Happiness Journal

About a month ago, I was watching an Elizabeth Gilbert interview she did with Oprah. She talked about a new thing that she started doing every day and that was writing in a happiness journal. She would write down in a journal of things that made her happy that day. She pointed out, why focus on the bad, the negative? That stuff just brings you down. I was intrigued by that idea and it was that day that I found my own journal that would be my own happiness journal. It was almost as if I was meant to do this. It was weird because I was in the journal section at Target and I stumbled across this one that was by itself, the last one. As if it were meant for me. I knew it was just from reading what it said on the front.

It is perfect because I would be writing about things that make my day bright and a lot of you know that "sparkle" is a word that I kind of own for myself. Something that people associate me with. There was no doubt that I had to get this and it would be my happiness journal. I started it that night and with an introduction. I took a picture of it and shared it on Instagram and Twitter. I had feedback and one girl said she was inspired to do it so she can look back at it and see what she was doing in her life then and what not. It is a nice way to see what you were doing at that time in your life and what was making you happy then.
I have written in it every night since I have gotten it. I don't really write everything out in sentences. I just list things out, but not in a list form. It's in prose form almost. Sentences, half sentences, words. Short thoughts and things that made me happy. It is a nice way to reflect over the day and see all that I have done and actually how many things made me happy. It adds up. You will see in the picture in the bottom if you are able to read it, that I mention that I might learn some things about myself just by doing this and I kind of already have. I have learned that people are an important thing in my life. I value the people around me. All the conversations, phone calls, texts, skype dates, and bonding moments. I mention a lot of people and things I do with people. I found that interesting.
I encourage you to get a happiness journal and to see what you come up with. It is nice to focus on the good and by doing this, you revisit that happiness, which can only be a positive thing that can enrich your life. One journal that was at Target said, "We write to taste life twice..." - Anais Nin. I find that true in a way. With this you can taste that happiness twice when you write it and maybe even three, four, or five more times if you go back and visit it. If you have a bad day or going through a tough time, this can be another tool to help you get through that. It is a reminder of things that have made you happy before. It can help you revisit that.
Let me know if you start one and how it goes. It is a neat thing to experience.

Sparkle & Shine,
Rachel

City Lights

I am really excited about this poem I started working on last night and finished tonight. Well not technically finished. I think I am going to use this to workshop as one of my poems for my poetry class this semester.

This poem was inspired by my trip to Indianapolis. I pulled imagery from my experiences there in the beautiful city. This is dedicated to my dear friend, Kirsten, who also went to Indianapolis. We had a conversation about something on her bucket list.

She would love to have this amazing adventure with an awesome guy she randomly meets where they pretty much get to do anything (not hookup!) for a night. 

It has a movie-esque feel to it and I think it is safe to say a lot of girls probably have this on their bucket list! So here it is. My poem dedicated to Kirsten, other girls like us, and Indianapolis.

It's a whirlwind night

Surrounded by 

City lights

Strings of them

Wrapped in limbs of trees

Twinkle

A beautiful monument

Makes it a romantic

Place where I'm glad to be

In this unfamiliar city

The hum of cars pass

By on the brick roads

Of the round about

Conversations float in the air

From people walking around

And I'm enjoying the company

Of a boy from LA

That just bought me ice cream

From a shop across the way

We indulge

We chat

As we sit on the ledge

We pass flirting

Now on the edge

Of a crush

When I so easily blush

He spits out the chocolate chips

Because he only likes the mint

We talk school

We talk religion

He plays it cool

Makes it a mission

To pick on me

To get closer to me

Like any boy that plays games

It was today I learned his name

As I stand before him

I slip my arms around his neck

Our pauses

Longer

Knowing what's next

It's right

It's now

We don't make a sound

We both ease in

To a perfect first kiss

For a perfect moment

On a whirlwind night

Surrounded by city lights

Sparkle & Shine,

Rachel

Nail Polish Review: "I'm Not Lion" by China Glaze

Jessica knows me well and my taste in nail polish. She pretty much told me I was going to get the China Glaze nail polish cleverly named, "I'm Not Lion" from their safari collection. She told me it was me.
I chose to wear it for my first week of school. I was already falling in love with it as I was painting it on. I knew then that Jessica as right.
This is a great color because it goes on by itself which is great for a glitter. You don't need to hassle with finding a good shade to put underneath. You can just use the glitter. I also love the color because it is really subtle and simple. This makes it classy and sophisticated but at the same time, it is enough to be girly with the sparkle. I definitely recommend! It's good for any occasion and pretty much any season too. A good one to add to your collection!
Sparkle & Shine,
Rachel

