What the?

I woke up Sunday morning and thought, Wow, spring is almost here. The daffodils in the front yard are peeping through the four inches of freshly fallen snow; the birds are migrating north, east, west, anywhere but Utah, for warmer weather; I think I'll wear thick tights and a scarf today. For fun!

So like a happy-go-lucky kid I went for a walk in the slush, came back with squelchy feet, and scraped Oscar (my green car) for ten minutes. At that point I realized I had covered myself in everything that had once been piled on my windshield and my feet were swimming inside my dress shoes. Snow fell all day and this morning Provo woke up to three more inches of snow. I received a phone message from my mom. She left it while boarding a cruise ship in Southern California. She wanted to say goodbye because she will be out of range for all of her spring break.

Yeah. Right.

BYU doesn't have spring break. Scholastically or environmentally.

I think I'll go spring skiing this week. If you can't beat 'em, join 'em.

While it lasts

My last great effort to keep in touch has resulted in a blog. It's impersonal...I know. It doesn't show up in your mailbox or your inbox...yeah, I know. It has a title...who came up with that idea? But it works.

In January I resolved to make the most of my waning time in Utah. That means compact amounts of studying and frequent trips out of Provo. So I turned into a random road-tripper and ski bum the first few months of the year and now all I do while studying is dream about hiking. Who knew that senioritis in college would be doubly worse than in high school? Apparently I haven't grown up at all...which is okay!

Coli and I drove up to Salt Lake City last weekend to visit our friends Morgan and Tricia and to do “all the things we’ve never done.” Nicole had of course done everything, but she made it exciting, so I'm glad she put up with me. I managed to get us lost several times in a city designed on a grid system (surprise), but when things went well we were...
1. taste-testing organic food (the quiche at One World Cafe is amazing!)
2. celebrating Pi Day (with whipping cream pies)
3. taking an early morning run around the Salt Lake City cemetery... that was a bit eerie
4. haggling over backpacking gear at the REI garage sale
5. studying (at) the city library with its amazing architecture
6. sitting in on Palm Sunday Mass at the local cathedral

I’m saddened at the idea of leaving Utah. It has been home for four years and I feel like I'm barely beginning to know it. It’s a good thing so many friends live here, because I want to come back and keep exploring!

I'm leaving Utah for a bit warmer and wetter location. Speaking of exploring, pull out the maps! Chavadipudur, a village in Tamil Nadu, India, is hard to locate. I'm spending the summer researching English literature's impact on Indian women. Sound thrilling? It is! Life right now is devoted to preparation, and the more I prepare the more I realize how unprepared I am. Hmm, I've had this feeling before...perhaps before every other major life change.

Even with all of the uncertainty and expectation, life is still good. Impending change makes the present special, so I'll enjoy it while it lasts.