The Return to Academia

A final chapter in this trilogy to document my experiences with weather, people, and God.

I said in the last post that this would be a hard post. A post that would be difficult and bittersweet. There is much joy in sharing this post with you, there is also sadness as another chapter to my life is being concluded in the near future.

In early April, as I was placed into the position of chief meteorologist, a letter I had set aside was brought back to my attention.

While in the UK, I had continued to seek out job positions and grad school opportunities. During the latter weeks in the UK I applied to 4 universities to attend for graduate school and earn a master's degree in meteorology. The University of Wyoming, the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Mississippi State University, and North Carolina State University all received an application for acceptance from me. Shortly after arriving in Bowling Green, MSU replied with an acceptance letter. This letter was exciting, I knew then that I qualified for grad school. I had been turned down by three schools in the spring of 2013. However, it was a second letter from MSU that was brought to my attention in early April.

This second letter extended to me an assistantship to aid in my pursuit of research and a master's in meteorology and climatology at MSU. The assistantship consisted of an out of state tuition waiver, a partial scholarship for tuition, and the offer of a graduate teaching assistant position with a monthly stipend to cover the rest of my educational expenses, and the main portion of living expenses. The letter gave me until Easter weekend to make my decision.

In the midst of the chaotic rise to chief's position, I knew that this was the end of the road if I stayed in Bowling Green. I can climb no further here, I knew this was the highest spot I could attain within the station and the corporation. I also knew that the Lord has placed me at Christ Fellowship for a reason, and I love the church dearly. The Lord doesn't call us to sit back on our laurels and marvel at all we've accomplished. He desires men and women who will passionately follow His guiding across the street, across town or around the world.

Life in television in Bowling Green appears to be, quite frankly, in opposition to God's call. There, I would develop a routine, develop a clique at work, and become hardened to others around me and to the city of Bowling Green. I would become cynical, cut off from the rest of the people of Bowling Green and out of touch with other humans and unwilling to follow the Lord Jesus Christ.

God has placed in front of me an opportunity to take His name back to Mississippi State University. He's provided me an opportunity to be a leader within the department of geosciences at MSU. Part of my desire to work in television was to be just that, a leader and an example to others. The Lord has given me the opportunity to do that back in Starkville. He's not only blessed me with a roommate, as well as many friends from undergrad; He's blessed me with new contacts who are incoming freshmen, transfers, grad students with whom I can share my knowledge of weather, Mississippi, and most importantly, my knowledge of how Jesus has changed me.

Life following Christ is crazy, illogical, exciting, and completely worth it. I cannot imagine, after being taught many things by God, living my life just to please me. I can never be pleased. I'll always find something wrong with me, something I can't have that I want, or something I don't want that I have. Following Christ means that though there is something wrong with me, it's called sin and Christ died to deal with the consequences of what's wrong. In Christ, He has promised to make me new, and He will make good on His promise. He rose from the dead to prove that fact. Following Christ means giving up my selfish desires and wants, and seeking Christ. The Bible says that the one who saves his life will lose it. The one who loses his life gains it. This is made possible in Christ, in His resurrection from the dead. Following Christ means that the stuff I don't want (pain, persecution, hunger, stress, etc) can be handed over to God. I give up control of trying to fix my life and myself. I'm letting the Potter mold the clay, the sculpture chisel off the imperfections. The process is painful, I have been and will be pushed, stretched bent, even broken. Above it all, God has a plan. His plan is for His glory, and in His glory, our greatest joy is found.

On August 11, 2014, approximately 1 year after I made the commitment to spend my autumn in the UK, I will return to the place where God took hold of me, grabbed my attention, and began remaking me and teaching me.

He knows my fears, He knows I want to be independent, and there are bills to be paid. He has since blessed me with a part time job in weather and TV. Wednesday, I accepted an offer to become the weekend meteorologist at WVUA-TV. THIS TV network, channel 7 in Tuscaloosa, AL.

I love working in television. I love being able to interact with people and help them by providing information they need in daily life and in emergencies. These two positions give me the opportunity to become better at that, and learn where it is God wants me from now until I see Him face to face.