Indianapolis: CASE ASAP "Race Towards Excellence" Network Conference

There is nothing like hanging out and sharing a common bond with 600 college students from all over the nation. Last week I went to Indianapolis with 5 other girls from ESU Ambassadors and our amazing adviser to attend the 39th annual CASE ASAP Network Convention. We traveled 9 hours in a van and on the first day I requested White Castle for lunch! We don't have White Castle anymore in Kansas City let alone Emporia. Almost everyone hadn't had it before. So it was exciting getting to have that and be a part of others first experience having it!

We needed to be there in time for Heather, a fellow ESU Ambassador, to get to a meeting. She is the district representative for our district in the CASE ASAP organization. It is a pretty big deal and we are proud that she is from ESU! So when we were on the way, we noticed the time on our phones changed. Oh yeah, there is a time difference in Indianapolis! That was an adjustment we had to make! Once we got there, Heather had to go to dinner and work with the exec board with other district representatives so the girls and I went and got dinner at a mexican restaurant that didn't have Dr. Pepper or Pibb Extra. It was a sad moment! We walked around town and got shakes at Steak N' Shake too!

Ashley and I had a room to ourselves so we got to have our own beds! I have gone on a lot of trips through high school and college and I have always had to share a bed. So this was a neat first for me to have my own fluffy bed of bliss! It was quite comfy and by the window :) It was also nice to have it for just Ashley and I. We got to relax and also have a lot of bonding time!

Since we had to go a couple days early because of Heather and our adviser's meetings, we had our second day there all to ourselves with nothing planned! We slept in and went to the mall for awhile. For dinner, Ashley, Amanda, and Kirsten and I went to the Colts Bar and Grille which is all things Colts that is dedicated to their fans. I had a flat bread pizza that was delish! I definitely recommend if you ever want to visit Indy!

That night we went swimming at the hotel pool. The view was amazing. There was a wall of windows and part of the roof was made of windows as well. You could see the city lights and tall buildings as you relaxed and swam. It began to thunderstorm. Something that has became foreign to us due to the drought we have been in this summer. Amanda and I lounged and looked up through the roof windows and watched the lightning and rain fall down.

Our view through the window at the pool.

That night we went to the lobby and lounged and got on our computers in these super duper comfy seats! We also got desert from a restaurant at the hotel and ate them in the lobby. It was nice to unwind with the ladies and be girly!

The CASE ASAP conference started that Thursday! I was so anxious for it to finally start and felt like a kid waiting for the first day of school! We went to registration to get our things and set up our table decorations. They messed up my name tag and had my name as Machel which was a big joke to the other girls, but luckily we got it fixed :)

We went to roll call which is when all the students are gathered together in the ballroom and they introduce all the schools attending the conference. This is a time for schools to do a chant, cheer, or whatever they want to let everyone know they are there. This is a rush because everyone is so excited and they have a lot of school spirit. There are over 600 students representing over 100 schools. There are big name schools there such as KU, Mizzou, Florida, Tennessee, UCLA, Ohio, Texas, etc. It is cool to hear their chants and see what they do to show their school spirit. During that time they had a couple people from each district come up for a contest. Heather wanted me to be one of the people that went up for our district. For the contest I had to do my best rendition of "Ladies and gentlemen, start your engines!" I know, imagine me yelling this with my tiny voice. I think I did  a good job and I was thankful to have a microphone to assist me!

That night we went to a baseball game. We didn't stay very long because it was kind of boring. Hey, we are girls and we wanted to get ice cream! So we left early :)

Us at the baseball game.

We searched for an ice cream shop and found one that is in this beautiful area. It was in this round about with shops and this in the middle.

It had brick roads and the trees were filled with twinkling lights. Our adviser, Nikki, treated us to ice cream and it was delish. We decided to sit on the steps in front of the monument and had one amazing view of the city. This was what I saw...

One of my favorite pictures of all time. It was taken from my phone and I didn't edit or use filters. 

It was a special moment for me. Something that I will always remember. I felt this calmness and peace. I felt surrounded by love and a bond. Us girls just sat, ate our ice cream and observed. We saw some lightning in the sky and soon it started to sprinkle. We got up to head back to the hotel and it started to rain on us. It was a great feeling just walking at night in the rain with friends in downtown Indianapolis. I felt very in the moment.

