Mocha Delight

I sense the need to blog.

But what shall I blog about?

I have so many thoughts swirling around in this head of mine, yet I struggle to find one clear point to share on my blog.

Oh, here's one- I'm drinking some very, very delicious hot chocolate right now. I opted for the plain hot chocolate, not my usual mocha due to the time of evening.

: )

Perhaps that's where I will take this entry, and the upcoming few entries, into a discussion on the things I have come to love during this first year of living in Scotland. Some things were already dear to me, but others are newly found. Some are petty, others quite substantial.

Some of you know how much I love a good mocha. This preference didn't really form until after my college years, oddly enough (as most coffee addicts form IN college). I felt the [relative] need for some caffeine during my days as a nanny, and the smell of brewing coffee was enticing more than ever before. Since I had typically spit out sips of plain black coffee in previous attempts, I knew I needed to be creative. So I created, or likely re-created, my first homemade mocha and have been hooked ever since.

Medium strength coffee, a few teaspoons (or tablespoons!) of hot chocolate mix, and a splash of milk (soy is just as good). But not just ANY hot chocolate mix, my friends. Nestle Rich Chocolate is a MUST. Seriously. And for the prime homemade mocha experience, I recommend the coffee be one of the glorious Starbucks blends. That's not as much a necessity as the Nestle hot choc, though, especially on a student budget. But the two do amalgamate so beautifully!

This year in Scotland I have certainly desired mochas on a regular basis, even now in the summer. It is likely due to the stresses of student life, but perhaps also for the comfort while snuggled up under a blanket and reading a good book or chatting with God. In such a cold place, a warm mug between the hands is so sweet and soothing. The familiar taste of coffee and the-best-ever-hot-chocolate is part of this comfort, but the overall combination of warmth, flavor, and soul enrichment is what does it.

I know, it may seem a stretch to link something so petty as coffee to deep, spiritual encounters...but this is just one example of the past year's discoveries of how such measly things can truly draw me into the presence of the One who created my taste buds and my need for warmth.

One of my favorite authors, Randy Alcorn, writes in his book, Heaven:

"Every day we should see God in his creation: in the food we eat, the air we breathe, the friendships we enjoy, and the pleasures of family, work, and hobbies. Yes, we must sometimes forgo secondary pleasures, and we should never let them eclipse God. And we should avoid opulence and waste when others are needy. But we should thank God for all of life's joys, large and small, and allow them to draw us to him. ... God doesn't want to be replaced or depreciated. He wants to be recognized as the source of all our joys, and he wants us to draw closer to him through partaking of his creation. My taking pleasure in a good meal or a good book is taking pleasure in God. It's not a substitute for God, nor is it a distraction from him." (italics mine)

As I delight in the little things in life, I delight in God. And these mochas sure are delightful, although sometimes I have to limit how much I partake during especially stressful times. (Too much caffeine = upset innards and unpleasant jittery-ness). :}

Stay tuned for more thoughts of things that have drawn me nearer to the source of all joy this year.

Moving right along...

...look who's coming now!!!

Nice eyebrows, Kristine!

Sorry, I couldn't resist. This was the funniest picture I could find on my computer. Here's a more flattering one, just so people know your nose is not that big nor your eyebrows that bushy.

My best friend is flying over to visit me here! This is so exciting, folks! She finally gets to see this amazing place, and it will be so good to have her company. Stay tuned for fun stories and photos of our adventures over the next couple of weeks. : )

Keep an eye out for me, Kristine...I may be in disguise at the airport...you missing anything?

I keep hearing imaginary bagpipes...

My parents are here!

I am enjoying their company oh-so-much. We have had some really good food and lots of deep laughs already; they have only been here for about 36 hours. I anticipate a week full of exciting adventures and joyful days.

We went to the highland games here in Aberdeen today which was a great kick-off to their Scottish holiday. All three of us had a wonderful time, taking in the various sights and sounds and even a little haggis, neeps, and tatties. ;) (Two of us, anyway...) We have been home now for several hours but I still keep hearing bagpipes in the distance. It's the strangest thing. I must have really absorbed their sound today. I suppose it's kinda like the lasting sunburn from today (beautiful weather, by the way)- though I'm not longer in the sun, I still feel it.

Here are a few photos from the day. I hope to blog some more while they are here. We have some fun things planned and I will have to clear out my memory card each evening! By memory card I am not referring to my mind, although that may need clearing, too; I refer rather to my camera.