I don't know where God wants me. I don't know if He wants me to continue in television or move to another field, but what I do know is that He is good. He allowed the dream of working in television come true, even if it's only for a short amount of time, I'm thankful for what He has blessed me with.

Throughout this year, I have been reading novels, and one, "The Count of Monte Cristo" by Alexandre Dumas, is very appropriate in its closing. Edmond Dantes writes a farewell letter to his heirs,

"Live, then, and be happy, beloved children of my heart, and never forget, that until the day when God will deign to reveal the future to man, all human wisdom is contained in these two words, -- 'Wait and hope.' -- Your friend,

Edmond Dantes,
Count of Monte Cristo"

Through it all, strength has been found in waiting and hoping in Christ. He will never fail, His promises are true, His love is deep, and His majesty is worthy of all my praise.

I want to thank a bunch of people. Through all of this, my parents have worried, stressed, prayed, and let me follow God's call even when they doubted.

I'm thankful for my British family, my friends from college and Colorado, all of whom supported, loved, prayed, and encouraged me to pursue the Lord's call to England last fall.

Additionally, I'm thankful for all of my wonderful new friends here in Bowling Green. I have been blown away by your love, acceptance of myself as a new friend and encouraged me through the rough days. Thank you for showing me around Bowling Green, welcoming me into your homes and lives. You've blessed me immensely.

Finally, I thank God, my Savior. He saved me, showed me love, cared for me, and blessed me beyond measure.

I love you all so very much. To those I'm leaving, I'll be in Bowling Green through June, and please, let's spend more time together. Please come visit me in Mississippi, it's a lovely place that I would love to share with you. To those I'm returning to, I love you and I cannot wait see you again and spend time together.

All, may the Lord bless you, keep you, and may you seek His face and His glory with every breath.

"A Taste of 'The Good Life' & the Blessings of God"

Part 2 of 3 to catch everyone up on life as a Crank. This middle chapter to the saga will detail how very attached to all things British I have become.

I thought life would calm down, I would move back in with my parents and I would be one of the countless college graduates with student loans and no job to pay for them. Then I turned on my cell phone after months of it being turned off in Memphis (dumb phones do not work overseas, shocking). I have a voicemail from some guy who I didn't know. He was calling to talk with me more about a job opening in Bowling Green, KY and weekend weather. I was floored, but I was worn out. It was about 10pm so I told myself I would call him tomorrow. The next morning, I'm getting ready for the day, and attempting to come up with a list of questions to ask when I call the Kentuckian back. Before I'm done getting ready, my phone starts ringing. It's home skillet from Bowling Green. We chatted for a bit about the job, some details with it. He then offers me the job, on the phone, within 24 hours of my returning to the U.S. of A. I'm still tongued-tied and trying to re-adjust to the American Southern accent. Thankfully, I have the coherence to ask if I could talk to the chief meteorologist before making a decision.

I'll skip over the rest of those details due to legal issues and they're boring. Needless to say, what I thought was going to be a difficult time of twiddling my thumbs, God had much bigger plans in mind. He wasn't done knocking my socks off, and I am beginning to learn that He never will stop. He loves me, in spite of my darkest sins, my inability to share the Gospel, and my constant anxiety, He loves me, cares about me, and wants to blow my mind each and every day. I believe this is almost a humorous antagonisation of my anxiety.

 By Martin Luther King Jr. weekend, I'd moved into a hotel in Bowling Green, KY. I enjoyed working in TV, experiencing my first show, forecasting and what I said actually mattering. I saw snow, predicted it, advised people in how to prepare for it. The experiences and opportunities afforded me by God to work in TV have been incredible. I'm so very thankful for this job.

The first week I was there, I had looked up churches in Bowling Green, and there were plenty. I didn't know where to start, so I went to the BSU at Western Kentucky University (they're all progressive and call it BCM, whatever). There, I met the director who introduced me to one of the interns who worked there, Joel. Joel immediately offered to get lunch with me, and though we didn't get lunch, we still talked awhile about what I'd been doing in the UK, and where he went to church (Christ Fellowship) and why. He also gave my number to a friend of his, Chase, who also went to Christ Fellowship with Joel.