Getting back to the hotel in the rain.

Ashley and I needed to practice our presentation so we ran through it a couple times at a random spot in the hotel and we presented for our fellow ambassadors and they helped us out! Friday was the big day and we had our presentation at 3:00pm. We presented to a room full of people about how to give effective campus tours. We got quite a few chuckles, went our full time, had questions asked, and people that came even had discussion among themselves helping each other out. It was such a great feeling and a lot of excitement and right after was market place in which schools exchange/barter things such as t-shirts, stickers, pens, and more. I was able to get a couple hard to get t-shirts from UCLA and Florida! :)

My loot from market place!

The food we were served at the hotel during conference was amazing. We had an etiquette lunch and we were taught by a really funny lady how to conduct ourselves at fancy dinners and what not.  This was our lunch during that.

Friday night we went to dinner and enjoyed it with a fellow school from our district, Drake University. We indulged at Hard Rock Cafe! Ashley and I really wanted to go there because we went last year while at conference in Nashville!

Saturday was a fun filled and busy day! We had more sessions to go to and we got a lot of ideas. At lunch the spirit award was announced and our district, District 6 won! It was awesome to be a part of and we got a cool ribbon to add to our name tag. That night was the banquet, so we got dressed up and had a fancy dinner. 

Afterwards was a dance party! I "Tonto jumped on it" and "jumped around" in my heels! It was cool dancing with other college kids from around the states.

With the beautiful ESU ladies :)

My Ambassador partner in crime, Ashley!

We decided to go out on the town in our dresses. We went back to the pretty round about and took pictures. It's such a romantic setting. Definitely felt like a Sex and the City moment strolling around all dressed up with some great girls! 

We went back to see if there were anybody at the dance party still and it was more packed than when we left! We went on the dance floor and danced with people that we had met while at conference. It was so much fun letting loose!

Me channeling Kate Middleton.

We were pretty sad leaving on Sunday morning. I was bummed to leave such a beautiful city and all the cool people I had met while I was there. Some live 100's and 1000's of miles away and you may never see them again, but hopefully we can stay in touch. I had a great time meeting new people and making memories with them. It was really neat to talk to some of them and hear about their programs and how different it can be. It makes me want to travel even more and experience more too. I also got to spend a lot of time with fellow ambassadors and learn about them too. I feel like we got closer and strengthened our bonds. Let me tell you, I know what Kirsten wants and does not want in a man! She was cracking me up and we started a new thing where we say "Chronicles of Kirsten continues" when she says something funny and outrageous! I love experiences like this because I get to learn and open my eyes more to the world and I definitely did through hanging with my fellow ambassadors, exploring a new city, meeting new people, feeling like I was living in a chick flick movie, going to conference sessions, and eating a lot of delicious food of course. :)

I was already starting to feel like Christmas was over and I was wandering how many more days were left until next year's conference. I definitely can say I had the time of my life. There wasn't a bad part to the trip. Everything seemed perfect. 

Now I can't wait to go to the 40th annual CASE ASAP conference in 2013. I will be looking forward to meeting you, New Orleans. :)

Sparkle & Shine,

Rachel 

Homesickness & Excitment

As school was coming to an end, all anyone could talk about was how excited they were for summer. I felt like I was the only one that didn't really have excitement for it. At the time I had no idea what I was going to do about a job. I didn't really have any plans or anything. I felt like there wasn't much for me to be excited about. I was content with being at school and being busy all the time and doing things I love. I was the oddball.

The first few weeks of summer was weird. I didn't have a job, school, or meetings to attend. Nothing. I was going day by day. I watched a lot of Sex and the City and got to visit with a lot of friends and family in between sleeping in and going to the gym. It was a foreign feeling to me, but was much needed.

As time progressed over the summer, I was surprised at how much I was enjoying my summer. I was relaxing for once, doing things I wanted, seeing people I hadn't in a long time and growing closer to friends and family. I definitely strengthened my bonds with people this summer which has been really important to me.

