Carried

My mom's boss and one of the men I most respect and admire in the world wrote on my Facebook wall today. The first phrase that he wrote has been sticking in my mind all day: "May the Hand of God carry you all the day long."

What rest. What peace. To me, that phrase sounds like the epitome of what it means to be cherished, to be loved. And right now, that sounds so good it brings tears to my eyes.

I have allowed myself to be busy, to rush, to worry. I have placed things in my own hands instead of leaving them in God's. I have hurried from moment to moment, planning and fretting and figuring. I have lived and lived and worked and worked and rushed and worried. Thankfully, God has hushed me to remind me of the truth.

I learned this summer that I want God's will more than I want anything else in my life. And that still holds true. But a lot of times in the hustle and bustle of every day living, I jump ahead of where God has called me now, in this moment, to the problems I foresee in the future - problems that, when I get to them, may not even exist any more. This way of living is just exhausting. In the last few weeks, I have been able to slow down a little (work was calmer, I wasn't traveling), and God has been reminding me of some things.

First of all, I am His. Above every other "title" that the world has given me (or perhaps that I have given to myself), that one, of belonging to Him, is the most important one, and really the only one that counts.

Secondly, I run myself ragged trying to be responsible and do what I think needs to be done, and God stands there with His hand outstretched, shaking His head, perhaps smiling a little at my foolishness. But He always snatches me back, stops me in my tracks. I am Martha, so often, trying to fix everything before it can go wrong, trying to be God for various people and circumstances and occasions. And God constantly has to say to me what He said to her - "Sara Beth, Sara Beth, you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed - or indeed only one." Then He continues, "Come, choose what is better. Give Me these foolish things that burden you, and I will give you rest. I am the potter, and you are the clay."

What abundant life! What joy and rest and peace and freedom! I can rest and let my Father do His will.

So may the hand of God carry you all the day long.

Brussels for the Weekend

Last weekend, while not a typical one of my semester abroad, was probably one of my favorites! OK, I say that about nearly every weekend, but this last one was great for a very different reason.

I stayed in Brussels. I have a number of papers due in the next two weeks, including a 20 page one for my Nazi Germany class and 13 pages for my Intercultural Communications class. I also had a paper for Furman due on Saturday afternoon.

Friday rolled around, and a few of us decided to adventure to the Parliament Library. We made our way to our workplace, which felt weird since I wasn't dressed in work clothes and I had my backpack. We discovered where the library actually was, and walked into a hidden gem! Seriously, it is great!!! The entire ceiling is made of windows, so natural light comes pouring in. There were rows of tables for you set up at, or a couch area if you so prefer. Its great. Not too crowded, reminds me of the Furman library in the morning. We all settled in and got to work.

Around 1, we took a lunch break and headed to my favorite restaurant in Brussels: the Parliament sandwich shop! Not only can you get sandwiches here for a grand total of 2 euros, but they are delicious! It was a great lunch break, and then we headed back to the library until 5 to get more work done.

On Saturday, Cameron and I ventured to a cafe nearby to work for a while. That afternoon, we continued working at our apartment until around 6:30, when Mary Grace, Cole, and Sey came over for dinner! We cooked pasta with pink sauce (thanks a million to Mrs. Short for sending that over!) and just sat around the table for a while, eating and talking and laughing and just relaxing. That is probably one of my favorite nights in Brussels. It was perfect. After a while, we moved to the living room/board room and turned on the TV. This has been done a grand total of twice before Saturday night. The first time was the day we moved in. The second time was really random, Allie turned on a show about tigers? We didn't really watch it, but it still counts, I suppose. We found a few English shows, which was nice.

While it was a weekend full of homework, it was also really enjoyable to spend a "normal" weekend in Brussels. Dinner with friends is always great, and it made me look forward to more fun times, both here and back at Furman.

Fall Break

I have no idea how I am going to talk about fall break. It was far too wonderful to fit into a blog post! Sorry, I am warning you in advance that this will be a long post!

Adair, Leah, me, Cole, and Theresa at the top of the Reichstag

The 10 Days of Incredibleness began when our whole Furman group boarded a plane for Berlin. Cameron and I sat next to an interesting and nice Belgian named Dauwe. We talked to him the whole flight, which was nice. Anyway, we made it to our hotel that night and settled in. I loved our hotel! It was so charming!

Tri Delts with Poseidon

I won't go through everything we did everyday, but I do want to mention my favorite parts of Berlin. Walking in the Brandenburg Gate area, seeing the lines that represent where the Berlin Wall once stood, was so cool. There is a great Holocaust Museum right next to the Gate. It is exceptionally welld one, and it offers a wide array of personal stories of Jews during the Holocaust. It was very moving.

Brandenburg Gate

I also really loved the DDR museum! It was like taking a glimpse into daily life in the German Democratic Republic. I was very impressed with how the handled the history. For so many people, life behind the Wall is their past, and for many it isn't a very happy one. The museum did a great job of displaying the past in a tasteful way that was almost nostalgic, just as most people around the world look back on earlier times in their life. At the same time, it sisn't hide the difficult parts of life or the extensive use of propaganda. Anyway, it was a great museum. we all had fun trying to dance the Lipsi and exploring the model apartment.

