My Week (a foreshadowing)

Monday. Kyle and I hung out for a while. We sat in his room and talked about the whole thing with Karen. He told me, “You don’t realize the potential you have to become something great for the kingdom of God.” We talked about our spiritual lives. How both of us have a tendency to place idols before God, no matter what the idols may be. It is a sad situation, but I felt really encouraged, and I have been spending more time in prayer and meditation, growing closer to God. Monday is also the day that the whole thing with the police and my life being threatened took place. Strangely enough, Sarah’s boyfriend told her that she can still hang out with me. He is a strange boy.

Tuesday. Trista and I hung out during chapel, and I ate lunch with Monica. Karen and I went to Newport on the Levee, and we sat in a bar with comfortable couches, drank lemonade and ate loaded french fries, trying to work through our problems. It ended with both of us making snide remarks, both of us being hurt. We walked silently back to my car, but before we got in, we hugged and apologized. It doesn’t mean everything will get back to normal. Karen is still one of my best friends, regardless of my relationship status. It’s just… difficult… at times.

Wednesday. I went to the Halloween Store in Lawrenceburg, Indiana and bought some things for my Halloween costume this year. I went to a park near the Ohio River, and I sat under a gazebo and watched geese play in the river, thinking about everything that has been happening. I went out to Chipotle for dinner with Karen, and then I joined Ryan, Emily, Forest, and James at a crowded apartment in Clifton to read the scriptures, pray, and worship. Karen left early, angry at me for somehow not paying attention to her. The rest of us went to the Beer Cellar down on the barge on the Ohio River, Kentucky side. They have sixty beers on tap, and despite C.C.U.'s "No Alcohol" policy, I enjoyed more than one of them. 

Thursday. Karen and I hung out for about an hour. We went to Mount Echo, the place where we first held hands, and we sat on the picnic tables and watched the city, spread out below us from the hill. We talked about things some more, made no headway. Both of us are as stubborn as we can be. I grabbed lunch in the Hilltop Café, and Katie told me that Nate sent out an email to all the supervisors saying that I was doing a great job and needed to be encouraged. I’m not quite sure whether to be glad that I’m doing a good job or concerned that, prior to this, I was doing a horrible job (which doesn’t make sense, because I worked nearly every shift assigned to me, hardly ever showed up late, and did my work to the best of my ability). I went to James’ house, and we played XBOX360 and sat out on his front porch, playing with their stray cat, Ninja. I went to the Hilltop in the evening to work on homework, and Kyle came up and joined me. We sat in Student Life and watched the freshmen scurrying around the pool and ping-pong tables. I told Kyle, “Karen and I have been talking, but we’re not dating… I’m not anxious about the future, no matter what happens.”

Friday. I went over to James’ house, and a bunch of us hung out—me, James, Forest, Hensel, Mike, Patrick. Karen called me while I was there, asking if I wanted to grab dinner with her before she went to the Dew Drop Bar in Harrison. I said, “Sure,” and we met at Skyline Chili. We didn’t talk about any of the pressing matters, just talked about Halloween and costumes and anything else that came up in conversation. I went back to campus and hung out in the Hilltop, then headed north back home to Dayton. Traffic on the highway was horrible: it was down to one lane for eight miles.

Saturday. I picked Sarah up from work. We went to James’ place, and he and Hensel joined us for a trip to the mall, where I grabbed some new clothes. We went down to Newport and walked around for a bit, grabbing dinner at Burger King. We returned to James’ house, and we all hung out on the front porch for nearly two hours. I took Sarah back to her apartment. Her boyfriend ditched her again. She was in tears. Had I not been driving my mom’s car, I would have stayed the night there and kept her company. She desperately wants to move out, and her aunt is giving her the opportunity of moving north to Wilmington and staying with them for several months, working odd-jobs and getting her life back together. She says she will pray about whether or not she’ll accept the offer, and James and I are encouraging her to do so.

Sunday. I woke up late and barely made it to church. Now I’m sitting in the dining room at my house in Dayton. Dad and I are going to Wendy’s for lunch in two hours. I have to work at 6:00, so I’ll need to leave here by 4:50. In the meantime, I am going to go to Wal-Mart and get some socks and undershirts. I talked to Karen, and she said she might be able to swing by campus after I get off work, but she’s not sure: she’s going to a concert tonight.