As I was going over my schedule for August with my mom, walking her through all the places to be and things to do, she decided for me to not come home after my trip to Indianapolis and for me to just stay at school until labor day weekend which isn't until September. At that moment my heart dropped a little. I had this wave of emotion in my chest go through me. It was like it was anxiety or a shot of homesickness. I have spent so much time with my family and close friends, that it was weird to think I wouldn't see them for atleast 3 weeks when I would see them at least three times a week. As it is getting closer, it is getting a little tough. This morning at church I hugged my pastor and he asked when I was leaving for Emporia. I said, "tomorrow." Hearing it out loud hit me. I will miss going to church ever Sunday and bible study after week, but I will get to when I can.

It is a bittersweet thing. I live this unique life right now during college. I have home here in Kansas City, but Emporia has become a home to me too. I probably easily live there more than I do in Kansas City in a span of a year. I live both and I have so many beautiful people in both places. I don't know if I could be more blessed. Thankfully I have the technology. I have calls, texts, emails, Facebook, Twitter and Skype to keep updated and connected with everyone. I have hints of homesickness looming in me, but excitement for the upcoming weeks to come is shining too.

I am glad to have a great summer. It treated me well. I am so excited for what is to come. There are so many great things about to happen and I will be sure to keep you filled in. :)

Sparkle & Shine,
Rachel

 

Eat Pray Love

One of my all time favorite books is Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert. I love pretty much everything about it. I love that it is a memoir, I love her humor, her thoughts, lessons learned, the places she visits, everything. My heart and thoughts go back to that book a lot. She goes on a journey for a year and lives in Italy, India, and Indonesia. To put it plain and simple: She Eats in Italy, Prays in India, and Loves in Indonesia.

This summer, I think it was when I was eating alone at Italian Delight and indulging on amazing cheese pizza (Italian food. See the parallel?) that I had started to feel this Eat Pray Love journey of mine. I am single like she had been on the journey. I got out of a deep relationship kind of like Elizabeth Gilbert getting a divorce. I was burned by a few boys soon after the break up kind of like Elizabeth getting burned by a boyfriend she had had after the divorce and right before her journey.

The fact that I acquired a job at an Italian restaurant was probably my second hint. That was my Italy. I was surrounded by Italian food almost everyday so I had it often just like Elizabeth Gilbert.

It wasn't hard for me to see that my church was my ashram in India. I had made it a goal at the beginning of summer to dig deeper into the spiritual part of me. I started to attend a bible study every Thursday morning at 9am. It is a group comprised of about 6 adults and then our two pastors attend as well. It is very small and intimate. I fell in love with that group and the time I got to spend with them. They were my Richard from Texas. I attended church every week except for one due to being out of town. I also attended a women's retreat there yesterday which was an amazing experience. I got to be away from my phone and life for most of the day as I got to get to know women at my church even more as well as about life and the story of Ruth. I will probably have future posts that will relate back to that day. I started doing yoga more and I hope to make it more of a habit. I want to meditate and become better at it just like Elizabeth Gilbert. I think the incident with the 3 pennies and a night under the stars would be my big moment with God. You know, like the big moment Elizabeth Gilbert had with Him.

So I had come up with an Italy and an India. I had been eating and praying, but what about love? Elizabeth had met a man in Bali. Now everyone has a different journey. Ours is not exactly the same and I think this is where mine is most different. I do not really have one boy that would be my boy in Bali like Elizabeth Gilbert had. Not just yet. I am still mingling and getting to know people. So maybe eventually I will get that Bali boy, but in the mean time, I have began to fall in love with myself. And I have been loving and feeling the love of my family and friends which has been amazing. That is my love in this journey. In the first chunk of summer I was in the gym almost every day working out pretty hard. I could feel that difference in my body and stamina when I exercised. I had reached a confidence with myself on the outside. A feeling I hadn't really felt before in this time of my life. Since being single and experiencing things on my own, I have come to know me as myself more. I have been really enjoying it. I used to hate my own company and couldn't stand being left alone with myself, but now I don't mind it. It's fine by me. I have had the opportunity to see and hang out with so many people that I hadn't seen in years or haven't hung out with. I have gotten to see my best friend at least 1-3 times a week every week. I have had a lot of quality time with my family and grown closer to them. So many bonds have been strengthened and I couldn't be more thankful for it. I have definitely been filled with love.

I recently watched an interview with Elizabeth Gilbert on Oprah. She definitely intrigues me and I feel that we are alike. She said that anyone can have a journey like hers and they don't necessarily have to go to the places like she did to experience it. I feel like that is just what I did. Now then again, I wouldn't mind actually going to the places sometime in my future!
This summer has been extraordinary and I will remember it always. I feel full and content just like Elizabeth Gilbert.