All for now; signing off from bonny Scotland,

jess

Turned Around and Upside Down, but Ever so Thankful

Hello! I am alive and well, all things considered. These past two-plus months have been unbelievably busy, mainly due to my placement which I realize I still haven't told you much about...

A brief explanation is this: I am working in a house with adults who have learning disabilities. It is run by an organization that is spread all across Scotland, providing support for disabled people in a variety of ways including community care. My role is not quite reflective of what social workers actually do in this area, but what I have experienced so far has proven beyond helpful for my future career- even if within a totally different area of social work.

I have learned TONS since beginning there, and I anticipate even more learning as I finish up these last several weeks. It has been enjoyable even if difficult at times. Working with someone who has a learning disability is challenging in a number of ways. I will spare you the boring theoretical, social-worky things I’ve learned, but it has been so cool to finally link together all the things we were taught last semester into practical situations. Best of all, I get some incredibly good laughs at that house! The people I ‘support’ can say and do some of the funniest things. And then there’s the staff…! Really, though, it’s been a wonderful experience even with the trying situations.

This has been a difficult season for me in several ways. I have experienced such an interesting combination of mountain tops and valleys. I do not loathe the valleys, as I know they are necessary and such goodness comes from our times there. As one of Caedmon's Call's songs points out, "valleys fill first." I am finding this to be true. Perhaps I'll share more on this later, but for now I'll move on to a recent event that has left me perplexed.

Some of you know that I bought a lovely old car back in March. I had some amazing times driving it around NE Scotland; it served as a sanctuary for me in this busy season. Driving has always been one of my favorite things to do- a hobby, if you will. I enjoyed every opportunity I had to get out of the city and see the breathtaking sights around Aberdeen. Passing by highland coos, daffodils, and rocky creeks brought a refreshing sense of peace and joy in my deepest parts. I experienced God’s presence in a ‘94 Nissan Sunny, of all places.

Therefore, I do not quite understand why it has been taken from me. For those unaware, I had an accident on the 6^th of June. I initially want to call it a ‘serious’ accident, but that doesn’t quite fit because I walked away without hindrance. So I’ve resorted to calling it a ‘wild ride’. That it was. I am still processing the recent incident and have yet to reach complete resolve within, but I wanted to at least give more details of what happened.

I was on my way home from the house where I ‘work’ (my placement), on a back road that I’ve driven many times in the past month or so. It had been raining and even hailing during the day, but the sun had appeared and things were drying up. I suppose I let my guard down because of this, and I failed to consider that the roads were still quite slick. I approached a bend in the road a little too quickly, and I must have hit the brake too hard; I started to skid, or “fishtail” as some call it, and couldn’t gain control of the wheel. I panicked, let go of the wheel, and closed my eyes as I tucked into myself and cried, “Jesus, Jesus, Jesus….” I do remember being jossled around and can vaguely recall the ‘ride’; I still am unsure whether I blacked out for a few seconds. I now understand what people mean when they say it goes so fast yet feels slow motion.

According to Fiona, the blessed lady came to my aid, my car spun around, the back going up onto an embankment, then rolled once and again halfway, landing on the roof. In fear of the car catching fire (I’ve seen too many bad movies…), I turned off the engine first thing. In the back of my mind I was also worried that a car might come screaming around the corner and slam into me as my car lay across the opposite lane with me in it. I was suspended by my seatbelt for about 2 minutes, although it felt like an hour, until Fiona and a kind man helped me unbuckle and safely crawl out from the uncomfortable position. It was hard to convince them to help me out; they both feared moving me in case I was severely inured. But I HAD to get out. That was the most terrible feeling, hanging upside in my car and not knowing what could happen next. I felt very close to passing out from the shock and the tight seatbelt combined. My stubbornness proved beneficial for once!

To wrap it up: the paramedics came, the crowd slowly fizzled out, and the firefighters stood with puzzled faces as they looked at the overturned car and the walking girl. Eventually I was taken to the hospital for minor inspection, all the time praising the One who spared my life and softened a potentially damaging wreck. An hour and a half later, my sweet friends picked me up and I enjoyed their company and a delicious, homemade Norwegian dinner- Salmon has never tasted so fine. : ) [Thanks, Olav, Christy, and Moray!]

