captivating

I have been trying to think of something funny, creative, inspiring, profound, strange, remarkable, or bewildering to write. And each time I sit down to write, I am at a loss for words, pictures, or stories. This is rare because so often I recognize connections or simply want to share a story.

I want to tell you instead about some things that have caught my attention recently and left me smiling. As I prepared to leave my home in Kitchener-Waterloo, I was captivated by:

- the honest and inspiring conversations I had with some of my closest friends
- the prayers of my family
- the sound of my Ugandan friends' voices, laughter, and hope
- the embrace of my church family
- the items I have collected that remind me of my second home in Uganda
- the competitive yet sportsman-like football games
- the cumulative and astounding white snow

I left Kitchener-Waterloo. I arrived in a big new city full of life and death. And I have continued to smile. These are some things that have captivated me in my new home in Vancouver, B.C.:

- the kindness and generosity of roommates
- the affection and warmth given to students by faculty and staff
- the companionship of new friends
- attending a church where a homeless man gave all his money in the offering plate
- receiving a message from a friend in Uganda telling me her newborn daughter is called Michelle, after me
- receiving encouraging and exciting messages from friends throughout Uganda
- walking towards downtown in the evening and singing in the rain with friends
- the effect of 1 foot of snow to incapacitate a developed city
- the immense duration of rain in a largely-populated city

I am captivated. Above all, I am captivated by the immeasurable and infinite love of God. Here I am, surrounded by life and death and I can find serenity, rest, and hope. I wonder what will captivate me tomorrow?