Adventures in Abbotsford

The last few days have been quite eventful. The Lower Mainland was graced with a rather substantial dump of snow and it has been the gong show one would expect from the rather unequipped area. The snow began falling on Saturday and when I woke up on Sunday everything was absolutely covered! I was supposed to be driving to Langley to go to church because my good friend Lynn was to pronounce her faith. I did not want to miss the opportunity to share in this experience with her so I called my mom and dad and asked if it was safe for me to take my brothers 2 wheel drive truck all the way to the other side of Langley. I ended up going and the drive there was decent. There were about 8 cars in the ditch along the way, but I made it safely. The drive back, however, was a little less decent. The roads were so slick and there were cars losing control everywhere. I was attempting to drive up a hill at Old Yale, right by my school, and the car in front of me started sliding back into me. I was like... uh oh. So I threw the truck into reverse and backed into a side road. Yup, I got stuck. So I sat there for a minute and this truck drove up beside me asking if I needed help. It ended up being two guys from CBC and so one of them drove while the other one and myself pushed the truck. I was sick fo driving so I just jumped in the passenger seat of my brother's truck and let Graeme drive me home.
I ended up going to my brother Anthonie's house over night because Jenn was stuck there. That was an absolute disaster! Let's just say the water in his toilet was frozen, there was no running water because the pipes were frozen, his furnace wasn't working, his gas fire place was on high in one room of the house and all the doors around it were shut, snow was coming up the vents, we couldn't see outside because there was ice frozen on the windows, we couldn't see even when we were outside because the wind was so strong, and we were boiling snow on the gas stove to put down the drains. We decided to drive a couple blocks down the road to friends of his because it was ridiculous at his house. When we got in the truck we could barely see where we were going. It was insane! At the end of his driveway we couldn't see so Jenn opened her door and the wind just took it! It almost pulled her out of the truck and it she couldn't close it. Anthonie has to get out of the truck and go help her close it because the wind was so strong! There were cars deserted on the road and we had to weave our way through them. Apparently no one but residents were being let into the area because it was so bad. Anyways, we got to the Kielstra's safely and Mrs. Kielstra fed us and let us use her bathroom and warm up. At one point Anthonie went outside to retrieve the BBQ that has blown over and when he opened the door we heard a shatter. We looked at each other stunned and saw this thing fall to the ground outside the front dooor. The skylight had blown off their roof! There was a gaping hole in the top of their house! It was ridiculous! Only the tinted layer of glass had shattered but the inner layer was still intact so the boys climbed onto the roof with it and drilled it in from the inside.

I should be getting back to my homework though.

Yeah Baby!!!

I just thought I'd let you all know that my volleyball team, the Columbia Bible College Bearcats, beat UCFV in 3 sets today. It was pretty much awesome and I am pretty happy right now. They slaughtered us in pre-season, but we played some sweet defence and... we won!

What I hope to be a new beginning...

Today has been wonderfully painful. Actually, probably more painful than wonderful, but it has brought hope. The hope of restoration and reconciliation is proving to be a wonderful thing, but pain is most definitely not absent.
I have had the opportunity to experience the beauty of the Prayer Room connected to the lounge here at Columbia Bible College. This morning it was absolutely silent as there was no one upstairs. It was lovely. I had a good long talk with God down on my knees. I knew I had things to deal with today and I decided that it was about time I turned to Him instead of relying on my pitiful self. Let me tell you, it's a good thing I did.
I had a much needed conversation this morning. It was one of the hardest things I have ever done. I was sick to my stomach before having it and I still feel quite ill, but I am glad it is over. I am still surprised at my ability to maintain relative composure. I prayed the entire time and God gave me the words to say although my translation of them was probably less clear.
I am sorry for being so evasive but I would rather not delve into my deep personal issues over the internet.
We'll keep this short and say that much needed conversations do not get easier if you avoid having them. When you have them, problems don't instantly go away. It still sucks, and I am sure that it will for a long time.

Unproductive

So not much has happened lately, but I thought I would give a little update anyways.
Fraser Valley Christian High won the BCCSSAA for the 16 time in the last 17 years... that would be the Christian Schools tournament. My little brother, Justin, got the MVP. They beat out MEI in the final and I was pretty excited watching them, I'm not gonna lie. I was getting a little choked up. I was the proudest big sister there!!
Shoot... I have class right now... but LYNN came to my volleyball game last weekend!! I was so excited!! I love her! Lynn, I love you!!!
I'll write more later. See ya!

Pictures from Edmonton - Family Time