how do you measure a year?

This is the final installment of a 5 part blog series. To start from the beginning click here. To read part 4, click here.

One year ago today I woke up in Scotland; in the room my friends had so graciously let me stay in the last month or so of my time there. The morning was rushed, and while I wish I had had more time to say proper goodbyes, the rush helped me focus on catching flights instead of who and what I was leaving. However, the weather was appropriately stormy. I still look back on that day and get teary eyed.

Like I said, I woke up in Aberdeen, Scotland, but I went to bed that night in Sacramento, California - after touching down and wandering through airports in London, England; Calgary, Canada; and San Francisco, California. Despite all I had seen and done and all the places I had gone in the weeks before - not to mention the year before; I was neither prepared for nor really thinking about the next year. That day I was still trying to process the past year. So much of me wishes I had taken the time to blog or at least journal about it in retrospect; as I have this year.

I wanted to be more profound in this 1-year post but despite looking back at the intervening year in the previous four posts, I have little to say - in a conclusion-ary manner, about it. It has been fantastic and hard; with moments of pain and joy. There are many more things that have been happening in my life this year, that I need to write about at some point, but it'll have to wait.

I think there are only two things I can and want to say to round out this (my first blog) series.

The first, has a couple parts. Part one: whether we're spending a year in a foreign country or a year at home, a lot happens in that 365 day trip around the sun. And therefore, at least for me, (part two) reflection is vital, and spending time to learn from the joys and trials that have come our way and celebrating them or mourning them is something I want to make a point to keep doing; although probably not in epic 5-part blog serials. I'm so glad I was able to take this time to look back on this year; thanks for looking at with me. I'm also glad that I was in a place where I was able to see how the puzzle pieces of the past year start to fit together.

The second, is something I've already said: that God's plans for our lives, when we let Him lead us, can be so much better than anything we can conceive. And my prayer is that I continue to lean into that in the days, weeks, months, and years to come.

Wow!

Hello Dear Readers,

If you've been here from the beginning of this grad school process, then you'll know the story I'm about to tell - in which case, just hang on for a bit, the latest news/announcement is coming shortly!

Back in November/December of 2009 I noticed that one of the ads on my facebook account was telling me to go study in Scotland. Thinking that it was for some undergraduate study-abroad program, I ignored it.
When, about a month later, it changed it's tune and started to advertise getting one's Masters in a year in Scotland, it regained my attentions. I don't think I'd ever followed an ad from facebook before, but I couldn't help it. It took me to this website for the Saltire Scholarship. I started looking at the different schools and programmes which worked with this scholarship, and after quite an interesting search found the one that captured my imagination: the Taught MLitt in the Novel from the University of Aberdeen. To make a long story short, I applied, was accepted, postponed my enrollment, spent a year trying to save, raise funds, and apply to scholarships - this one included. And today, after a couple months of waiting, I got this:

Thank you all for your prayers about this and the many other scholarships! I'm so blessed to have you all praying for me and my journey in this way. And tonight I intend to celebrate by doing what I've been doing on Wednesday nights this Summer - going to Downtown Disney to go swing dancing!

allons-y!