House on the Rock

We’re just under two weeks into this global quarantine and morale is at an all-time low, which God in his goodness is turning to quite an unforeseeable high. The rain flooded our neighborhood that sits in a runoff valley just south of a soybean field, and the misplaced dirt and debris that was carried with the floodwater has dotted our yard with the most joyful-looking soybean-runoff confetti I’ve ever seen. It’s amazing what will excite you when you’ve been in total isolation for twelve days. Week one was relatively easy - I had a mile-long to-do list thanks to tasks like 1.) unpack dorm, 2.) turn the storage room in the moldy basement into a makeshift bedroom because Mom and Dad were not expecting me to be home so soon. 3.) complete all the fun Pinterest quarantine checklists (write a letter, bake bread, etc etc etc). Plus, I was in full-blown Doomsday Preppers mode, calculating how many rattlesnakes I would have to kill in order to suction their blood (80% water) into drinkable liq...

(Disclaimer- I so dearly appreciate everyone who is using this time of uncertainty to write meaningful, uplifting messages of hope-filled reassurance and point us all back to grounding truth through literature. I would try to do that, but a) could never do it justice and b) could never come up with anything that hasn't already been said. So yes, cling to hope, this is allowed to suck, find ways to grow, God's in control. All real. All true. I'm thankful for writers like you.) Four weeks later: The days of lunch on the ramp have come to an end that no one could have anticipated. COVID-19 came like a flood and as emails rushed like raging rapids, we hurriedly started picking up our belongings in hopes of salvaging whatever we could from the turmoil upon us.  Now, we are home. Hearts are broken, but in the words of my girl Lauren Murphy, this is a heartbreak that we can microwave and not slow-cook in a crock pot. It’s something we’re allowed to be sad about - prem...

1. I didn't know that these two blonde girls, both named Maggie, had found each other on Facebook and requested to room with each other, anticipating a room in Olson with just each other. I didn't know that they would later have a conversation over the phone about me getting added to their mix, saying cute little phrases such as, "I feel weird for that girl," and "this is so awkward that she is trying to room with us." 2. I didn't know that this walk on the first of many treks among the golden cornfields lining the backdrop of an Indiana sunset. I didn't know the sunsets in Upland would be the most unbelievable splatter-painted glimpses of glory I had ever seen, and that my future college self would run to the window in hopes of seeing those explosive-color skies. 3. I didn't know that we would be, in essence, each other's only three friends for the entirety of our freshman year. I didn't know we would spend every Friday night drivin...