Because the doctor said so...

...I'm back on a gluten-rich diet for the next three months. This is going to be the most excruciating and wonderful thing that has happened to me in a while. Let me tell you why.

Having Celiac disease is pretty...I don't know... interesting. You get the best of both worlds: not being able to eat your favorite foods without dire consequence and the bliss of a [mostly] pain-free abdomen. Before the diagnosis, life is a struggle in every way because of the different things that go along with CD. One welcomes just about any diagnosis just to figure out why his or her body is acting so crazily. So not eating your favorite foods when you have Celiac is kind of a welcomed thing because it means you have less pain.

So why is Doc doing this? Since I've been gluten-free for the passed three months, my body has begun to repair itself from the damages caused by CD. He wants to do a few tests on me for clairification and research purposes but cannot if my body does not have a consistent "dose" of gluten in it each day. In order for the tests to be accurate, my body has to be re-damaged. Pretty much, he wants to put my body into turmoil so he can get a clearer answer and help others down the road. I'm pretty sure what's going on in my body is explanatory. Gluten = ouch. Gluten-free = YAY! Maybe I should be come a gastrointologist.

Delicious sandwich (SOFT BREAD!!) for dinner last night didn't end up to well. It was a....uhh... interesting night. I skipped breakfast for fear of a day like the night before and had a burger (with BUN!) for lunch. Again. Not such a hot day. And, thanks to Bethany's ice cream delivery service, I had cookie dough ice cream, something I hadn't eaten for MONTHS. Yes, the food was AMAZING and my tongue loved it. But the rest of my body is far more powerful than my taste buds.

I'm not looking forward to the lethargy, insomnia, irritablity, migranes, pain, fear, and everything else that goes along with CD, but I'm just hoping Doc ordered the right thing for my body.

So what's for dinner? According to Doc, probably pizza or a sandwich. According to my belly in combination with fear, I just might wait for breakfast.

What's so Bad about Sin?

A few days ago, I came across something so out of place, so ugly, so contrary to what was supposed to be. It was shockingly wrong.

The evening was brisk, the sun was setting, the crickets were chirping, and the sky was blue and purple. The flowers were practically spraying their aroma, the birds were dancing together, and the day was dwindling. And then I saw it.

Among God's beautiful creation, I saw a pile of trash. It was rotting and discolored, foul and dirty, heaping and uninviting. It was everything that God wasn't. Amidst my Savior's beauty lay filth. It just wasn't supposed to be there. When God made the world, He didn't make trash. We're the ones that made it. We put it there.

Isn't that how sin is? Our God did His part, and let me tell you, He did it well. He gave us something to put with the word "beautiful." We lived in bliss, contentment, fulfillment, and provision. We had everything we needed but our one action changed it all. Straying from perfection, we reached towards selfishness. We said, "Yeah, I know I have everything I need, but I want more." With that small gesture, we slapped God in the face and told Him what He gave us wasn't enough.

So, just like how that pile of trash was out of place in creation, sin is out of place in us. It just isn't supposed to be there. It makes us ugly, uninviting, foul, and shockingly wrong to God. Aren't you thankful for Jesus?

Camp is Over...

...but I still remain.

For the past month, silence was rare. Before, I had written about how it was most all I heard, but in July, it was anything BUT silent. Children screaming and laughing, sirens blowing, balls bouncing, trams pushing... It. Was. Loud.

But it's all over now.

It's August, camps have ended and it's back to me, God, and nature. No more counselors. No more campers. While July was exciting, I'm glad it's dwindling down. I'm ready for fall. I'm ready for quiet.

So how am I going to spend these last 20 days of SBC? I have a few ideas, but we'll see what God has planned.

I'm going to break out the blog, the books, the bike. The Pilates, the poems, the phone. I'll be planning for the fall, decorating my hall, and looking forward to ya'll. I'm excited for the people and the chapel's steeple. Soon my life will be transformed with the bustling of people, the piles of homework, the days upon days without seeing my boyfriend. There will be the writing of letters, the staying up of late, the skipping of breakfast.

...but oh how it's lovely. It's... SAU.

So for now, it's back to long bike rides, reading books all day, and looking forward to nightfall so I can actually do something (sleep). Isn't it wonderful?