The next day I met Chase for lunch and at that point, I could not not visit Christ Fellowship, I'd had two invites to come Sunday (0 for any other church), I'd been told how they were located in a similar area to the Earlesfield, and their desire was to reach the people of that community with the Gospel. Joel had given me the website, and so I creeped hard on the church, about what they believed, etc. I couldn't find a single reason not to go. Then I went.

Before the pastor's 50 minute sermon was over, I was sold. Then we took communion, icing on the cake. I was a little overwhelmed by the church, the genuineness of the people, the worship, and the commitment to the Gospel. After the service, I met Eric, who invited me to coffee, and later that week, to the small group Bible study at his house. God couldn't have made it plainer as to where He wanted me in Bowling Green. From Joel to Chase to Eric, to everyone else I met at church that Sunday, God had this in mind long before I went to England.

What really confirmed this to me was at the small group. We spent our time that week sharing our testimonies, rather than discussing the sermon (Ooops). That's when I was informed of the connection between Harlaxton College (in Denton/Grantham, Lincolnshire, UK) and WKU. I met people that night (and I've met more since) who went to study abroad there. I heard and saw people from all kinds of background sharing how they came to know Christ and how beautiful that night was.

I can say that these past 5 months since moving to Bowling Green have been absolutely some of the hardest, most frustrating, sanctifying, and fulfilling months. I consider this church, my church. The people, the community... my people and my community. The opportunities I've had to serve here in Bowling Green have been amazing. I'm blessed and thankful to be here now.

I've made many new friends, close friends, and am amazed that they actually are friends with this awkward, nerdy, non-Hill Topping dude who is overly obsessed with Britain (to the point that I listen to The British History Podcast, you should also, it's great).

By April of this year, due to a variety of things at work, I became the chief meteorologist at the station. My working hours shifted from weekend nights, to weekday evenings. This job has afforded me many opportunities, stories about WKU, Hot Rods Baseball, schools talks, Humane Society visits, celebrity cookie eating contests, career fairs, tickets to baseball, running in different events (KY Foam Run & the Color Vibe 5k Run), and even throwing out the first pitch at a minor league baseball game.

The people I've met and gotten to know here are the reason that the third part of this trilogy of the first part of 2014 will be a bittersweet chapter. Please read the next segment, "The Return to Academia" with the knowledge that many long, tearful nights of crying out for wisdom from God and seeking advice from godly men and women in my life have led to the conclusion of the trilogy.

The Return to America

It is hard to believe where I was 6 months ago and where God has brought me in that time. In my last blog post I was still in England, and was looking forward to Christmas, let me catch you up from there.

I spent Christmas with the Howsons, and their extended family that came in for Christmas. We all went to church together on Christmas morning. While Americans like our Christmas Eve services, the British head out Christmas morning. We walked to church in Harby, and I finally saw the inside of that Anglican church. The service was unique. A small sermon was spoken, and we sang many songs. There was a leaflet with the songs written on them. While we didn't sing all of these, the leaflet was their Christmas hymnbook, and it wasn't always that Christmas-y or even Christian. Some songs included were: "Jingle, Bells", "In the Bleak Midwinter", "Christ The Lord Is Risen Today", "Good King Wenceslas, "Here We Come A-wassailing", "Lord of the Dance", The Twelve Days of Christmas", and "We Wish You A Merry Christmas". While I know and enjoy many of these songs, none are exceptionally appropriate for the service. We did of course sing "I Heard The Bells On Christmas Day", you can't avoid that one.

As I am writing this 6 months after Christmas, it is somewhat difficult to remember all that happened, however I do want to highlight how generous, thoughtful, and kind my British family was to me. I received a set of shakers (English Bulldogs with the British flag on their backs, very cute and appropriate), blue football socks (Everton colors), two Everton toothbrushes (lovely, thanks Lois), and a fantastic onsie. All in all, I made out well from my British family as I view them now. I have parents, siblings, grandparents, cousins, and cousins' children who I count as two nieces. God has blessed me with families everywhere I go, and Britain was no exception.

