yesterday was the first day back to school...it's amazing what that looks like after a while...

 

when I was in elementary school, I was awake way before my parents on the first day.  i picked out my outfit the night before, then changed it thirteen times that morning, before settling on the waffle tee with the red denim shorts (yep, i was the fashion icon of the school...obviously).  i had my lunch packed and ready to go and hoped none of the other kids were going to make fun of the lunchbox or what was inside.  i hoped my backback, hairdo, sneaker choice and ten-years-beyond-my-time dangly earrings would all receive the stamp of approval...

 

high school was a bit luckier - i wore a uniform, and not an uncomfortable one.  we had golf shirts and button downs and beige pants and blue pants and hoodies and tee shirts and the list went on.  of course, on that sunny morning of my first day of grade nine, i was hoping that my aloofness to the entire situation looked sincere...

 

having just started my fourth year of university, i realise a couple things...i'm more practical: i had plans to go to the gym, so showering for my first class wasn't necessary; i've seen these people for four years now - they've seen me looking worse, i'm sure.  with that, i'm more comfortable/confident: while i still like to put a certain amount of effort into my appearance, i know it's not what's actually going to get the grades i want, or plan the events i'm committed to, or send the 900 emails i need to get out by the end of the hour.  if i wore it yesterday, and its still clean, let's give it another go.  if it ain't broke, don't fix it! 

 

...

 

one thing that hasn't changed though, is the excitement factor.  in fact, i'm sure it's only increased, though now i am unabashedly keen on my courses, and the aloof thing has fallen into disuse.  despite an extremely busy start, i am truly looking forward to this year.  I love my courses and my program; i love the church i go to and the things i am/can get involved with there; i love think inc and its attached craziness; i love the house i live in, and the people that i share it with; i love the people that i choose to spend that ever-elusive "free time" with...and though it's a challenge to say the least, i love knowing that all of it will come together, even if it means tears, or frustration, or lack of sleep...and oppositely, knowing that it will always mean change, growth, and that ever present excitement...