Sparkle & Shine,
Rachel

The Shonrocks: ESU's President & First Lady

In the Spring semester of my Freshman year of college, the President of Emporia State University sent out a special email to everyone announcing that he was resigning. It came out of nowhere and students wondered who would replace him and how soon. During the Fall semester of my Sophomore year, 4 candidates visited and interviewed for the spot and it was officially announced that December that President Michael Shonrock would be our new President at Emporia State University. I was able to catch a peek at the very end of his first speech when they announced it after my class. I was anxious to see what this President would be like and how well he would do there. It didn’t take me long to figure it out.

I had seen him around campus every once in awhile and we formally introduced ourselves at a meet and mingle with him that I was invited to for recognized student organization presidents or board members. I had patiently waited over an hour as others got to meet him until he came over to my group. It was then when I got the courage to tell him about BUILD Beauty and gave him an index card that had my information on it asking him if he could pass it along to his wife and see if she could come to the next BUILD Beauty meeting. He put it in his pocket on the inside of his suit jacket and the day before the next meeting I received an email from his wife telling me she would be at the meeting. He actually gave her my measly index card and told her about me! I couldn’t believe it as she attended the meeting and I was introduced to her. By the end of the meeting, she was offering their house as a place to host our first birthday party for BUILD and they would cover costs for food. She told me to just email her with ideas. It was a great opportunity to have our first BUILD Beauty birthday party at the President’s house! It went really well too J

By the end of the semester, it was pretty much normal for me to see him at some point on campus every day. We would exchange hellos and maybe a small conversation here and there. I had seen this guy more in a couple weeks span than I had ever seen our previous President. I actually never had a conversation with our previous one.

I have even encountered the Shonrocks over the summer while I am not at school! I worked an Ambassador event at the T-Bones game for an Alumni event. There were other Division II schools there as well such as Washburn, Pitt State, Fort Hays, etc. President Shonrock showed up and mingled and at one point was working the event himself! He was taking tickets and directing people at the food tables. It didn’t take long for a buzz to stir as representatives from other schools got their phones out and texted the Presidents of their schools giving them flack for not voluntarily working the food tables let alone even being present at the event.

I also worked a fundraiser for our football team that was in Kansas City this past week and the Shonrocks were in attendance. I had just gotten back with a fellow ambassador from getting a couple packs of water bottles.  I was walking in carrying a pack of water bottles when he had seen me and was excited to see I was there and asked how my summer was going. I eventually went and talked with his wife, Karen. We exchanged how our summers have been and talked about other topics such as football season and how it is a requirement for Ambassadors to be 21 in order to work the President’s box because we would be handling alcohol. She didn’t like the sound of that. She said we wouldn’t handle alcohol anymore because she didn’t want to be giving us ideas. Also, she wanted any of the Ambassadors to be able to work the President’s box and have fun. She said she would talk to Michael about it and by the end of the night I saw her again and she said it will be changed and she would talk to our advisor about it! I was also able to talk to her about some other ideas the Ambassadors have had concerning alumni and she wants to help out with that. She asked how BUILD Beauty was coming along and the plans for the semester. We even got to chatting about nail polish and my blog. J

President Shonrock visited us a few times during the night talking to us about ESU. He talked about the renovations and changes going on on campus and how excited he is for our first football game. He wants EVERYONE to be there. No excuses! He plans to visit sororities and fraternities that week and encourage them to go and will most likely visit the dorms to get Freshman to go as well!

While I met with our Ambassador advisor, Nikki, over this summer to brainstorm, she had mentioned that President Shonrock has refused to have an official inauguration and wants the money that would be used for it to go to the school for something useful. The last inauguration for our past President had cost around $200,000! I was amazed by this information and decided to ask Shonrock himself about this topic when we were talking with him. He said it was true that he did not want a formal inauguration because it costs time and money. People that work at ESU would have to take time to plan it and put it together which takes time from their job which then costs money. It also takes money to put it on such as the dinner and the whole nine yards. So he was able to use that money and start a scholarship in which full time employees of ESU can have their spouses or children attend ESU for free! He told us a story in which he talked about it with a custodian at the university. The custodian had teared up because her son would now be able to go to college when he probably wouldn’t have had that opportunity to do so before that.