MG and I being silly in front of the Reichstag

We also visited the Stasi museum. We had read the book Stasiland by Anna Funder, and it was amazing to see many of the things we had read about in her book. Our tourguide through the museum was also interesting, and he told us many of his own experiences growing up in East Germany.

Adair, Allie, Shannon, and I goofing off in front of the Victory Monument

I also got to see Robin while I was in Berlin! That was so fun. I am so glad I got to see her and give her a big hug!

THRILLED to be hanging out with Robin!

There are tons of other incredible parts of Berlin, but those are the things that stand out most in mind. On Tuesday afternoon, some of us borded a plane for Rome! We arrived really late and went straight to bed. First thing in the morning, we headed to Vatican City. We snagged a bunch of "golden tickets" and got in line for the papal address! It was really amazing to see the Pope. Even though I'm not Catholic, I have enough Catholic background and enough appreciation for Church history to recognize the significance of this figure. It was cool to hear him speak and to be blessed by him (along with my future children, sick family members, and any relics I had brought with me).

Inside St. Peter's Basilica

After the papal address, we explored St. Peter's Basilica. Wow. I don't even have words. Michaelangel's Pieta has always been my favorite pieta, and to see it in person...The whole building is incredible. We then took a break for the best gelato ever. Soon it was time for our tour! we heard the history of the Sistine Chapel and wandered through the Vatican Museums. The tour ended at the Sistine Chapel. It is so crazy to see things in person that you have heard about your entire life. The Sistine Chapel was in many ways different than I imagined. It doesn't really feel like a chapel anymore, mostly because everyone is talking (despite the signs saying, "Silence Please") and taking pictures and it is super crowded. But it was still incredible. Seeing the Judgement Day painting was incredible. Seeing all of Michaelangelo's work made me appreciate what he did even more, especially knowing that he did all of the actual painting himself and it only took him four years!

Sitting on the Spanish Steps

That night we headed to the Trevi Fountain. I may or may not have burst into a few Lizzie McGuire songs (actually, I kept saying in Rome how I wanted my "Lizzie McGuire moment," you know, where I was mistaken for a pop star? Haha). The next day we explored the old parts of Rome. We went to the Colosseum, which was very emotional. Seeing it and knowing what happened there was very moving. I am really thankful that I got to see the place where so many were killed for their faith. It was hard, but so good at the same time.

Cross at the Colosseum

After the Colosseum, Mary Grace and I wandered through the Roman Forum, the temple of the Vestal Virgins, and many other ruins. Then we met up with the group and walked to Piazza Trastevere for lunch. I had some of the best pizza of my life, and it was even better sitting on a fountain looking at a beautiful church. Then we headed across the river to the Pantheon, which I loved.

Green door outside the Pantheon

Afterwards, we headed to what became my very favorite part of Rome, Piazza Navona. There are artists everywhere displaying their work and painting, musicians play, and the fountain bubbles in the background. It was such a cool area. I walked around for over an hour, looking at art and just taking everything in. It was perfect. After a great dinner, we headed back to the hostel to pack up.

Artists on Piazza Navona

We took a train on Friday morning to Florence. We grabbed some breakfast and then went to the Uffizi museum. It was so cool to see paintings I had studied in my Art History class (Mrs. Badham would have LOVED Florence). The Birth of Venus was perfect. After the museum, we grabbed a great (and cheap!) lunch and headed to the Academia Museum. Now, I loved the Uffizi, but if you have to pick, choose the Academia. Wow. There was a Bartolini exhibit that I could have spent hours in. Bartolini has been one of my favorite sculptors since high school, and to see his statues with their eloquent facial expressions is to understand a little of the person he was sculpting. It was incredible.

The "Orphan Fam" in Florence

After the exhibit, we walked out and there in all his glory was the David. Oh my gosh, y'all. I just stared. It is more breath-taking than you could imagine. Mary Grace, Anna, Adair, and I sat and stared for almost an hour. There is a reason the David is so famous, and he is worth every bit of his fame. Incredible.

Pont Vecchio

That night we grabbed dinner at 13 Gobbi (translation: 13 Hunchbacks). It was so good! So fun to laugh and talk and joke around. The enxt day we got up, grabbed breakfast, and then hit the markets for a little while. Then we made our way into the Duomo. This church is so beautiful! After the Duomo we grabbed lunch, and then Mary Grace, Adair, and I headed to the Santa Maria Novella, another stunning church. then we headed up to Piazza Michaelangelo. This was quite a hike, but worth ever bit of it! On the stairs leading up the mountain, there are the stations of the cross, which end at the monastery on top of the hill. the view from the piazza was breaktaking. So beautiful! Afterwards, we wandered up to the monastery and poked around the chapel there.

Enjoyign the view

We then met up with everyone for another fantastic dinner. It was such a great trip, and I loved every minute of it. Leaving on Sunday was definitely difficult, but in the words of Anna during her toast to the trip, "We'll always have Italy!"