I have to admit. I was wrong. I was told by my faculty mentor that going to Colorado was a really bad idea and that Spring Break for graduate students is not a break and should be used to catch up on schoolwork, and that if I go I am only going to stress myself out more.

I admit. I started to believe him.

I was wrong.

Instead, I just experienced a week of rejuvination that I could have never truly planned. Because of a week in God's country with God's people, living a real life and growing even closer to "my Abilene people," my stress level is about 5% of what it was and I now have the energy and perspective to face the next four weeks with confidence. Days of snow-shoeing in the natural quiet of a snow-covered forest, flying down hills on a sled, walking the sidewalks of a quaint mountain town, throwing snow at each other, praying together, praising God together, pushing cars out of ditches together, cooking together, and the alone times of walking the quiet road in the mornings all combined to recharge a soul that was about to explode with the frustration of the artificial life. Hanging out with the elk was cool too.

Plus, not only was it a week of quality time with my Abilene "family," I got a delicious dessert of Alabama folks on Saturday. This, my friends, was a great week.



P.S.: Ruth has a great blog entry about the trip.