A working girl is still working

Probably one-third of my blog reading audience has now declined--my dear mom has now departed for her 6 week adventure in northern China! Please remember her as she teaches, learns, serves, and shares life along precious Chinese people the next several weeks. I know her life will never be the same! :)

Life is still somewhat the same here, however. I had a great weekend hiking with my friend Kelly, and then have been holding the fort down while my hosts for the summer have been away. They return tomorrow.

Work is still fun and interesting--last night I got to attend a reception at the British Embassy. It's way classier than the French Embassy, and was filled with guys in skinny suits and skinny ties. My boss has a British accent, but I could barely understand most of the people. It was neat also seeing people I had met at other functions previously. What a life! I also made a presentation today in a nice conference room, and was able to use all my presentation skills from school and teaching skills from China. It was great.

There's not too much else to report, except I can't believe I just finished up week 6 of my internship--just 6 more weeks to go! When I first got here I thought 12 weeks was an eternity, but now I feel like I wouldn't mind working here for a lot longer. Plus, it's nice to have a bit of money--I'm saving the vast majority for tuition, but I'm allowing myself to eat real food, like blueberries and meat.

I'll leave you with a few random pictures. Happy July 4th weekend almost!

At Great Falls National Park.

With Kelly before we started hiking up and down tons of rocks.

Sadie, my responsibility and now good friend.

A working girl has a pet

Hello from the D.C. suburbs! I have officially been here for over 5 weeks now. Isn't that thrilling? It's hard to believe I'm almost half way through with my internship. There's a lot coming up in the next week. The people I live with went away to the Northwest for a few days, so it's just me, the dog, and a big 'ol house. I really hope I remember to feed the dog, Sadie... Then they return the same day that John arrives for a couple of days to visit.

There's not a whole lot to report. Probably the most interesting thing about the week was a fundraising dinner for a couple of very powerful and high up Congressmen. We went to a super swanky steakhouse right on Constitution Ave. There were only 10 other people and we had our own dining room, with lots of steak and good food. It was a little surreal to be "rubbing elbows" with these people and talking with them. And who knew I could make stuffy old Congressmen laugh? I guess that's one of my spiritual gifts.

Last night I talked to baby Reborn, who is living with her sister this summer in eastern China. I would much rather talk to her any day than hang out at political fundraisers... I'm just so thankful she was still discipled this past year by a new foreign teacher, and her passion for the lost puts me to shame! She's such an inspiration and encouragement. Please remember her older sister who is not a believer, that Reborn can be a light to her this summer, and for Reborn's post-graduation plans.

Now I'm off to go hiking with a friend. Hopefully I'll remember to feed Sadie when I return!

A working girl has a reunion

The past several days have just sped by! Life just speeds by! I can't believe I've officially been back from China for one year. China has been on my heart a lot lately, especially as I hear about flooding in Jiangxi province and have finished reading that book, The Heavenly Man.

I'm acutely aware that this summer I'm not living in the real world. Who lives with a nice family in a huge house, eats steak for dinner, has a soft bed, works at a fancy corporation, and visits embassies? I guess that's me for now. It's a lifestyle like I've never experienced, and although I'm trying to enjoy it, it's also difficult, knowing that I'm living like .0001% of the world's population or something. But hopefully I'll use these blessings to bless others.

Speaking of blessings, I drove down to Richmond this past weekend to attend the wedding of one of my good ODU college friends, Jon. He married an amazing and godly woman. They'll be wonderful in ministry together. But I guess I forgot to tell the rest of my friends I was coming. So I waltzed into the University of Richmond chapel after not having seen these dear friends since graduation 3 whole years ago. So I think we were all happy to see each other, and I spent the entire day catching up, laughing, and dancing with them. That has probably been the highlight of this month.

In work related news, I get to go to the British embassy next week. We'll see how that compares with the French one. :)

Looking all swanky in my $20 Gap dress.

With Jess and Dani.

The bride and groom.

My InterVarsity friends from the old college days.

A working girl runs for president

Wow, yesterday was a whirlwind! I was meeting so many different people in so many different places in D.C. that I felt like I was running for president. Since I technically worked for 14 hours yesterday and will be working until 8 p.m. tonight, I don't have to go into work until 1 p.m. Hooray for resting!

