Walking in Memphis

A Few of My Favorite Things

1) Sitting on my porch drinking coffee and reading the newspaper
2) Being by myself
3) Running early in the morning and listening to the birds
4) Greyfriar's Coffee & Earl Gray Tea
5) Staying up late on a Friday night playing games with friends
6) Real Simple Magazine
7) Long talks with best friends on the phone
8) Cooking
9) Bronte & Austen
10) Receiving notes and letters in the mail

Some Advice for My Kid Brother

By 9:30 this morning, I wanted to go back to bed and start all over again. Thankfully, it is Wednesday; two more days until Friday!

I am in Nashville this whole week on business, and I pray that the rest of my week goes a lot better:

6:30 - wake up call from the front desk but I fell back asleep and woke up at 7:30 - really LATE!

8:20 - called to the front desk for valet to have my call ready by 8:30 so I can be at my business appointment by 9:00 am. (They only have valet here).

8:40 - my car has still not showed up infront of the hotel. Politely ask the attendant if they can bring it as I have to leave. He then informs me that they forgot about it and will have it in 5 minutes.

8:45 - call my client and inform them that I will be late

8:53 - car still not there. Talk to the attendant again and he was just getting it.

9:00 - finally in my car following the mapquest directions

9:10 - lost b/c of mapquest

9:15 - finally on the way to the appointment after looking at my Nashville map

9:20 - behind a police officer going 15 in a 30. Decide to pass the cop since I was still under the speed limit. Pulled over. She comes up to the car, asks for my licence. I ask, "Was the speed limit not 30 mph?" "Oh, you were not speeding. You just ran a stop sign." She then proceeds to ask if I still live in Maryland and I explain that I just moved. She came back to the car, handed back my licence and said, "Miss Stacey, have a great day but please do pay attention."

9:30 - finally at my appointment

A - slow down and look for stop signs!

I now know I am adjusted to humidity......

So, I think that being in the South for three months has robbed me of the temperature I liked to live in. Before moving to Memphis, I loved the cold and hated the heat. Meaning that I always had the AC put on 68.

It is pathetic to think that, last night, I put on a sweatshirt to sit on my balcony because it was 70 degress outside.

What is happening to me? Where have I gone?

My Prayer

Here from the world we turn, Jesus to seek;
Here may his loving voice tenderly speak!
Jesus, our dearest friend, while at thy feet we bend,
O let thy smile descend! 'Tis thee we seek.

Come, holy Comforter, Presence Divine,
Now in our longing hearts graciously shine;
O for thy mighty pow'r! O for a blessed show'r,
Filling this hallowed hour with joy divine!

Saviour, thy work revive: here may we see
Those who are dead in sin quickened by thee;
Come to our hearts tonight, make ev'ry burden light;
Cheer thou our waiting sight; we long for thee.

~Fanny Crosby, 1878

My Exciting Friday Evening

Finish Work
Clean House/Make Supper
Return items at TJ Maxx
Return items at Target
Grocery Shopping
Blockbuster

Finsihed all of this by 9:45 pm, only in time to climb the three flight of stairs to my apartment as thunder and lightening were surrounding me.

Things to Sort Through

Last Sunday, I met with the pastor of Riveroaks Reformed PCA to discuss my transfer of membership. As I sat there talking to him about my life - the highlights and lowlights - a feeling of being scared overwhelmed me greatly. For those that know me well, you know that I will do anything to not be vulernable with anyone. I have a great fear of opening up to others and always been this way. I have just covered it up in many ways.

Joining Riveroaks is emotional for me. I am finally telling myself that this move to Memphis is permanent, and that makes me very sad. The pains of starting a new life is too real at times and combined with me have very real fears of opening up to others is almost too much to bear at times. Often times, I lay awake at night wondering why it is the way that I am. Why do I sit back and just let other talk and say nothing? Why is going on my own somewhere so painful for me?

Lord, help me in this area. I cry out to you to help me everyday. Help me not to use my busy work schedule as an excuse. Give me the grace that I need. Give others the patience when they are with me. Help me, Father!

True Friendship

Is knowing that driving 4 hours to have dinner with someone will be worth every minute you have with them.

