thankful

2008's been a tough year. and we're only 7 months in.

i had a lot of time to think today and i realized that with all the not-so-nice things that happened thus far, God totally used it to show me how He's taking care of me. and how others are doing the same.

and so i give you, 2008 - the major (and minor) happenings of casey's life!


january

( - ) i FINALLY get a new cell phone and was super excited to have a phone that wasn't held together by layer upon layer of scotch tape... and what do i do with it... mere days after getting it? accidentally leave it at newark airport! it took a whole weekend to finally coordinate getting myself there, only to find that the phone didn't work. and i could have saved myself (and my friend who drove me) the ride.

february

( -) for months, i had been looking forward to attending Group Publishing's annual youth leaders conference, as i have no formal youth ministry training. i had a lot going on in my own head and with myself spiritually, i just knew that i'd get everything i needed at this conference. and the night before my flight, i get a call from jane (my youth pastor, who is already in ohio for the conference) that there are major snow storms coming and that my morning flight will get canceled. not packed at all and wanting to quickly switch my flight to that night, i stop being aware of what i'm doing, and drop my less-than-a-month-old cell phone into the sewer drain. i watched the lights on my phone flicker and die one last time. somehow, ryan was able to fish my phone out of the sewer with a bent coat hanger and a snow scraper. and after a weekend of drying out the phone and borrowing others phones to rebook my flight, i gave up. assuming God just didn't want me at this conference.

i'd been going back and forth for a while about taking a few steps back from the youth group, and the fact that i couldn't even get to feed myself spiritually or learn how to be a better leader just solidified my decision.

march

( -) i get a letter from verizon saying i've used up a year's worth of replacement phones in one month, and will not be insured for any more replacement phones until 2009.

( -) natalie, my bestest friend in the world, leaves nyack to go back home to england.

( -) ryan and i start getting on each other's cases. a lot.

april

( - ) my grandma keepers passes away after being in the hospital for months. she was 92 and honestly didn't act any older than 65. the last time i saw her healthy and with it was in march. i went to visit her in the hospital in the middle of april and she recognized my voice right away. but 10 minutes later, she completely forgot who i was. i ended up leaving the hospital in tears telling her that i loved her. she passed away on april 28th, my brother brett's birthday. i still can't believe she's not around. all i want to do is talk to her and it makes me so sad that she never got to see any of her grandchildren get married or meet her great grandchildren. but at least i got to have my grandma for 25 years, where she was healthy and happy. i still think about her every day.

i officially decide to step back from youth group and to only teach sunday school and chaperone certain youth group trips for next year.

may/june
( + ) feeling like i have more free time has forced me to spend time with others, not just holed up in my room with Georgia and a movie on my lap top

( + ) ryan and i start doing much better.

( + ) the new sigur ros album comes out, which i think greatly contributes to my happiness.

( + ) i start bellydancing weekly with alma. it's challenging and fun and it means almost 2 hours of guaranteed alma and casey time per week.


july

( +) i get to finally go on the workcamp trip! the trip was indescribable. i was fed so much by the crew i got to work with, bonding with jane and getting to be real with one another, by watching the girls in my youth group step out of their comfort zone and make friends and by meeting/getting to know the amazing group who joined us from st. james. i don't really know how to put into words what they gave me during the trip last week...

( +) i got to attend/be involved in farrell and michelle's wedding! it was so neat to watch 2 friends who love each other so much, finally get married. they've been together 7 years. plus, i got to walk down the aisle with ryan as he and i were bridal party pairs. [at least i got a cute guy to dance with]

( + ) in all the time i was gone, i missed work a lot. which i guess means i really do love my job. i couldn't wait to see my co-workers and all of our customers again. and a lot of our customers missed me too, which is a really nice feeling.

( + ) it sounds cheesy, but things with ryan seem perfect right now. we're loving each other and letting love take over.

( + ) amy threw this awesome pre-"Batman", mexican food themed BBQ last night. with awesome chili and guacamole and desserts and all. it was so great just to be eating with friends and just spending time together, before our midnight "Batman" show. which was fun, but all day i felt like i was hit by a train. 4 hours of sleep isn't quite enough for me... in fact, 8 hours is barely enough for me anymore. but i digress...

( - ) which brings us to today. feeling like a train wreck and on my way to work just before 8am, i hear my car making this awful scraping sound, like i drove over a tree branch or something. i pull the car into ryan's driveway and see that i wasn't dragging a tree branch, but my own front bumper. while i was eating guac and watching "Batman", some jerk tried to park in front of me and hit my car on the front left so hard that it knocked the bumper off. and did damage to the fender, driver's side door and who knows what else. and since it was a hit and run, it's coming out of my auto insurance deductible. $500 i have to spend all because some jerk drove into my car and couldn't fess up. it makes me sad to think one could do that much damage to someone else's car, and drive off.

i was so mopey all day, partly from being tired and partly from stress about my car. but that's where my loved ones come in. ryan calmed me down and lent me his car for the weekend and offered to drive me to NJ to get my grandma's car to borrow. my dad calmed me down on the phone and helped remotely. chris evans offered his advice, bungee cords, manliness and general car knowledge. and everyone else offered me hugs and laughter.

and slowly, my night started to perk up. i got to hang out at the art cafe and be silly with a lot of people who i love very much, but don't get to see too often.

and it was as easy as that. my ( - ) ended up as a ( + ).



and maybe that's what life is. God throws lots of tiny little things at us. both to test us, to see what we can handle, and to remind us that He's in charge and taking care of us. even in ways we didn't know we needed Him.


and that's what life's felt like lately. lots of tiny (sucky) distractions and wrenches in my plans, and there's God, making sure i'm still listening. and i am. and He's nudging me and putting great people in my life. and i couldn't be more thankful.