Sunday, January 29, 2012

On a boat with a paddle

My birthday turned out to be a lot better than expected.  The day started off like any other day: I went to class followed by lab followed by gym.  The gym was the first place where my expectations were overcome.  To my surprise, I ran the longest and furthest I have every run before.  A pleasant surprise.  From there, I got ready for the planned festivities, which thanks to my roommate, was a sushi and candy sushi themed dinner party.  Each guest brought an ingredient for either candy sushi or real sushi, and we all proceeded to make some of the most delicious sushi I have ever had (and I did try an excessive amount).  Sushi was followed by Apples to Apples making the night complete.  Just another reminder that expectations can be exceeded and that expectations in general are not the best predictor of an outcome.





This year was the first year that I celebrated my birthday without my parents, which made it difficult.  Even though my parents weren't present, they sent me a bouquet of flowers in the mail all the way from New Jersey (something they get me every year for my birthday).


The card sent with the flowers brought tears to my eyes:

"Life doesn't always come with a road map,
Hope you always enjoy the ride....
.... and you never forget your way home."

It just reminded me that no matter where I am, I will always have a home where my family is and that I still have people that care about me.  Home is where the heart is, and although my heart is both here and in New Jersey, a part of me is still at home with my family.

Lastly, my roommate bought me a book on sketching as a gift.  I am very excited to open it and hopefully learn how to improve my sketches.  Below is a sketch I did a while back.  I was at a park and attempted to sketch the scene, but it did not come out as I had hoped (this book on sketching will hopefully help with that in the future).  I added the boat and paddles: this was my idea of being on a boat without a paddle.  I sketched this at a time where I felt lost.  I still feel lost at times, but I no longer think that I am on a boat without a paddle.  I'm on a boat and have paddles, but I do not know exactly where I'm going.  For this, I have time.


Once again, I am grateful for my friends and family for making my birthday so special!

1 comment:

  1. I'm so glad you had nice birthday :-)) It was so difficult for me not being with you on your b-day. Love you!

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