My departure was hard, the evening flew by the night I was to leave by train for London. I can remember how the cold bit through my pea coat that night waiting on the platform and my heart pounding realising this would be the last time I would stand in Grantham. It was difficult, and the night was just beginning. My travel to Heathrow was fairly uneventful, but I arrived so late that security and check-in had closed and I was forced to spend the night out in the main concourse and lobby. I could find a comfortable position and my brain wouldn't focus on reading anything. Those wee morning hours were incredibly painful, I thought a lot about how I was leaving may never return.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the airline check-in opened and I finally got 2/3 boarding passes for my travels. Yes, 2/3, my final ticket from O'Hare to Memphis wouldn't print, the attendant said this was common with the big international airlines now sharing flights but coding them differently, she was with British Airways, and the last ticket was American Eagle/American Airlines. How she got my second ticket (Iberia Airlines), I have no idea, but I was so thankful. As we took off from London, my head dropped, and I think I may have drooled on the woman beside me... I was tired and unable to control any body movement or function.

I eventually came to when they served breakfast (I love international flights, complimentary food). I pinched myself to wake myself up enough to eat, then look out the window at the Spanish scenery. For the first time, I actually chatted with the person next to me. First, I apologised for my drooling, snoring, whatever may have occurred while I was dead to the world. We began to chat, and I learned a little about her life, a single woman in her late 40s from Buckinghamshire (west of London). She was on her way to hike in the mountains of Argentina. The trip was a gift from her father. We talked a little of religion as she was curious as to why I was in the UK and for so long. While no spiritual flames were light, nor even sparks, I pray that as she hiked those mountains the Lord would speak to her, and that she would see the emptiness she was already feeling as something only Christ could fill and heal. We landed in Madrid, we parted ways amiably and I then proceeded to get my final boarding ticket to Memphis, another adventure in a foreign land, with a Spanish-speaking attendant for American Airlines.

My Iberia Airlines flight was really nice, I had a window seat beside a younger man (late teens/early 20s), we never talked (except for when I needed the loo), which was saddening after my last flight but it showed me how other perceive my generation. We can be so absorbed in our own little bubbles we often miss the people, places, and happenings that are right beside us.

O'Hare was one of the most frustrating layovers I've experienced (besides the insomnia of Heathrow). After getting through customs, with just a few minutes to spare, I discover that I have to go back through general security to get to my connecting flight... Excuse me? I just went through customs, I shouldn't have to take off the belt, exterior clothing, shoes, etc. all over again! I only had about 20 minutes til my flight was to depart at that! My face was red with frustration and anger over that.

Thankfully, I made it. I was on the flight to Memphis, then we landed, I stepped back into the Memphis Airport on December 30, 2013 through the exact same gate I had departed out of on September 10, 2013. Though a wheel had broken off my big suitcase between Chicago and Memphis, my things and I were safe. I thought as I was eating dinner with some wonderful friends: Chris, Sara Grace, Haley, and Joe how calm life would become. How wrong I was.

I would like for you to continue reading this saga as it continues in my next post, "A Taste of 'The Good Life' & the Blessings of God"

Weeks 13 &14: A Slow Farewell To England

One last post as last week and this week are really the end of the internship. Things are a little more relaxed the week of Christmas.

Last week was quite busy with our last assembly and explorers. Both of those have been such wonderful times to work with the kids and the teachers at the school. The opportunities they have given us are unheard of in American public schools. Last Friday we were invited to run the school's Christingle service. I have never done a Christingle, so this was a brand new experience for me.

A Christingle service is an Anglican/Episcopalian advent service where they light a candle that is stuck into an orange that has four sticks with sweets on them and a red ribbon around the middle. We spent the day with the different classes helping them make their own Christingle candles. At the end of the school day, the whole of the schools gathered and we got to share what each part of the Christingle means, and how that relates to Christ and his birth/death at Christmas.

After the assembly, we wanted to thank the faculty and staff for allowing us to working so closely with them and with their kids, so we brought in tea, coffee, and cakes for them to have while they had their weekly meeting. It was great to be able to give back and see the teachers when they aren't running around keeping track of the children they are responsible for during the school day.

On the city wall

This week, things were still quite busy, but I had already made plans and purchased a train ticket up to York for Monday, to see the town, and do a little Christmas shopping. I loved York. It still has a lot of its original city walls still up, and open to the public, it was neat to walk around the centre of the town and to have the view from up there.