I still sit in amazement at how protected I was in this incident. God truly hedged me in. The name of Jesus is powerful, my friends. I cannot explain why my life was spared and others so often are not. I am struggling to understand why such a great provision has been removed from my life; I only got to drive the glorious countryside for 2 months. But all in all, I know God is GOOD. I trust He knows what’s best for me. I believe He sees the bigger picture. In the words of a song I love, He gives and takes away, but I will choose to say, “Blessed be Your name”.

Like I said, I have yet to sense resolve in this, and it has been a difficult week with mixed emotions of gratitude and loss. If any of you have words of wisdom from similar experiences, I welcome such. Apart from sore muscles I have nothing to complain about! However there is some bruising of the heart that will take some time to heal. Thankfulness and all, it was still a slightly traumatic experience.

Here are a couple pictures to document the crazy event. Praise God with me!

One of the things I will forever cherish is this… there was a pair of jeans folded up in my backseat that evening, and a few days after the accident I wore them. As I put my hand into one of the pockets, I felt something sharp and pulled out a tiny shard of glass, obviously from the windshield of the car. I had not a speck of glass in my hair, on my skin, nor on the clothes I was wearing that night, yet a tiny piece of glass made its way into jeans folded on the backseat. This spoke to my heart, as silly as it may seem. God knows the number of hairs on my head, and He wasn’t about to let shards of glass harm me. ;)

That’s the gist of the story for you. I realize it may be a bit long-winded for some and not detailed enough for others. My hope in sharing it is that your heart would be drawn to the loving God who saved me.

In other news, my parents will be here in Aberdeen on Saturday! I am stoked! I haven’t seen them (apart from Skype conversations via webcam) since Christmas, so I am really, really excited. These 6 months have flown by yet crept by so slowly. I will get to see them and the rest of my family (and friends!) in August/September, when I go home for my brother’s wedding, but it will be so fun to let them see my life here in Aberdeen. I’m giddy!

In July I will have another special visitor… : ) Kristine is coming!!! Oh my, lots of excitement that cannot be contained! If any others would like to visit, just hop into her suitcase, okay? I’m pretty sure it has one of those expanding compartments...

I will end with some more photos of recent life here… I continue to LOVE living here, even if I’m back on the city buses again. ;)

beautiful sunset on one of my last country drives

Duffus Castle in the glorious sunshine!

Although I no longer live along the River Dee, it continues to inspire me.

I await the final word on the car, whether it is redeemable. It's a rather stinky situation either way, but I'm praying for God's best to happen.

I am thankful.

Have I got some folks for you!

I had the wonderful opportunity to travel out to Banchory (about 15 miles from Aberdeen) last night to hear some folk music. The duet was Duncan Chisolm and Ivan Drever, who have apparently been around for years but I've just now discovered them. And let me tell you- I was in love! With their music, that is. I believe there are many moments in life that are foretastes of my eternal home- Heaven- and this easily made it into my category of 'glory moments'...those "as it should be" feelings we get when seeing a stunning sunset, laughing from a child's hilarious comment, or hearing skillful musicians play their hearts out.

So here is a link to a video of this duet playing elsewhere (thanks to another fan) to give you a wee taste of their beautiful music. This is a more upbeat tune but they also deliver some amazing slower paced songs. Take a look on youtube for more samples. : ) [I am clueless as to how I can post a video onto my blog, and I haven't the time to figure it out...so, any tips from you genius bloggers?]

All is going well. I will aim to update sometime this week...
jess : }

No, Scotland's calendar is no different...

Well, thanks to my math-wiz brother, I need to correct my calculation in the last post...I have been here nearly 7 months, which is 5 months short of a year, not 3. So thank you, Drew for gently notifying me of the awkward calculation (although it really shouldn't require your extraordinary intelligence to notice my mistake). : ]

Also, I forgot to mention how extremely blessed I was to receive a video from Kristine with a variety of messages from friends in Belton! To all of you who were able to participate: thank you for your thoughtful words of encouragement and, from a select few, your complete goofyness! I laughed, I cried, and I declared out loud that there's no place like Belton. ;)

I will leave you with a photo of my canine love, who has made herself queen of the Heaton household (at least among the other dogs). Thanks, Mom and Dad, for treating her to some bluebonnet bliss. : )

Oh, and a photo of a beautifully sunny St. Andrews I enjoyed while Bonnie was busy smelling the bluebonnets on Saturday.

Love to all. I will try to post again soon about my placement, which finally begins tomorrow!

