so much!!

While I'm at it, here's the running list I've kept all year of the wonderful people who have in some way helped me with my teacherly duties: Justin, Eric, Melisa, Hannah, Grace, Beth, Allie, Mindi, Minna, Kari, Katie, and Felix. Thank you all for supporting me in concrete ways -- it helped me make it through that day probably more than you realize! (I actually don't remember adding anyone lately, so if I missed someone please let me know!)

I've said it before and I'll say it again: I could only have made it here carried by God's grace. I still can't believe I made it to the end of the year.

Soli Deo Gloria.

This morning, at the last Staff Meeting of the year, our principal concluded by leaving us with a challenge for the summer. He wants us, as a staff, to see if we can come back having memorized Philippians 2:1-18.

I honestly am not sure whether I'll be able to do it, because I've never been great with memory verses (not that I've tried all that hard). For that reason, though, this is a great challenge for me. I've always struggled with trying to recall the exact phrasing of Scripture or where exactly in the Bible something is mentioned. It's something I know I should really work on - having more consistent, meaningful, and lasting growth in the Word.

Anyway, it was a very inspiring way to end the year.

¹So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, ²complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. ³Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. ⁴Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. ⁵Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, ⁶who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, ⁷but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. ⁸And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. ⁹Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, ¹⁰so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, ¹¹and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

¹²Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, ¹³for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.

¹⁴Do all things without grumbling or questioning, ¹⁵that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, ¹⁶holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain. ¹⁷Even if I am to be poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrificial offering of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all. ¹⁸Likewise you also should be glad and rejoice with me.