The 5k Experience

It is official, I have now completed my first 5k! My brother decided to visit me this past weekend and joined me in the race of 3.1 miles. Everything that you are not suppose to do before a 5k, we did. I forgot about having dinner with some friends from church and, instead of eating the normal pasta meal the night before the race, we pigged out on barbecue and apple pie. Neither one of us got a great night of sleep, either. But, the day of the race was beautiful and being with 150+ other runners is extremely exhilarating!

Unfortunately, I live in Memphis, which means that it is usually hot and muggy by 8am. And, this day was no different. By 8 am, it was about 90 degress and getting hotter. We decided to keep together running, which proved to be a great motivation.

When I finsihed, I thought, Lord, just don't let it be past 37 minutes, which was my best time. I looked up and could not believe that the clock said 33:40 and came in 5th for my age group (25-29)! However, you had people that finished in 17 minutes. Folks, that is running at about 12.5 miles an hour! I could not believe it.

I am already planning on my next 5k, which is in three weeks in Collierville. This time my friend Emily, my running partner, will be in town and we will run the race together.

Al Jazeera

Here is the English version of the Al Jazerra news home page. Very interesting to read their views and opinions.

Saying Goodbye

One of the things that I have missed out with moving to Tennessee was saying good bye to dear friends, the Bayles. Our families met in Escondido, CA, almost 15 years ago. I have watched their children, M & B, grow up and mature. They are my younger brother and sister. Their parents have seen all the phases of my life. B loves to talk about the fire in my eyes when I was in high school; yes, my rebellion years.

They are off to Hawaii where the Navy is moving them. And, I have been made to promise that I will be out there in the next year.

Saying good bye is one of the things that I hate the most. There is so much emotion and feelings. You get used to a certain level of trust, friendship and love. They are not only my friends, but they are my family, in every sense of the word.

The picture is from their going away party and most appropiately it includes my family, as well.

Poker Night

Tonight was my last day to run before my 5k on Saturday. I am a little worried as my left knee has been starting to bother me. Hopefully with taking tommorow off, it will be in shape for me to run on Saturday. My goal is just to finish this 5k. I am not going to focus on what my time it, but just to enjoy the experience of it.

Tonight is poker night! There is a group of guys and gals, most whom graduated from ECS, that get together weekly to play Texas Holdum. I don't make it too often because of my work schedule, but it has been a great time of fellowship. It was here that I met up with Pablo again and it has been great to swap Covenant stories and talk about other alum.

Question

So, I have a question for the group and hope someone can help me.

We had horrible thunderstorms last night. During the thunderstorm, my electricity went off while I was on the phone - a cordless. Now, it will not turn off at all and the battery is dying. I have tried to unplug the phone, but that is not helping. Is my phone dead?

By the way, my other cordless phone in the house works.

No Turning Back

I just sent in my form for the 5k this weekend. There is no turning back now!

Say a prayer that I will do well.

In reality, this is the worse week before the 5k. I am swamped with work and have to fly to Atlanta tommorow for a big meeting. So far, my best time for 3.1 miles is about 40 minutes or so.

Adultery

If you have not read it yet, you need to read Newsweek's June 12 cover story.

I find this article very interesting and it points to the acceptance of our culture and society today with infidelity in marriage. What is most disturbing is that this article does not condone adultery or the impact it leaves on many peoples lives - divorce, tearing apart a family, etc. Sadly, we are in a society that expects that people will cheat on their husbands or wives. Newsweek's article only glorifies the sin of adultery, which is ultimently the sin of coveting.
______

About a month ago, I went to Beale street with a friend who was in from out of town. The piano players were dedicating a song to a bachelorette who was getting married the next day. One of their lines was "no need to use condems anymore except when it is not with her husband." The bar loved it.

Weekend Chores

Clean Apartment
Grocery Shop
Pay Bills
Run
Run more
Send in 5k entry form
Call M, A, B, L & S
Make flight arrangements for Labor Day - Disney World!!!
Worship
Work - I have to get a presentation finished that I have to present to AIMCO's Atlanta VP's. I hate talking infront of people!
Sleep
Make banana bread
Clean refrigerator

I'm Chocolate!

Your Icecream Flavour is...Chocolate!

