So much evil

Hotel Rwanda was the family movie the Carroll's watched tonight. So much hatred, so much violence, so much injustice. It is such a powerful movie, but what do you do with this message? I am the American mentioned in the movie that sees the terror and cruelty on the news and continues to eat my dinner. What can be done?

There is evil, pain, and suffering in Abilene, too.

Alicia is a victim of evil. Her mother did drugs while she was pregnant with this now four-year-old child. She barely walks, her bones are as brittle as egg shells, she has very limited language, and she is exceedingly unstable emotionally. She also has a precious smile that melts my heart. She can say the word "book" and "sheep", and sometimes "cat". Alicia plays peek-a-boo and gives slobbery kisses, and when she hugs, she leaves some snot on you.

Joey is yet another human child who has seen far too much evil in his life. There is no father around, and his mother gave him and his siblings to her mom. The grandmother is exhausted and passes her babies from one person to the next. His expressive vocabulary consists mostly of curse words and "shut up". The latter I hear about 10 times each hour. This young boy attempts to steal something from the classroom each day, and he wears a smug smile when he thinks he will succeed in the theft. He bullies those who are weaker on the playground. Everywhere we go, he waves his hand to every passerby and says, "hi, Joey" as they ignore his effort to be noticed.

Adrianna's life was stolen from her when her mother beat her with the force that would injure an adult when she was only seven weeks old. She is now deaf and blind and functions at a 0-12 month level. This three-year-old baby barely walks, does not respond to touch (or visuals or sounds), does not even goo and coo, and is still bottle-fed.

These are only three of my eleven "students" whom I worked with everyday this semester. They are all so dear. They have made me cry on numerous occasions- they break my heart. Evil and hatred are so evident in the stories of my children as they were in the film we just viewed. Their lives are hopeless, and I am helpless. I can love and I can pray, but I want to do so much more.

Bitter Sweet

The End.

The undergraduate/college chapter in my life is over. No more papers, no more mandatory reading, no more projects, no more journal articles, no more clinical practicum... until August 21 when my classes begin at the University of Texas at Dallas. Finishing college is so refreshing. (sigh) Ahh!

However, this graduation reminds me of a batch of cookies Keith's friends brought over. They looked so delicious with pink icing and sprinkles- mmm sugar cookies! After we took a bite, our faces surely showed our disgust- I think the precious girls baked these cookies with more salt than sugar! It was definitely an unpleasant surprise.

One "minor" detail I failed to consider while celebrating my last few weeks of classes was the fact that my friends are all flying away to have their own adventures. My great community of friends is splitting apart, and the likelihood that we will reunite seems too slight to nurture a mere hope. My dear, good friends will remain a part of my life (that's the plan), but, our relationships will be maintained through phone calls and facebook- we won't live in a two mile radius of one another and be able to walk to the other's house for dinner or tea. Weird. And the relationships with people that I care for and run into on campus, but don't deeply know, will probably be completely dropped.

One of the main reasons I chose to attend ACU was to build a community of friends that will endure throughout my life. I knew from the beginning of my Freshman year that my friends' paths and mine would part, but this parting kind of snuck up on me. I was consumed by the "sweet" anticipation of graduation and neglected the "bitter" reality. And now, although I'm thrilled to be an ACU alumnus, the bitter part of graduation has left an unpleasant taste in my mouth.

Roommate

My pleasant afternoon was interrupted by a disappointing phone call yesterday. A wonderful girl, and my potential roommate in Dallas, informed me that we would not be able to room together. The news was disheartening, and the hope of finding a new roommate was dim.

Today I left our Saturday morning coffee to attend a waffle breakfast with some friends. Katie was among the 40-or-so college students there. We became acquainted with each other while we were still in high school and volunteered at Big Brothers/ Big Sisters, and she was also my neighbor in Gardner Hall. After short discussion, we realized that we were both moving to Dallas and in need of a roommate. The Callier Center, which is where my classes and clinical practicum will take place, is actually on the campus which Katie will be attending. She had just put a down payment for a one bedroom apartment, but upon finding me, she called the apartment complex and discovered that a two bedroom apartment was available.

I must admit, I had my doubts that I would be able to find a roommate in the short amount of time before I leave for the big city. God definitely helped me out with this uncomfortable matter. He provided a good, studious girl and a first-floor apartment (for my piano) within twenty-four hours! I am overwhelmed by God's goodness in this situation!