I could redo my roof!

*WARNING: If you get grossed out easily, you may want to skip reading this post.

Well, if my shingles were producing the same # of actual shingles as blisters, I could redo my roof, but unfortunately it's not. Day 10 of my shingles, & day 6 of the blisters. To be quite honest, I didn't even know what shingles was until this week, when the symptoms started becoming obvious. Fortunately, my mom is a health clerk at an elementary school, so she can identify many illnesses by the symptoms (plus she sees chickenpox on a regular basis). I guess anyone who's seen chickenpox B4 would recognize the blisters/rash.

So, here's the scoop on shingles: It occurs when the same virus as chickenpox is reactivated, often triggered by stress or a weakened immune system. Ppl who had chickenpox B4 the age of 1 (I had chickenpox on my 1st B-day) are at a greater risk, as well as the elderly. Unlike chickenpox, the blisters caused by shingles usu. form a band along a major nerve on one side of the chest, abdomen, &/or back instead of covering the entire body (although they can spread to the head or apendages), & unlike chickpox, shingles is also accompanied by pain around the affected nerves. I was humoring myself the other day by trying to figure out what my band of blisters looks like...an asteroid belt, I decided. I was also trying to figure out how to describe all the interesting sensations I'm having...imagine you have like 30 mosquito bites that you can't itch as well as several needles stuck in your side (like when you get a blood test). Sorry, I have to find some relief through humor in all of this. Anyway, the blisters are supposed to crust over in about 5 days...I'm on day 6, & I'm still getting new blisters (I believe the total count is past 50 now). Complete healing is supposed to take 2-4 wk's. I'm hoping & praying for 2 wk's at the MOST!

Wasn't that informational?

I really don't think I would make a good Job. I mean, the praising God in the midst of his afflictions part...maybe I could do that (although I'm not going to make any claims since Job pretty much wished he was dead), but I'm really not sure how he survived all those boils. I'm glad we have Job as a biblical example!

You know, I'm really realizing the things I take for granted. It's like when you get a sore throat & you love to sing (or talk), & you don't realize how much you take your ability to sing (or talk) for granted. Right now I'm really grateful for good night's rests, being able to sleep on either side of my body, being able to pick things up off the floor or get in my car w/out pain, things like that. I'm really looking fwd to having those things back!

I'm not looking for pity, just a little prayer, for healing & no complications. Prayer is SO powerful! I really appreciate it.

Get some common-sense please. It's FREE!

My fingernail fell off today (well, part of it anyway). I need to remember that these kinds of things aren’t always exciting for everyone else, but I found it quite exciting. Perhaps it was the anticipation of knowing for the past 3 months that it was going to fall off. & perhaps it’s because I know my fingers are in the very last stage of recovery. It still be a little while B4 my fingernails are back to normal. The fingers are doing good though.

I’ve been reminded this wk about how incredible of a family I have. I think the 1st reminder came in a conversation I found myself in about performance & its relation to self-perception & self-worth. We all know that our culture is a performance-driven culture, & I might go as far to say that it’s simply a condition of the human race as a whole. Well, I have to say I’m not all that performance driven. I don’t find my worth in my achievements. I just don’t. & I don’t think I can take the credit for that either. I have to give the credit to my parents & the way they raised me. They have always praised me for who I am & linked my identity & achievements to God. Praise for achievements did not come B4 that. My parents have always encouraged me & my sibs to be faithful stewards of the gifts & talents God has given us, recognizing that God has gifted each of us in different ways. I think that (mixed w/ sound, biblical discipline) is largely why we haven’t had all that much sibling rivalry. Now of course my parents didn’t ignore my achievements. Special achievements usu. merited a trip to the local DQ for blizzards.

I do have to say, though, that our performance-driven culture still has taken its toll on me in other ways. I think we assume that achievements are an accurate reflection of a person’s inner condition. You know, you see someone who is successful or incredibly gifted, & you think, “Now they, they have it all together.” That kind of thinking is exceedingly flawed. Speaking from someone viewed under that lens, no one has it all together. We are all human. My flaws & struggles are bountiful. So are yours. I loathed stereotypes. Why? Because it doesn’t matter who puts the mold on you, it’s still hard to break out of. & no, I’m not saying that I’m completely innocent of forcing other ppl into molds.