That night after the football fundraiser, I was filled with joy and excitement that Emporia State has been blessed with such a great President that is full of ideas, changes, and positive energy. There have been so many changes since he has been in office this last January and students, faculty, and alumni can definitely feel it. Big things are happening and Emporia State is definitely getting on the map. I am excited I still have a significant time there to see the changes and be a part of it. It amazes me that I am on a first name basis with the President and First Lady of my university and I am able to talk to them and voice my ideas and suggestions for the university. They listen to me and are willing to help out. I am so thankful to have these opportunities and that students can be really involved in our school.

That night at the fundraiser the MC asked who was willing to donate $1,000. President Shonrock didn’t hesitate to raise his number.  If you ask him about it, he would probably eventually say, “that’s just how I roll.”

Sparkle & Shine,

Rachel 

Karen Shonrock & I during the BUILD Beauty Birthday Party

President Shonrock, Kirsten, & I at the T-Bones Alumni Event

The 50th Post: A Thank You

I love Dove chocolates that are filled with caramel. I also love when they have inspiring and witty sayings on the inside of the wrappers. I remember one that I had a long time ago that said two phrases that aren’t used enough are “I love you” and “Thank you.” I thought that was interesting and I could probably agree to it.

As I thought about what I wanted to do for my 50^th blog post, I had some ideas, but it finally came to me that I needed to say, “Thank you.” Ever since I read that wrapper, I have been more aware of saying thank you to people. I have realized the impact that it can have whether I am saying it to someone or if I am receiving it. When I graduated high school, I wrote thank you cards to some of my favorite teachers that really impacted my life. I will probably do the same when I graduate college. I have a stash of thank you cards and will probably always have a stash of them throughout my life to thank people. I even mailed one today!

So I want to take the time to thank you for reading my blog whether this is your first time reading, you visit occasionally, or you have read all other 49 posts! I even want to personally thank some people. First, would be my parents, whom I am pretty sure has read every post! My mom supported and encouraged me when I first came up with the idea for this blog and my dad has been sharing my 3 Pennies post at work! To my brother and sister that read them even though my brother thought it was ridiculous I blogged about my picture frame and wine bottle! (LOL) My sister comforted me when I had some negative feedback to it.  I want to do a personal shout out to my Aunt Amy who I think has read every post as well! She has even shared some of my posts and shared her story in response to my “Speak Up” post. 

Now I wanted to list names of people that have contacted me through Facebook, texted me, to even talked to me at the gym about my blog. These are people that have either talked to me about posts, helped me with some, reached out to tell me how it has impacted their life, or encouraged me to keep it up. I really do take it to heart and appreciate all the discussions, comments, emails, messages, and everything in between!

Thank you,

Sammie Stinson – Jessica Eisman – Emily Cavlovic – Jessica Kile – Kendra Folsom – Michael Crosier – Chase Cook – Chris Huey – Dominic Sosinski – Kirsten Zamarripa – Fallon Thompson – Dylan Clark – Daniel Goodman – Brandon Fields – Tommy McMahon – Nick Balliett – Nick Welker – Trey Brokaw – Heather Ludlum – Savannah Casteel – Emily Lai – Tammy Trotter-Smith – Colin Curtis – Nicole Woods - Adam Pack – Eden Tullis – Kelsie Weiser - Kim Mikulan - Nadia Williamson - Greg Ferris - Katherine Boyice - Jessica Vigil

Thank you for reading!

Also a thank you to all the beautiful people in my life that make my life interesting and beautiful like you which gives me things to write about! Thank you for the support through the rough times and all the laughs through the great times. And even a thank you to the people that might have hurt my feelings which just gave me things to write about too for this blog! You gotta have the good and bad, right? It's what makes life even more interesting! 

Speaking of thank you, Thank You by Alanis Morissette is a great song. If you don’t know it already, you should check it out!

I hope you become aware of what a simple thank you can do and start saying it more. It is much appreciated and it feels good to say it!

I do apologize if I may have forgotten someone! 

Sparkle & Shine,

Rachel

Couldn't resist! Chuckled when I saw this :)

3 Pennies

Last night, I went into work at 4:45pm and was scheduled to work until midnight. This was going to be my first night closing. I was also going to be working the dining room by myself. It was pretty hectic as we were busy pretty much the whole night. There was a guy that wasn't the best worker there that was working. He randomly asked me if I was Christian. I said, "yeah." Even though I am pretty sure I am still technically Catholic. Later on, he walked out. Quit. So we were short handed for the rest of the night. I didn't get a break the whole night. We worked straight through and were finally out around 11:30pm.