View of the Minster from the wall.

I also explored the outside of the York Minster (they charge £10ish to go in), I saw the view from Clifford's Tower, which used to be part of the York castle, which is no longer standing. From there you can clearly see all of York, even parts which are outside of the city walls. It has a commanding view which makes sense why they built a castle there. In fact, the first castle was built by William the Conqueror way back in the eleventh century AD. He built it to protect Norman England from Vikings. It's crazy to me to think how much history that I have learned about back in America actually took place in these different places.

Panoramic look north from Clifford's Tower

Clifford's Tower looking northeast at the Minster

The York Minster

York is known for its shopping, and so with Christmas arriving quickly, I took the opportunity to do a little Christmas shopping. The centre of town is almost entirely shopping and tourist sights. The most famous of places to shop is what they call "The Shambles". The Shambles used to be the meat market area, but now it just a small street that is tight, crammed and the buildings are nearly leaning into one another. This street has lots of little shops and is still very old in its architecture. There is plenty of Elizabethan architecture in York, and I love it. There are two rivers that run through York, the River Foss, and the River Ouse. Both are absolutely beautiful to walk over and along, so I naturally took pictures.

The Shambles at night.

The Shambles during the day.

 Well, besides my touring adventures on Monday, this week has been very busy. Tuesday and Wednesday we finished giving leaflets to everyone on the estate, and we also had our last Bible study and Tots and Toys of the year. It is strange to think that the next time both of those meet, I won't be there. Thursday evening we had a youth event at Andrew and Grace's, we had done this once before during this autumn's half term break, and since there was a positive response to it, we thought we would it again before Christmas. It is great to interact with the youth that we know, and actually be able to talk with them, when we aren't working with their younger siblings or when their parents are around. We all act differently when our parents are around, and so this time gives them an opportunity to open up more.

The River Foss

The River Ouse

Guess who's from York!

Today, we had a kids Christmas party at the community centre since the kids got off of school Friday for Christmas. We had a great time with over 50 kids from the estate, they all filled with energy and anticipation for Christmas, and we did get to share a bit of what Christmas really is all about. To them, it really is just about getting presents, and big ones at that. We know Christmas to be about God gave us the biggest gift we could ever ask for. He gave us His Son, who came to save the world, and each one of us from all the bad things we have done. Jesus came to earth at Christmas as a baby, he came in the midst of oppression, anger, filth, and poverty. He came so we may have life, and have it to the full. He came at Christmas so that no matter our rank in life, we may know God, and have a relationship with him. He really is the best present we could ever get, and all we have to do is accept him as a gift from God, and let the gift of Jesus change us to be more like Christ each day that we live.




I have thoroughly enjoyed my 3 months and two weeks (up to now) here in England. This autumn has been full of learning about another culture, about my own culture, about Christianity and how it permeates each and every culture differently, and understanding how to meet the people of the culture with the Gospel, and sharing it in a way that shows their need, and displays God's glory. Many people here and in America have asked me what I am doing when I return to America. While I would absolutely love to say that I will be working WXYZ-TV in Anytown, USA, this is not the case. The more I pray and seek God about why I haven't found a job the more I believe God isn't calling me to that, despite how very much I wish it were the case.

The ruins of an old and powerful abbey during the reign of Henry VIII.
I love this picture.

I don't know what God has planned for me. There are lots of things I would love to do, places I'd be thrilled to live, and people I would overjoyed to work alongside, but patience is needed, as is trust and dependence on the One who knows all and has orchestrated everything under the sun and in the universe to be exactly where it is at each instance, and doing exactly what He has allowed it to do. So, I can say with Paul in Romans 8:26-30, that I may not even know what I'm doing, or to pray for, but He knows, and He cares. He is watching and bringing himself glory through every circumstance. Even if the mess of this world, in its wars, destruction and desecration of all God has created, His handiwork is still evident, and He is still there holding all things together. So praise Him when things are going great in your life, give thanks for the relative peace in your life. Seek His face for wisdom and answers when nothing makes sense, and your life is crumbling, praise Him in that moment for His steadfastness, His strength, compassion and grace.