Marching right along

I'm sitting here without much feeling of creativity- not even an ounce of enthusiasm to at least flower up my long-overdue blog post. But I have intended to write something- anything- for several weeks now. So here I am. : )

I look at the calendar and it declares that March is now halfway finished and today is the 'first day of spring' (100% confirmed by the weather we had here!) Going by the calendar's declaration I have been here nearly 7 months. That's 3 months shy of 1 year. And I am amazed. I have experienced so much that it feels more like 7 years I've been here, yet my life here has gone by so quickly that it feels like a mere 7 days have passed. How is that?


I don't know what to share about my past several weeks. I suppose I will just pick something that is most recent and forefront in my mind- today. : ) I had the privilege of taking a long walk with a wonderful woman, Katie, who is so very familiar with Aberdeen and, well, life in general. She took me out to another portion of the River Dee where there's a former railway line that folks can walk, bike, or horse along (ride horses, that is...). We walked, and walked, and walked some more, taking in views of the distant hills and all the surrounding scenery including flowers, farms (ever seen a deer farm?), the river, and houses which likely cost more than I'd like to know! Location, location, location.

As we neared the end of our walk, I was gently and so lovingly reminded of one main reason I originally sensed God was calling me to Scotland- to enjoy Him. And one way I enjoy Him is in His creation- the glorious sights, sounds, and smells of nature which absolutely abound here. No, Scotland is no better than Texas (as I'm often asked) but there's just something about the beauty of this place that awakens me, draws me closer to the creator. I can't fully explain it, so I don't expect you to fully understand it, but it was neat to have that moment along the river today which has refocused me on what's most important not only in my time here but in all of life- knowing and enjoying God.

It is quite easy to be distracted from that enjoyment and tugged away by the worries of this world. I needed today. I think this first day of spring might just be symbolic of an inner shift. Oh, sweet relief.



I suppose an update on general life happenings might be desired by some. Hmm...I'll try recap but not drag on with unnecessary details. ;)


I've been on a bit of a spring break, we'll call it. Our classes finished up at the end of February, and we had a minor form of assessment- interviewing a pretend social work client- to make sure we're 'ready for practice'. This, combined with several other forms of assessment gathered over recent months, let our guides know if we are indeed prepared enough to begin our placements. These are basically like internships, minus any payment of the financial kind (I'm sure we'll be rewarded in other ways..). So I've been waiting for about 3.5 weeks to be assigned to an organization for my first placement. (The second placement is next year, after more lectures and stuff.) (Sorry if my parentheses are annoying you, too.)


During my unofficial-but-wonderfully-long-and-welcome spring break I have worked a bit at the cafe, perfecting (?) my java skills. I've just accepted that cappucinos will never be my forte. I'm okay with that; I depend on my highly skilled co-workers for such drink orders. : ) I have also had fun meeting up with lots of different friends over the weeks. I am afraid I've possibly spent a good amount of the money earned from my cafe time, but I'm learning- ever so slowly- to make compromises (i.e. tea instead of coffee, as it's cheaper, or drinking water and imagining it's iced tea). Okay, so the imagined iced tea part hasn't ever happened. But I might give it a try!


I've managed to enjoy the gym's various activities a bit more- braving the swimming pool and getting in some much needed ping pong (or table tennis, as called here). So that's been fun. I hope I can keep up with both once my placement begins. Oh, back to that...I'm due to start on Wednesday. I'm thankful it's finally to begin, yet I will miss the less scheduled days. It's been nice to sleep longer and take time to eat my meals, not rushing around as much. I am still uncertain on the details of what I'll be doing, but it looks like my work will be with adults with learning disabilities who live in a care home. It should be good experience that I don't really have yet. I will likely tell more about it as it unfolds.


I have been learning to play the guitar, too. It's lots of fun but taking longer than I expected. : ) Many good things take time, so I'm not gonna give it up. The more I learn, the more fun I have.


I am beginning to fade, so I'd better wrap up. I won't make any promises about how soon I will write again, but I hope to at LEAST update my photos, finally. Sometimes pictures are better than words, anyway, right?


My love to you all.

Walkin' (or playin') in a Winter Wonderland

As I sit here and type the snow is steadily falling, covering white with more white. It's been over a week now that we've had snow fall nearly every day, and I must say: I can now better sympathize with my family and friends in the northern states who complain of the snow! Don't get me wrong- it is absolutely beautiful and I am not entirely ungrateful for its presence. It just has brought some new challenges my way such as learning how to walk with more concentration and muscle control, so as not to go ker-platt on the icy white cement!

