gost-prad life

Post-grad life? More like...most-sad life.

Don't worry that was a joke, and one that literally came to me as I was typing. Sorry about that. I'll try to refrain myself from more jokes like that as we progress.

Actually, if I think of anything else that strikingly brilliant I'll probably need to write it down.

Do people blog anymore? Is that a thing people still do? Does anyone look at their blog subscriptions on bloglovin.com anymore? Maybe I just assume that nobody else looks at blogs because I stopped looking at blogs. Maybe if I start looking at blogs again the rest of the world will, too? Who knows.

If anyone is out there, let me know.

So, life-update. I graduated from university in May.

I got cuter pictures, too, no worries there. I just like this one better.

Nobody really prepared me for what graduation was going to feel like, or what it would be like to pack up my dorm room for good. Nobody really tried to prep me for what it would be like to hug your best friends and not know when you'd ever be able to do that again.

I'll tell you, it straight up sucked. And hey, now you can't say no one ever warned you.

Honestly though, I know it's pretty cool that I had such a hard time leaving. Because that means I had a really great experience. You know, that cute Winnie the Pooh quote about being so lucky to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard, or something like that. These past four years were absolutely amazing, and that last day it just hit me all at once that it was all over.

I'm still recovering from my post-grad existential crisis, can you tell?

This summer, I'm traveling with my parents and brother around the States on furlough (that's when missionaries came back to there sending country and give ministry reports and such, in case you don't know). I'm looking for jobs and stuff. I am hoping to stay in Southern California for a while.

I realized that if I were filling out paperwork or something, I'd have to tick the "unemployed" box instead of the "student" box.

I don't like that thought, so I'm going to avoid paperwork.

love,
me

side-note: this has been the most all over the place blog post ever because I was just writing whatever came to my head with no plan in mind

listening to:
saturday sun by vance joy
the jonas brothers entire new album (oh my wooooord)
honeybee by the head and the heart

some twenty-eighteen memories

January

starting a new semester. adventuring in LA with romany and kaitlyn. flower market with my sweazy girls. being a third wheel at the california science center. working those early morning shifts at the library. 

February

making breakfast over a campfire at GO retreat. meeting kylo ren at disneyland. team malawi flower fundraiser. biblical interpretation with prof richards.

March

rainy days. mom visiting during spring break. burning brownies on st. patrick's day. ritz blitz. spending time with the thomas family. 

April

easter sunday at the laird's. korean food in LA with marie, joseph, katilyn, and megan. hikes with my wing. the monty's with my girl squad. clothing sale in my room. india night. little nephew tyler joseph born on april 26th. 

May

cat cafe with natalie. watching my friends graduate. traveling to malawi with my team. meeting the floreens, the kopps, the mccrackens. eating crocodile and sugarcane. singing in chichewa with the widows. being a homeschool mom with maddie. 

June

meeting gary and barbara and the phiri family. truth or dare with chisomo in the village. eating nsima and rice. wearing a chitingi. team malawi party in the living room. visiting the lake. saying goodbye to malawi and heading home to Ireland. getting to meet baby tyler for the first time. 

July

trip to the beach with mom and heather. visiting achill island with the fam. bike rides. babysitting. helping with holiday bible school at church.

August

ventura with the thomases. heading back to school early for RA retreat. meeting my amazing team. Being a WOW mom again. starting senior year. rooming with emma. 

September

hebrew class with victoria and sebastian. eating weird filipino food with kaitlyn, justin, jeff, and christian. cdub beach day. being goofy in philosophy class. ruth's birthday.

October

avacado festival in carpenteria with sami, beth, and mo. making thai tea with the best team during engage week. being reunited with the floreen family. the harvest blend. seeing the school play twice.

November

hanging out in the lounge till 1am with cdub fam. fall festival with micaiah. seeing twenty one pilots bandito tour. writing huge papers. thanksgiving break at the laird's.

December

spending hours in the library. christmas parties. celebrating my 22nd birthday. finals week. coming home for christmas break. early mornings with my nephew. laughing while playing quiplash on christmas eve eve.

Thankful for a great year, full of learning new things and meeting new people.

There are always hard things mixed in with the good things, but I think we wouldn't grow as much if there weren't.

Praying that in the coming year, I would remember that God uses the difficult things in life (even just small day-to-day problems) to make grow us and make us steadfast (James 1:2-4).  I want to respond properly to the hard things this year, as well as being thankful for good parts.

I'm ready for ya 2019.

love,
Hannah