Slowly D.C. is rubbing off on me. Other plans and boyfriends aside, I think I would get a job here next year if I could. Sure, the place is crowded and gritty (in a different sense from China), but it's a place where decisions get made for the country and impact the whole world.

So I went to a breakfast with a senator in the morning at The Monocle. I'm getting a lot more comfortable in my role, and was able to talk with various people. The overwhelming majority of them are men who wear nice suits, ties, and fancy cuff links. Many of them are vice presidents of their respective companies. But God has reminded me that they are also just human, and I'm not really nervous around them.

Then at night I went to the French Embassy for another event. There was a reception, which included additional suit-wearing guys and only a handful of women wearing their equally impressive suits. The Embassy itself was rather disappointing. It's nestled in Georgetown, so the scenery is gorgeous, but the Embassy isn't that impressive. There was a huge locked gate we had to go through, but the "guard" looked like a teenager in a t-shirt and jeans.

The people then were also a little less interesting, even though they came from all over the world. With my water glass in hand and half of a lox hors'doeuvres stuffed in my mouth, I met a guy from the U.S. Department of Commerce who immediately asked if I was French. I had to tell him, no, I was from Kansas and not to let my special Midwestern accent fool him. He said I looked French, and he should know, because he travels there extensively. Later a lady at a parking garage asked what country I was from. Not many people seem to assume I'm American.

Anyway, it was a fascinating, but exhausting day. Tonight I get to go to yet another reception in the heart of D.C. at a fancy restaurant. This week sure is going by quickly...

A working girl mingles

Wow, working 40 hours a week doesn't leave too much time for fun! So I've been cramming a lot of things to do into the weekend. Saturday I rode the metro into D.C. to see an IU friend, Kristen. We had a pretty fun afternoon wandering around the gigantic national zoo with every other kid on the planet. The zoo was very nice, but a lot less exciting than Chinese zoos, which are more like the circus. The animals here are fed so well, and probably have nicer habitats than the majority of humans on earth.

After that, I headed back to northern Virginia where I met an acquaintance, Paula, at her house. She used to be the staff worker for the InterVarsity ministry I'm a part of at IU, but left at the time I arrived. I "randomly" emailed her, so we could meet up. Except for church, I am never around other believers. It was like a breath of fresh air; I almost wanted to cry. We have basically the same background, and she and her husband had been missionaries in Kazakhstan! That is the place I have dreamed about going, especially after I hung out with Kazakhs in northwestern China. They still have friends there, and said I could always visit them if I want to visit that field. She also just helped redirect my focus to my purpose here, which is easily become skewed after hanging out in such affluence and secularism for the past few weeks.

Today I went back to that great church I mentioned, and decided to go to the adult Sunday school, which meant I was hanging out with people twice my age. But I'm more comfortable around older people anyway. :) There were a few people in their thirties, and there were also a few graduates from schools in Indiana. They were just all really welcoming, and again, I felt like I wanted to cry. Fellowship with other believers cannot ever be overrated.

The rest of today was spent helping host a party with the wonderful people I live with. All of their friends are very nice, but I am a million more times comfortable helping cook and wash things, than mingling. I got to do all of the above. And it's always so hard when the conversation usually goes like this:

"So, Laura, what are you doing?" I'm a graduate student in Indiana, interning here for the summer.
"Are you from Indiana?" I'm from Kansas.
"Oh, so Virginia is new for you!" Actually, I got my bachelor's in Norfolk at Old Dominion.
"Great! Did you go straight to Indiana after Old Dominion?" No, I was in China for 2 years.
"China? Wow, you have such fortitude to come here all by yourself and do so many different things!"

I can't count how many times I've experienced a version of that conversation. A Southern gentleman said I had "fortitude" about five times. Other people said I must be so brave and independent. I'm not even quite sure exactly what fortitude is, but all I know is that I have faith, which isn't even that strong most of the time. I just step out in faith where God calls me to go.