Week 12: Bugs and Christmas Time

I have now been here for 3 months. That leaves 22 days for me here in the UK. These last 22 days will be very busy, with Christmas activities with the school, a Christmas party for kids, a Carol Service at ECC, a trip to York, team Christmas dinner, and much more.

Looking back on this week, it seems quite long for some reason, we didn't have all of our activities this week, but we were still quite busy. Monday was the regular cleaning day of the week with its usual things to clean. Tuesday we began our mission of canvasing the entire estate with flyers about our Christmas events at the church. Tuesday was quite cold, which made things very interesting out and about the estate. Tuesday evening a woman from Wales moved into her house on the estate. She has moved specifically to work alongside the church and minister to the estate. Wednesday and Thursday I spent some time at her house painting as she is doing some interior redecorating before moving all of her things in.

Wednesday began the rounds of sickness for the team. Monday the three year old was sick, but that didn't affect the team too much as we weren't all in one place. By Wednesday, Andrew and Grace had both fallen ill with the same thing. This affected our tot's and toys play group, so we were down to 4 as opposed to our usual 6. We managed well in spite of this and then got to spend some time with Edith, our new Welsh friend and her foster daughter's partner, Dave at lunch. It is encouraging to see how God has brought so many different people to the estate. Edith made the comment of at the table, there were 6 different accents. Welsh, Northern English(Newcastle/Sunderland), Scottish, Northern Irish and a general British accent, and an American accent. This was just a tiny taste of what heaven will be, thousands of tongues, dialects and accents all worshiping and praising God for all eternity. I can't wait to hear that.

Thursday we had our Explorer's Club at the school, with a normal attendance, you can tell the children are getting antsy for Christmas and the time off school. Thursday evening felt like Christmas time back in America, as we had Chinese ("A Christmas Story" anyone? "Deck the hores wi' bows of Hory fa-ra-ra-ra-ra-ra-ra") and put up the Morton's Christmas tree. As I do not have the memory of decorating the tree as a 3 year old, I'm sure I was somewhat similar to their three year old and putting up the tree in whatever fashion made sense to her, and was physically possible. This meant branches piled on top of one another. As soon as it was up, she began the decorating, beginning with the most fragile and expensive of ornaments. It was fun to see her do that, and think how odd it is that we instinctively know which ones those are, and find it hard to resist the impulse to touch and hold those ornaments.

Friday we helped the school put on a Christmas Fayre. Yes, Fayre. That is how they spell it here. I think it's from the old or middle English, and hasn't changed. While it was one massive chaotic event, we got to see the kids and their parents, and hand out a little booklet telling the story of the First Christmas.

Week 11: Giving Thanks

Happy Thanksgiving! And for some of you, Happy Black Friday. I can honestly say that I am thankful Black Friday isn't near as big of a deal here as it is in America. The only store here that has a Black Friday sale is ASDA, which is a part of the Wal-mart family.

This week has been full of our regular activities. We had our assemblies this week, where we were able to announce winners in a Christmas card contest we had. We asked the school if the children could make some Christmas cards themed around the Nativity scene for our Christmas flyer. We had three winners, and each one was thrilled to be named the winner, and even more ecstatic when they received a Christmas present from us.

Tot's and Toys play group was busy once again, with 13 children, and 10 adults. It is encouraging to see more and more consistency from people. This indicates that they are comfortable with the playgroup and with us.

Wednesday evening, we celebrated Thanksgiving. For the most part, our Thanksgiving dinner is similar to an English Christmas dinner. There were some exceptions, Green Bean Casserole, Lime Pear Delight (family recipe), and Sour Cream Apple Pie (another family recipe). All went over fairly well, and no one got sick from my cooking! It was a wonderful chance to spend time with them all, and share a bit of American culture. Afterwards, they asked for a quiz, so I created a quiz about America. Questions included what is the first state to join the union, the last state to join the union. What is the name of the US national anthem, and what sports did Michael Jordan play professionally. It was a hilarious time as there are things that they didn't know, and so their answers caused some laughter throughout the evening.

