Mission Center Rocks My Socks.

Mission Center last night was incredible. It was everything I had imagined...and more.

I'm working with Tink now. Have I mentioned her? SHe's a mentally-challenged girl who goes to mission center. She needs one on one attention. The girl who works with her right now - Ashley - is graduating at the end of the year, so they've been praying about someone to work with Tink, preferably someone who is an underclassman. So I started praying about it, asking God if it is what He wants me to do. And it is. But I was like, "Well, someone else will do it. I can't." And GOd was all, "UM, you CAN, and I WANT you to." So I told the group on Monday that yes, I'd work with Tink. And then I started crying, and Ashley was like, "MELISSA! You are soo the right person for Tink. You're crying!"

So I wrote her a letter during the week, just telling her how excited I was to meet her. And then I got sick. And I wasn't sure if I would be up to going to Mission Center or not. I didn't want to get everyone else sick or anything.

But I ended up going. We stopped by Tink's house to pick her up, but she wasn't home, and I was kind of disappointed. But we went back to the Mission Center, and started the lesson...and about 1/2 way through, she walked in! I didn't really say anything to her until we started the craft. But she totally was open about talking to me. She was like, "Any friend of Ashley's, I want to meet." So we just talked. And it felt more natural than anything else I had done there yet.

So then it was time to take her home. And when we got to her house, she gave Ashley a hug, as was normal, but then she gave me one too.

And after she walked away, Ashley looked at me, and was like, "THAT WAS SO COOL!" Apparently Tink is never that open with anyone. She never gives hugs on the first day. But she did with me. So every Friday after Mission Center, we all sit around and talk about the night, so I shared about Tinkerbell, and it was just so cool. Like, I found my niche. And I like it. It's a little scary, I'm not quite used to it, but already, I know it'll be a nice niche. You know?

Then we went to Braums and I got some peanut butter cup icecream, and talked to people, and it was good fellowship. We talked about running on tredmills, going caving, giant produce grown in Alaska, and I don't know what else. But I just saw one of the guys in the library, and we talked in passing. But it's cool to feel involved and welcome. And Erin, Eckle, Becca, Hannah and I had a good (tired) ride back home afterward.

It was a good night.

Then I stayed up until 1:30 am or 2:00 am reading one of Whitney's books. :) But it was a really really really good book. One of the best that I've read in a long time. So there you go. And all the homework I have left to do is reading chapter six of Plato's Replublic, and writing a paper for philosophy. Bah. I hate philosophy.