Oh, gosh, I don't know what else to say. It's going to be a long week with long days lasting from working 6:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. I get to go to the French Embassy, for example, for a cocktail reception and a talk. How do I handle that situation? I guess I'll figure it out, since I apparently have fortitude. :)

A working girl finds a church

Weekends are way too short. Yesterday my adopted parents and I went on a 16 mile bike ride. Apparently I was so slow because I was riding with the brakes on; they had somehow become locked. I was getting so frustrated, because I felt like I must have weighed at least 300 pounds to be riding so slowly. Thankfully we figured out what was wrong after I tried to ride 3 miles that way... It was a gorgeous day, and I had a great time being active. After sweating a lot, I decided to sweat some more by mowing the grass.

All of a sudden I feel like I'm in for the long haul here. I'm used to being away from my family for months on end, but I've never been away from my boyfriend before, because I never had one until now. Let's say I miss him a lot. So instead of going crazy, I'm trying to stay busy and surround myself with people, which is always a good idea.

Today I think I finally found a church, although it was a struggle to get there. For some reason I was sluggish this morning (maybe from the bike ride?) and was running a little late to the service. Getting closer to the church, I immediately ran into the church traffic--there was even a tired looking police officer directing traffic. I got a little disgruntled. My disgruntlement increased when I had to file in behind not one, but two Hummers! I couldn't even count all the Lexuses. I am living in Loudoun county, the richest county in the country, but this was too much. Then when I finally made into the sanctuary, I saw so many people in gorgeous clothes and perfect hair. When the pastor said to open your Bibles, I saw people opening up their brand new iPads to read the Scripture! People barely moved with the worship, and there were plenty of empty seats in the comfortable sanctuary.

So by this point, I was really discontent. I couldn't help but think of the Chinese churches I had been to, where the crowds poured out the door and people were nearly jumping with joy... Or even the majority African-American church I attended last week in Maryland, where joy seemed overflowing. This all started to eat at me, and then I just had to cry out to God for his help. I was being incredibly judgmental, and that was sin. I don't know these people's hearts and lives. I don't know where they are with God. I don't know why they have fancy cars. But I do know that I'm just responsible for myself and the condition of my heart. From that point on, I immediately felt more at peace, and much more open.

The message was great and I hung on to every word the pastor spoke. It's like I've been thirsting for truth. I'm not aware of a single believer around me here in Virginia these past days and weeks. The pastor spoke on Romans 12, which I had just been reading in my Bible! He spoke on spiritual gifts from the perspective of spiritual warfare and how Satan works to nullify those gifts. He asked lots of questions and made me think about things like:

-Have we been sidelined and taken off of the frontlines of war?
-Am I subtly being choked by the cares, worries, and pleasures of this life?
-If I love this world, then I'm an enemy of God.
-We feel God's pleasure when we use our giftedness to advance His kindgom.
-Ultimately we are at war, not on vacation.

That's so difficult to remember when I can so easily be blinded by the comforts living in America and now working in Virginia. Slowly I'm becoming more conformed to this world and I don't want to be!

Afterward, I talked to a nice couple who drive all the way in from West Virginia. I'm going to try and go to their Sunday school class next week. Hooray, I think I found a church!

Now back to another week of work...

A working girl isn't cut out for working

I'm just about wrapping up my second week of working here in Virginia. I'm still incredibly thankful for the opportunity to live and work here. Every day is super challenging, which I love and relish, but it can also be a little tiring. I get home from a 9 hour work day and feel beat. Now I can sort of understand how my hard-working mom felt, and then came home to two kids, which seems rather incredible.

How can people work like this for 40 years straight? I told my grandma today I wasn't made for working and she asked me in her ever practical way, "Well, what were you made for then?" I said I was made for relaxing... I've been working summer jobs and other types of jobs since I was 15, but there's something about being in an office that drains you. Actually I'm pretty sure I was made for telling others about the Gospel and bringing glory to God, which seems more difficult in a big corporation, but I guess it's quite possible. I'm just not sure how yet...

Anyway, I've been able to do some reading these days. Need some wonderful summer reads? Try Same Kind of Different as Me and The Heavenly Man.

P.S. Happy happy birthday to my dad!