Time Flies

I just took a look at my blog and realized that it has been over three weeks since I posted anything personal here. I am sorry to have let it slide for so long, in case any of you actually read this! Do I have a good excuse for neglecting all of you my dear friends??? No I really don't except that I haven't had much interesting to say!

It sort of started three weeks ago when I was on jury duty and served as a juror on a rape/ kidnaping trial. During that week I was pretty busy trying to fit in work, time with Nicki and time at the court and I couldn't talk about the trial so there wasn't anything interesting to report that week. Then when it came time to deliberate and come to a decision I found the experience very distressing and yet incredible and for once I just wasn't able to share it in words here. It was a very convoluted story of three homeless alcoholics who's stories did not match each other or the police stories except that there had been lots of beer and some sex. I didn't find the trial subject matter difficult because sex is about the last thing that embarsses me or makes me cringe but it was the more mental struggle of deliberation that distressed me greatly. Thankfully we were all allowed to take notes during the trial and during deliberation I had to work through my notes combined with the photos that we were given of the people and the camp where the incident took place before I was ready to come to a conclusion. It was facinating to me how differently all of us approached the deliberation and also how differently people applied the principle of "innocent until proven guilty". In the end I was in the position to either join my fellow jurors and convict or hang the jury and yet I still wasn't quite convinced that the defendant was guilty of everything that he was charged with but I couldn't do anything about that. I did a lot of praying and struggled a bit before I came to peace with my job as a juror which was to only judge on the evidence presented and on the letter of the law. From the letter of the law he was guilty and in the end it was unanimous. I came away from the experience with a very powerful and personal feel for how wonderous the mercy and grace of God is because if we were all to be judged by the letter of the law we would all be gulity and sentenced to death. Thank heaven for repentance and forgiveness.

The next week I was not chosen for any trials but I had to get caught up at work. Then last week I started the Nursing Assistant course which has been sort of boring because of the teaching method but this week it will get better because we start getting to practice and then after that we will be working in a nursing home for the next two weeks so the worst is over. I will be interested to see how I actually like the work. I think I will but time will tell. I must it admit it sort of amuses me to see some of the young girls turn all red when we talk about having to give bed baths and perineal (genital) care. I hope it doesn't upset them too much when they actually have to do it in person because I think some of them will be really good NA if they can get past that. I have sort of a weak stomach when it comes to vomit and gagging so I know that is going to be my personal challenge. Not sure how I am going to deal with that yet but I am sure I will find out sooner rather than later. Sorry if that grosses you out...just one of those facts of life!

Other than the big stuff I haven't been getting to skate much in the last few weeks but I have been getting to spend some time with friends, have been making it to my voice lessons, I have given two speeches at Toast Masters which have gone well and my gramma and grampa from Arizona were here for a couple of days. I have also been getting some reading done and I finally got my room organized enough that I can live with it for a while. Putting up some more shelves for more books helped much in that direction!

I have also been watching the videos by Bruce Wilkinson about the Prayer of Jabez and The Dream Giver. Both of those series have been a wonderful blessing to me and I hope someday to find a small group that is interested in studying them together because I would love to watch them and study them with a small group...there are so many things I would love to discuss with others that he brings out in both series. Have any of you ever seen them?? If not I really commend them.

I guess that just about does it for anything substantial that I have to say.....

So do any of you have any exciting plans for doing anything fun during the rest of the summer?????

I will be going to S. Dakota in Aug. for campmeeting and there are a few of us who are talking about renting a van and driving, stopping in Yellow Stone but we'll see how that plan actually progresses. Other than that I am just planning on hiking and hoping to make it to the fair and maybe a few other community events around here. How about you?????