It was a Monday

Today is Monday. I woke up at 6:15 to go to Pancake Pantry with four wonderful sister missionaries and a friend from the YSA Branch. It is, in fact, possible to make pancakes that are worth getting up so early to eat.
So I had a great breakfast, despite walking ten minutes in the freezing cold 48 degree, slightly rainy and dark weather. So far, so good.
Later today, around the time I would have actually gotten up, things started to get complicated. And then something good would happen, and then two more bad things came along. Why.
After getting back to my room from a long day of classes and rehearsal, I made a list in my journal of all the bad things about today.

• It was rainy.
• And cold.
• It's Monday.
• I miss home.
• Specifically, I miss my couch.
• And powdered chocolate milk.
• And watching/singing along to Phantom of the Opera (POTO) with my sisters.
• And my best friend.
• Why can't good relationships stay incredible and only the bad ones fade away? I'd do just about anything.
• And why do I not have any best friends on campus yet?
• I forgot my wallet, which I only realized once I had ordered dinner across campus.
• I have so much work and such a busy week...
• ...that I had to miss free pizza and laser tag.
• Can life get any worse?

One of my talents, I've been told, is my ability to feel sorry for myself. But hey, sometimes life just sucks.

Then I came to my senses. I made a list of some of the good things about today.

• The sun came out!
• The afternoon was actually kind of beautiful.
• I took a nap.
• A stranger flexed me a meal so I didn't have to walk all the way back across campus to get my wallet. We're friends now.
• I got a letter from my cute sister.
• This is the second time I've gotten a letter when I really needed it. I love people.
• One of my other sisters sent me hilarious texts about pork chops. Something's gotta keep me entertained during econ.
• I kind of do have best friends on campus. And I am SO grateful for them.
• Someone gave me a bag of twizzlers just because.
• A friend from home spontaneously reached out to me and made my day.
• I know that the relationships I had prior to coming out here were real. And that even though our lives are only going to become more separate, we had a great run.
• That being said, I'm better friends with some people now than I was. I think the phrase is "c'est la vie." (Have I mentioned that I love French?)
• Also, three cheers for technology. I have it many times easier than my parents did.
• My grandpa's recently discovered Stage 4 cancer has shrunk down to a small fraction of what it was. Excellent and amazing news, beyond even what the doctor had hoped.
• That list of cons could have been 10x longer and today still would have been worth it just for that piece of news.
• Fasting and prayer are real, people. We can never afford to underestimate God's power.

So, amidst all my misery, I also found ways to feel better. And I took a break from studying about prisons to read the New Testament. Always a good choice.