You are the all time favorite, chocolate! Turning white kids black since the 1800s. Staining carpets, car seats, and bed sheets for centuries. One thing is for sure, you will never go out of style. You can't go wrong with chocolate!

Funny thing is that I am not a real chocolate lover! I do love Cookies & Cream. It is the right blend of sweetness. I get that from my mom, I guess.

So, what are you? Tell me what you are.

Morning Dedication

Almighty God,

As I cross the threshold of this day I commit myself, soul, body, affairs, friends to thy care; Watch over, keep, guide, sanctify, bless me. Incline my heart to thy ways; mould me wholly into the image of Jesus, as a potter forms clay; May my lips be a well-tuned harp to the sound of thy praise; Let those around see me living by they Spirit, trampling the world underfoot, unconformed to lying vanities, transformed be a renewed mind, clad in the entire armour of God, shining as a never-dimmer light, showing holiness in all my doings. Let no evil this day soil my thoughts, words, hands. May I travel miry paths with a life pure from spot or stain. In needful transactions let my affection be in heaven, and my love soar upwards in flames of fire, my gaze fixed on unseen things, my eyes open to the emptiness, fragility, mockery of earth and its vanities. May I view all things in the mirror of eternity, waiting for the coming of my Lord, listening for the last trumpet call, hastening unto the new heaven and earth. Order this day all my communications according to thy wisdom, and to the gain of mutual good. Forbid that I shoudl not be profited or made profitable. May I speak each word as if my last word, and walk each step as my final one. If my life should end today, let this be my best day.

~Amen

Home Sweet Home

I am finally home after a long week of being on the road for business and family reunion. It is nice to call a place home with the famaliar surroundings. My family is here with me to see where on earth I have moved to. My brother and best friend were asleep on my office floor until noon or so, since they were up late burning cd's on my computer. My dad has stationed himself on my couch reading, while my mother is snooping around my apartment. She is giving me tidbits of advise along the way....decorating, cleaning, cooking, organizing, etc.

When I moved here, I had such a strong knowledge that this is where the Lord wanted me. It was a peaceful and scarry feeling all at the same time. Do you know what I mean? It is hard to put in words and describe it. I often wonder how Moses felt when he left Egypt and wandered the desert for 40 years.

I am grateful for my family being here and I will be happy to be alone again in a few days when they return to Maryland. I do find myself surrounded with feelings of loneliness sometimes. I miss the community of peope I belonged to in Maryland through our church. We really were a community and family. I long for that here, but it will take a while. The Lord provides blessings everday.

I am just grateful to be at a place where I am calling Memphis home.

Quote of the Month

When people find out that I have moved to Memphis on my own without knowing anyone, I tend to get interesting comments.

However, last week the lady who works in my dry cleaners spoted my Maryland tags and had this to say:

"Why on earth did you move to Memphis? There is no place like it, well, except maybe for hell."

Functionally Disfunctional

This is exactly how I would describe my extended family. We have a few more hours of the Stacey family reunion and there are several reasons why it only takes place about every seven years. There are the grandparents, 8 children and respected spouses (several are on their third), and the seventeen grandchildren to get together. Even this time, we do not have everyone together.

It has been exhausting: emotionally, spiritually and physically. I have spent the past two months praying for this weekend. A few predictions came true: with in 24 hours a huge argument errupted between sibling #1 and #3 re: politics and religion & within five minutes of sibling #1 coming to the reunion feelings were hurt causing sibling #2 wanting to go home the next day before the rest of the family even got here.

My main observance of this weekend, which I already have determined, is that sarcasam kills intimacy in relationships. Yes, I come from a long line of Staceys where the only way they know how to cope with one another is to be sarcastic. But this sarcasm comes at the cost of building healthy relationships and forgiving one another for things that happened 30+ years ago. It has been painful to watch this weekend.

Last night, before the big dinner, I spent several minutes just praying that everyone would get along. Thankfully, you heard the laughter in several rooms as people were eating. Stories were being told and everyone was in a general good mood, at least until dinner was over.

Tommorow, I am going home with my own family - my parents and youngest brother. I am so thankful that, although I still consider us functionally disfunctional at times, that we have the bond of Christ to hold on to.