The Swirling Vortex

Much overdue on a blog post, aren't we? It's just that life has been so chockablock full... and also dreadfully mundane. How can it be both you ask? Weeelll, your darn brain just never lets you be at peace with the present moments. I can't count the number of times I thought how nice it would be to not have a job. You can wake up when you want, actually cook a breakfast rather than unwrap it, sit outside and say your prayers, exercise, make a visually appealing lunch, take a nap, go for a walk, read a book, do a painting, even watch a movie, all in those daytime hours when one is normally required to slave away in order to maintain their existence. 

But then you have no job. And that first week is great. You really lean into the freedom of it all and do wild things before noon before there's no limit to your creativity. And on that second week you're still pretty excited but the ante has been upped. It's going to take some effort to thrill you. On the third week you really lean into the daytime napping and movie watching concept, which gives you a headache, making it hard to get up to feed yourself, and then you just feel weak and sickly. Very quickly, you begin a downward spiral, questioning the validity of society and whether or not it's ethical or even healthy to keep existing. 

So I've picked up some extra volunteer work to combat the growing pull towards depression. Who knew someone as sleep-inclined as I am would need to have some responsibilities to keep her upright? Maybe I'm more like Chris Union than I thought. (Do you think he scoffed at that?) Additionally, my Lux savings didn't take me as far as I thought, and now I actually do have to get a job while I work out my future. I haven't directly worked for someone else in a long time so I really hate the idea, but I also really hate the way I felt on week 3 of freedom.

My school started back this week and I'm particularly excited about my classes this semester. I get to jump into a more hands-on role and take charge of the projects I'm working on. Maybe that kind of educational  freedom will give me tolerance for having an employer again. 

In any case, I took this photo of the African family when they came over for supper. I think it all went really well. Even though I had Brett and some yard games available for them to play with, the children just really loved the hammock. It's always those simple things. We all sat at the table together and ate quietly in our own languages. We looked at maps and talked about plants, and then packed them up with all of the leftovers and Dad drove them home. 

I'm not sure why they glare the camera instead of smile - it's doesn't make the seem as lovable as they are in real life - but to each their own. They were all talking and laughing and then I pulled up the camera and they went stoic. Since this photo, Mama Gertrude has had her baby, a boy, officially making them a family of eight.