Thursday's explorer's club went well, we did a Thanksgiving craft with them, which I of course was thrilled about :) . Friday we went out with the school, and helped clean up some gardens and a little litter picking.

Friday night with the teens in Harby was good, I was the one in charge of the older ones, and we talked about what we are thankful for, and why we are thankful, and to whom are we thankful. The time was good to just talk about what I am thankful for, and why I am thankful for them. We organized what we are thankful for into: 5 people, 4 things, 3 things in nature, 2 places/activities, and 1 thing that God has done in our lives this past year.

I know this week's post is somewhat short, but things are about to get really busy with December arriving tomorrow. We have lots of this going on from now to Christmas, including attempting to visit every home on the estate to tell them about our Christmas events.

Week 10: Cathedrals, Churches, and the People Within

Time is really beginning to fly by! It is hard to believe that I am over 2/3 of the way through my internship here. In 35 days, I will (by God's grace and will), be on a plane somewhere over the Atlantic Ocean between Madrid, Spain and Chicago, Ill., USA.

I am late(ish) once again on writing this blog. This was another busy weekend.

This week I spent much of it at Andrew and Grace's. Daniel and Grace took three days off at the beginning of the week, and visited family in York and Ipswich. While at Andrew and Grace's, I went into Grantham and visited a relatively new Christian bookstore, looking for some Bible study materials. While I was happy to talk with the lady who owns the shop, I couldn't find anything that really jumped out at me as what I was looking for. Additionally, when I talked with her on the way out, I discovered she had a pet rat with her. Which she kept on her person. The rodent made several appearances from behind her ear, and even through her scarf and jacket. While I have never dealt with the bubonic plague, I'd prefer that to be one thing I do not experience on this earth.

Tuesday afternoon was spent at a nice old house on the north east side of Grantham called Belton House. The house is owned by the National Trust, sort of like the Historic Societies in America. The house has a large garden, orangery, boathouse, lake, maze of hedges, stable, and servant housing in addition to the house itself. While unable to get into the house, we did explore the landscape surrounding the house.

Lake and boathouse.

Looking through the back garden.

Belton House

Tuesday night was a long but glorious night as I was able to video chat with the MSU Baptist Student Union at their last meeting of the semester. It was wonderful to see some faces I haven't seen in a couple months, and although once the meeting began it was dark. I knew people were there, and were listening due to the noise, and some responses. Additionally, I received a few tweets, and some iMessages from people during that time. It is so very encouraging to be able to hear from people who you have been around for 4 years still care about you, and are genuinely interested in what you are doing.

MC came around Wednesday afternoon to discuss life and how things are going as a 5 day old Christian. It was great to just chat about the Christian life, learn some of the foundations to what we believe, and discuss what prayer is, and how on earth you go about praying by yourself.

Thursday morning I ventured back into Grantham (rat-free this time), and visited St. Wulfram's Cathedral. It is quite a large cathedral considering the town. The spire was completed in the 13th century, and standing at 282 feet, and some odd inches, it was purportedly the tallest structure in England upon completion.

St. Wulfram's Cathedral.
Church of England.

Friday was another busy day of cleaning, mentoring, Bible study with teens in Harby, and then video chat with two fantastic brothers, Aaron and Isaac. I have missed them both terribly since we returned to the U.S. after my first visit to Grantham back in May. It was good to see them and share with them personally what has been going on as they know some of the people I work with personally.

Saturday I visited Melton Mowbray and was able to walk around during the Saturday market. Thankfully the market was on because Melton isn't exactly a throbbing metropolis. The square where the market was held is pleasant, but small. I also visited St. Mary's Church which was very nice and interesting as the steeple had a clock on it, but the staircase to the clock was on the edge of the steeple, so you could tell where the staircase was quite clearly.

Sunday was a very busy day, as I went to three services. We had a nice group at the Earlesfield Community Church again this week. However afterwards, Lois was being baptised (when in England, spell like the English) in Nottingham, so we raced back there to join and celebrate with her.

Lois, and one of the pastors, Pete!

All in all, a good week, with another busy week ahead. Things are going to be quite busy for the next 3-4 weeks, I will try to post weekly, but I'm making no promises for this stretch!