Are you performance-driven? Where do you find your value & self-worth?

While I’m on my soapbox, I have to say that I still can’t believe that a family of meerkats at the Minnesota Zoo were put down because a 9-yr old girl was bitten by one of them. Her parents chose the lives of 5 cats over their daughter having to get rabies shots? Sure, it would be a different story if it hadn’t been the girls fault, but it was her fault. She had to climb over several barriers to even get to the cats. & where were her parents? You go to a zoo w/ a 9-yr old child, you keep a close eye on them. You go to a mall, same thing. Amuement park, same thing. Restaurant? Take a guess. That sounds like common-sense parenting to me. Mom, Dad, thank you for having common-sense. Thank you for laying the right hand of judgment on my seat of understanding. Thank you for not sparing the rod…er, chopstick.

Dried shrimp, anyone?

I’ve decided to start blogging. Why? I just can’t seem to keep up w/ everyone through individual contact, so this seems to be the only solution.

I thought I would start out w/ a nice, light tone…

Before I relay this story, forgive me if I get any facts wrong. I’m pretty sure this is how it goes, but if I get any of it wrong, you’ll still get the general gist. On Sun. my pastor told the congregation about a guy who got saved a wk ago during our Sun. service. It was his 2nd time at our church, & he apparently said that God has completely transformed his life. A few days later he was talking about how excited he was to come back to church the next wk. Well, a few days later he went for a motorcycle ride, a van, probably not seeing noticing the motorcycle, pulled out in front of him, & the guy on the motorcycle crashed into the back of the van & died.

OK, so maybe I won’t start out light. Heavy story, huh? We aren’t guaranteed tomorrow. A lot of things we would rather not think about could happen between now & then. 24 hr’s can make a huge difference. I’m thankful that I don’t have to worry about the future. My salvation is in God’s hands. But I know that is not the case w/ many of the ppl I know. Where would they go if their life on this earth ceased to be? I know the answer, & I really don’t like it. That guy came to our church because someone invited him. What if they hadn’t invited him? Not questions we like to think about, huh? But they are questions that must be asked.

We must make the most of every day, for we are not guaranteed another. Neither are our friends or family. Or that guy who talks to you at work all the time, or the person who sits next to you in class, or that person you just can’t stand, for that matter.

On a truly lighter note, a few of my relatives arrived in town yesterday: my grandma & aunt & her three daughters (ages 4, 6, & 8), all on my dad’s side. They stayed overnight & left today for my uncle’s place up north. They’ll be back on Mon. for my dad’s B-day. It’s always a momentous occasion when we see each other because they all live in NJ. The last time I saw them was over 3 yr’s ago, when I was checking out E Coast schools. My grandma always brings my dad Chinese food in her suitcases, lol. This time I think it was sardines, chestnuts, coffee mix, sausage, dried mushrooms, dried shrimp, & probably a few other things that I have forgotten. One yr she actually brought a roasted duck (or roast duck, as we call them)! The girls are SO cute! Blond hair & ¼ Chinese. They have grown so much since I last saw them. Whenever I’m around children their age, I can’t help but think about how innocent they are at that age, an innocence I wish I could get back. But I wouldn’t give away the wisdom & knowledge of God that I have now for anything in the world.

My dad’s bro’s daughter (so another cousin) gave birth to her baby daughter early yesterday. The hospital happens to be near where we were going to go out for dinner w/ the relatives from NJ anyway, so we all went to go see the baby. Her name’s Sloan. She’s my grandma’s first great granddaughter, & when my uncle made us aware of that, it was quite an emotional moment…well, maybe just for me. I guess I was just thinking about all my grandma & her kids went through to come to this country. It was far from an easy life…& whenever I’m reminded of all the ways God has blessed them & us, well I can’t help but be overcome by emotion.