Peru!

I have exciting news!  I will be traveling to Huanta, Peru on August 5-15th for a mission trip.  A last-minute set of circumstances have permitted my dad and I to go.  I am so blessed to be able to go and share this experience with him.  We will be traveling with 2 other members of our church and several members of Sharon Presbyterian Church, who have done this trip for several years.  We will be assembling, sanding and staining/painting 35 lecterns and bookcases to be placed in the Presbyterian churches there.  We will also be delivering many suitcases full of donations for the people there.  We also hope to get to know the people in this community in a personal way and gain an understanding of their faith and what sustains them.  I am very eager to practice my rusty Spanish and immerse myself in a culture and way of life very different from my own.

 I am very grateful that my church is providing a lot of the resources that allow us to go.  However, I am also charged with raising money to support the trip.  If you feel called to donate, please follow this link: https://secure.piryx.com/donate/wIZMfkAe/John-and-Sarah-Kate-Magee/sk_jt .  All donations are tax deductible and I am very thankful for your generosity.

Please keep in me in  your thoughts and prayers as I prepare for and experience this mission trip in Peru!  I will, of course, add pictures, commentary, and reflections after I return to the States.

A Must Read Book!

For those of you that don't know, I received a grant this summer that funds my research into the key players that use the arts as a tool for economic development.  This research requires LOTS and LOTS of reading, but it has not dissuaded me from reading for pleasure, it is after all summer.  I've read several good books including Room, The Kite Runner, and Falling Home, however my most recent read takes first place.

After reading Lisa Bloom's article "How to Talk to Little Girls,"  and seeing that 25% of young American women would rather win America's Next Top Model than the Nobel Peace Prize, I knew I needed to read her book Think: Straight Talk for Women to Stay Smart in a Dumbed-Down World. Thanks to my NookColor, wi-fi and a sleepless night, I downloaded and began to read this book from the comfort of my bedroom chair. Lisa Bloom argues that the women and girls of today excel in education at every level and outperform their male counterparts in employment, but at the same time obsess over celebrity gossip and plastic surgery.  Bloom is concerned that we are living in a "dumbed down" world where we forget to think, or are not required to think, for ourselves.   Her book is very humorous and candid, at the same time making you question and think.

It was a highly enjoyable, but educational read that really made me question my own life and how I interact within society and within a larger world.  As a result, I have cancelled my Nook eMagazine subscription to Cosmo (we'll see how long this one lasts!), and have added several of Bloom's recommended reading to my "To Read" list.  (She highly recommends Geraldine Brook's Nine Parts of Desire and thanks to Ms. Berini, my 11th grade English teacher, I have already read that one!) 

If you are looking for a non-fiction, but enjoyable, funny, thought-provoking book to read consider Think: Straight Talk for Women to Stay Smart in a Dumbed-Down World.

25 Things: Part 1

I recently found a list of 25 things about me that I created in February of my freshman year of college.  Now it’s July and I’m getting ready to begin my senior year.  2.5 years have elapsed and I astounded by the things that changed and the many things that have remained the same.  The original list entries are in green and my thoughts and reflections are in black.  

1.       My family is amazing, even in the moments of dysfunctionalness.  I have come to appreciate them even more so now that I’m away at school.  I love hanging out with them, game nights, laughing too loud at dinner, Thanksgiving craziness, and other excursions.    \

This one is still very true and I hope it will forever be true.  Now that I have my apartment, the most permanent home I have had in a while, I find myself missing them much more.  It’s as if it has finally solidified in my mind that my existence away from them is permanent. 

2.       I don’t regret for a moment doing Full IB… the IBJ/IBS friends I have made will (they had better) last a lifetime.  And doing  IB means that anything assigned here isn’t “hard”.

I still don’t regret for a moment doing Full IB… it has better prepared me for everything academic in college.  Those friendships I thought would last a lifetime… well haven’t for the most part.  This brings me sadness. 

3.      Another one about you guys… you are all amazing. You make Charlotte. I love you guys. And although I don’t do an excellent job of keeping in touch, I think about you guys often. 

Part of this one is true…. I think of  you all often.  I find myself wondering if these friendships are worth rekindling or have the ability to rekindle, especially certain ones. 

4.       I have a second half. She balances me out and makes me happy!!!!

This is still very true.  Although I haven’t seen her in WAY TOO LONG and we don’t talk nearly often enough, there is something very strong that keeps us connected. 

5.      I love Charlotte and I love Charleston.  I consider them both home, most of the time.

Sometimes I feel like I’m only “visiting” in Charlotte, but they are both still home.

6.     I’ve always said I don’t want kids because I’ve been playing “mom” and taking care of people my whole life and have a greater impact on the world to make than raising kids…. but for some reason I’m reconsidering, maybe. (:

Well, this is a tough one.  I want a family one day.  I have a vision of adopted foster kids, maybe mixed in with a biological one or two.  Having a family is the support system you need to take on the world and to make a great impact, not a hindrance to such a goal. 

7.       I believe you meet people for a reason. And sometimes you can’t explain why they are there and why you are so attracted to them and why they are so essential to your life. But you know you are so grateful for their presence in your life.   

When I wrote this that February a couple years ago, there was one specific boy I had in mind.  Although that relationship ceases to exist in the way it did back then, I still hold true to the idea that you meet people for a reason.  Part of a prayer I regularly pray includes the line: ”Help me to feel Your presence through all the people You put in my life” and I fully believe that the people in my life help me realize His love, power, and greatness. 

8.     I wish I knew for sure that distance didn’t have to matter in love.

I still wish I knew this.  As I look at graduate schools and employment opportunities for the future, that whole distance and love issue will play an influential role.   

9.       I spend WAY too much money on books. I can’t walk past Park Road Books without buying 3 (or sometimes more) of their used books.  Bargain Book bins are also hazardous to my bank account.  
I have joined the 21st Century and now read mostly on my NookColor, but this is just as dangerous to my budget.  With a simple double-tap on the "Buy Now" icon, I have my last literary craving at my fingertips.

  10.  I wonder why I’m at CofC in those moments when I’m not being challenged and have no work to do and can get 100% on a 25 question Multiple Choice Test that took me 13 minutes when others got 28%. Although I do occasionally have moments like this, they have occurred with much less frequency as I have moved into higher level classes in my two areas of interest.  Don't get me wrong, I'm not always challenged, but I have used the opportunity to excel and do exceptionally well.

I will save the last 15 things on my list for another post in an effort not to bore you and a need to further reflect in my own head.

Introduction

As I reach the middle of what could be my last summer of freedom, I wanted a forum to share my thoughts, opinions, reflections and musings.  This coming year will be one of change, hard decisions, apprehension, excitement and new beginning, a critical year I don't want to forget.