I have greatly benefited from the snow, more than just building up my legs- I've gotten to build a snowman, make a snow angel, and go sledding (or "sledging", as it's termed here) down multiple hills. Talk about being childlike! I have had a blast playing in the snow with my friends. I will aim to post some pictures (in addition to those below) on my Picasa site, but it might be a few days before I get 'round to it.

Last Friday I started back to work at the cafe that hired me back in December. I will work there again this week, and hopefully over the next few weeks I will continue to get some hours in. It's a very, VERY part-time job...only about 4-8 hours per week...but I see it as God's provision for this time, since I can't offer much more time than that but still need the income, however minimal it may be. The cafe folks are very flexible with me which is all part of that provision, I think. It's a neat little place, and I like the change of pace it brings- I'm not required to use my brain as extensively as in my course work (major plus!) I get to interact with a variety of people, too, which is also fun and good.

I am still really enjoying my church here. Although there is a very limited amount of folks my age with whom to interact I like spending time with the people there. And I have been blessed with a group of friends who go to other churches, so that has helped to fill that need for the time being. They are loads of fun and I love the laughs I get with them. : ) Some of us are students, some professionals, but all love Jesus in such dynamic and special ways. Most are British but there are two of us representing America. ;)

I think that's all for now. I just wanted to get another post up before a month went by again! I will write again soon, hopefully with something more exciting?

Now some photos of my recent fun...

Silvia (flatmate) and I made a handsome little snowman one night

Ellen and I used pool floats to sled down a hill..worked better than actual sleds, I think!

Using all kinds of 'sledging' devices with another gang

Vinyl works, ever so slightly...here we are trying a bobsledding technique. I'll let you guess how far we got.

Take Me Down to the River to Pray...

Well, well, well.... I am back in Aberdeen, have been since Jan. 13th. The past few weeks have been a bit of a whirlwind, but I have survived. : )

I had a wonderful time at home for the Christmas/New Year's holidays. It was refreshing to have a break from school and comforting to simply be at home where I am loved and allowed to just be. There is nothing quite like family. And I certainly needed that time with them after being away for several months.

While I was home my brother proposed to his girlfriend, Maria, so that was pretty exciting. : ) It was a fun evening for all, as he had her parents, our parents, and me helping with various aspects. It was a great success (and a great laugh at certain points!) Here are a few photos from the special night...

They are already busy with the exciting task of preparing for the wedding, which will be in September. I should get to go home a month or so in advance, which I am happy about. I can't miss their special day! Plus I might need another family-fix after another few months away. :)

Let's see...I also got to see several of my friends in the Houston area and up in Belton/Temple/Austin/San Marcos area. I should have just classified that as Central Texas, but I like being specific. So yes- had lots of coffee and meals with people who warm my heart and bring me laughter...it was so good! I didn't get to see everyone I wanted to see, but hopefully will be able to see them next time around. I loved getting to meet a couple little babies who were born after I moved here. That was special!

I took up ANY opportunity to drive while I was home. : ) "Do we need milk? I'LL GO GET IT!" It was a blessing to have control of the wheel and take to the open road. I do not, however, miss the busy traffic and the crazy drivers.

It was slightly strange to be home; the 3.5 months I was away just felt like a dream, really. Back to reality, it seemed, when I arrived in Houston. Now that I'm back here in Aberdeen, my time home for Christmas seems like a dream. Funny how that works.

So I am back. Hmmm....mixed emotions galore. I experienced homesickness the first week back like I've never known before. It was tough. Thankfully I had a couple weeks to adjust back into life here before classes started up again. I needed that time but I think it also fostered more loneliness and homesickness than necessary. I don't do well with so much unstructured time on my hands, I've learned. But then again, I really love unstructured days sometimes.

I have enjoyed seeing my friends here again, so that's helped me transition back into a steady state. We started back to class this week, and on Wednesday I nearly packed my bags and said goodbye to the course. I'm much better now, after much encouragement and help from Emmanuel. I am breathing huge sighs of relief every few minutes, as the sources of stress from this week have finally disappeared. My last essay is in and that portion of the course is [hopefully] now behind me, barring any necessary resubmissions.

I should hear soon of where I'll have my placement (internship type experience). I will update you with that when I know something...I am excited to find out where I'll get to put some of this knowledge (no matter how minimal) to use!

I think that's about it for now...here are a few more photos from recent days. I continue to LOVE the river just below me. It has been a source of therapy for me, really. I now read scripture with more appreciation of any mention of 'rivers'. : )

Love to all,

jess