I had noticed as the night went on that I had not received any tips at all. I did find 3 pennies that were on a ledge by a table that a customer had abandoned so I stuffed them in my pocket. I am a firm believer that every penny counts. They really can add up if you save them! As the night kept progressing, I became even more aware that I was not getting any tips, which was a little unusual. It crossed my mind and I had a feeling that maybe there was a reason for it. Maybe something better was going to come my way. Maybe I was going to get a really generous tip from someone or someone would say something or do something that would touch my heart.

After finally getting off work, grabbing some McDonald's on the way home, and a refreshing shower, I got tucked in bed and did my nightly reading for my daily devotional book, The Confident Woman by Joyce Meyer. I opened it up to the date, July 7. The title of the day's devotional was "Stand With God." I read the opening passage at the top and then got to the devotional. The first paragraph read,

"When Mother Teresa (1910-1997) left for India to begin her mission work there, she was told she could not do it because she had no money and no one to help her. I was told she said she had three pennies and God, and that was all she needed."

I finished the passage, made sure my fish was fed, and turned off the light. I laid down and tried to get to sleep when I realized something. I had 3 pennies. That night at work, I had found 3 pennies and took them. I thought back to what Mother Teresa had said. She had three pennies and God, and that was all she needed. This couldn't be just a coincidence. Three pennies show up at work and then the devotional that night mentions three pennies and God. Those three pennies I found had to have been from God. 

I have been on a spiritual journey for over a year now and have been taking steps in furthering it. This summer I have been focusing on prayer and believing. I even attend a bible study/prayer group at my church on Thursday mornings. I am trying to strengthen my relationship with God. For me, it is sometimes hard to believe everything in the bible or what people say. When people say God talks to them or when I read parts in Eat, Pray, Love I couldn't help but wonder if it really happened. You hear stories, but I sometimes have trouble believing. And while on my spiritual journey, I have had trouble believing everything. Believing that He is really here and exists. But these three pennies are physical things that help me believe. He had to show me somehow and He did. I believe.

My thoughts and feelings were true, when I had a hunch that something great was going to happen. I am so excited about this and can't wait to share it in my bible study group on Thursday. I hope that this inspired you to believe as well. I am definitely keeping these three pennies as a reminder. A reminder that He exists and is there for me and that also just like Mother Teresa maybe all I really need is three pennies and God. These three pennies is the best tip I can ever get and it was from God.

Sparkle & Shine,

Rachel

The Three Pennies

Those Hazel Eyes

Since I have started this new chapter in my life, I have started to feel more like Taylor Swift and I feel like I can relate to her when it comes to different things and one of those things is the subject of boys. Instead of songs, I write poems. When a boy impacts me whether it is by making me happy, anxious, sad, angry, lead on, or hurt; I write poems to express it. It helps me get feelings out. There was a quote in Taylor Swift’s 2011 calendar that stuck with me and has been on my mind when it comes to me writing poetry about boys.

“I’m the kind of person who needs to feel like everything happens for a reason. When you date a guy and it goes badly, that’s horrible. But if you can write a song about it then it was worth it.”

That last line stuck with me the most for months when I first read it. I feel like now I know if I can write a poem about a certain boy, it means I actually like them or did like them a lot. Now that I revisited this quote for this blog, I reflected over the first part more and also feel like I relate to that. I am a person that likes to believe that things happen for a reason as well. There have been a few boys that I have liked and things didn’t work out and I like to believe that they either taught me something, opened my eyes, or gave me an experience that I needed to have in order to learn and grow stronger. Like Taylor Swift said, it is horrible when it goes bad or doesn’t work out in my case, but it was worth it because I learned and I grew from it. I also got poems out of it too! Like this one called, “Those Hazel Eyes” about a boy I had a really big crush on, but unfortunately things did not work out.

Those Hazel Eyes

You said I made you smile

And I thought you’d stay for awhile

The way you looked at me

With those hazel eyes

Felt like we’re meant to be

In each other’s lives

It was that late night in May

I thought you’d be mine someday

I had a crush

My heart beat fast

Never thought you would rush

And I’d come in last

To another girl

I’d give you the world

But now I have to let go

And just be okay

I’ll go with the flow

And let the feelings slip away

Thank you for reading!

Sparkle & Shine,

Rachel