New Blog Site:

In an attempt to try blogging more frequently and basically start fresh, I've created a new blog through wordpress.

melindacummins.wordpress.com

Enjoy! :)

Melinda Leanne

Senior Year Reflections

So, in a matter of 5 weeks, I will graduate from college. Shortly after that, I will turn 22, and get married to the man of my dreams. With that said, it would sound like I am a big fan of change. To be honest, I normally am not good with change, but now I am really REALLY excited about these next 3 months!

I know that all the change, while good, will have its hidden problems. I will graduate without having a job lined up, and the first year of marriage requires a lot of work, but I know that God is faithful and will provide for all of my needs.

Something good is going to happen. I can just feel it. God is great.

Dance

Every week I get to spend at least an hour with a fantastic group of people in my small group. We are finishing up Francis Chan's, Crazy Love, and will be continuing this semester reading his latest book, Forgotten God. It is simply a wonderful time to spend with them and I am so excited to hear what they have to say each week.

Last night after small group was over, the girls who stayed in the apartment decided to play classic Disney tunes, sing at the top of our lungs and put in a good dance. It was amazing. Soon the music just seemed to turn into anything that had a good beat as the 5 of us put our dancing shoes to good work. After a stressful day... or semester... it was so great to just be carefree and have a little fun. It would be safe to say that we all got in a good workout, too!

Yesterday, I was reminded that life is not about following the rules.... its about enjoying the life we've been given with others in community. These are some of the memories I will never forget. My friends and our wonderful moments together are so very precious. I thank God every day for them.

Go put on your dancing shoes and celebrate life TODAY...

I need this today. Maybe you do too.

Philippians 4:4-9 (The Message):

^4-5Celebrate God all day, every day. I mean, revel in him! Make it as clear as you can to all you meet that you're on their side, working with them and not against them. Help them see that the Master is about to arrive. He could show up any minute!

^6-7Don't fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God's wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It's wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life.

^8-9Summing it all up, friends, I'd say you'll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious—the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse. Put into practice what you learned from me, what you heard and saw and realized. Do that, and God, who makes everything work together, will work you into his most excellent harmonies.

I'm engaged...

.: Photo by Michelle Meisner :.

Well, I'm engaged to the most wonderful man in the whole world. I know everyone says that, but I'm the one that REALLY has the most wonderful man. ;)

So much has happened during my time here at college, and I would have never dreamed that this is where I would be. I am so in love with life and the beautiful people that I am surrounded by each and every day. There's nothing like getting a hug from a friend after Christmas break, sharing coffee and talking about life, receiving a sweet goodnight kiss from your fiance, or just sitting at the kitchen table with your roommate typing up emails and hearing nothing but calm music and the keyboard click away.

I have such small and beautiful blessings in my life that make the world seem a little sweeter. Knowing that I will get to spend the rest of my life learning to love one person so intimately and perfectly is the icing on the cup cake! Thank you everyone for being a part of my journey this far. Thank you for shaping me to become who I am today, and helping me through those dark days my sophomore year. Thank you for loving me when I'm ugly on the inside and judgmental. Thank you for putting up with ignorant words, and unnecessary tears.

Life is truly beautiful despite the brokenness that is so prevalent these days. The Lord loves you and cares for you, which is an unspeakable joy. I have been given a wonderful gift of life, and God has blessed me with a wonderful man.

I am thankful.

October 4, 2009

Amid the changing seasons and unknown times, Lord, you alone are constant... My True North, the One who helps me to be content. I love you.

My prayer all day... God is so good.

Getting Ready...

Today, I sit in Panera... again.... listening to a love of mine, classical music. I'm working on my plans for this next year and my vision for how I want SGA to go. The more I think about it, the more I realize that my vision is simple. My vision is my calling, my passion, and my purpose: Love.

Now, this word is often misused, misunderstood, feared, hated, adored... the list goes on. I, however, feel as though this one word is our purpose for existence. We were brought into this world BY the love of God, for the purpose TO love others unconditionally, as an expression of thanks FOR the love that has been graciously given to us.

My vision is simple. You won't find too many additions, only alterations where there is brokenness and problems that need a little more, well, love and attention. This can only happen through teamwork and cooperation, and my job is maintain those two things. How will I do that? Love.

Seems a little broad? Yes, it is. Seems to have little 'vision.' I would disagree. Sure, I have ideas on how to implement love into my job, into SGA, into SNU, but I know that things will change and I will face a lot this next year. The great thing is: God is for me. He will guide my actions as I go into this year, which is the most comforting thing I could ask for!

Despite all of my uncertainties, I am so incredibly excited for what God has in store for this next year! :)

God is great and today is a blessing that I will never get back, so I'm going to make the most of it and share this love that I've graciously been given! :)

Love deeply,
Mendolin

My latest thing....

As you can see, I've changed my background. This has inspired me to talk about my new love: Birds, trees, flowers, pears... etc

I've been painting/ drawing/ admiring A LOT of natural and modern art lately. Its weird. I don't know what's into me, but I just LOVE simple drawings of a cute and whimsical bird like the one on my background, or the outline of tree branches.

Its weird. Is it a phase? I hope not. I like it!

Oh my... this is WAY overdue!

So, after receiving a text from Michelle to write on my blog, here I am... facing the fact that I haven't written here in well over 3 months... SAD! Thank Michelley for the push to do it! :)

I don't even know where to begin, so I will just talk about what I've been thinking about a lot lately: my life after graduation. I know that it is 11 months away and I have a lot ahead of me, but seeing as how this past year FLEW by, I thought it was a good idea to just start the little thoughts now. Nothing too extensive (I hope), but just little thoughts about what I want to do with my life. I'm sure I'm not the only one out there that has these issues- worrying about the future- but that's where I'm at.

This summer, I get to hang out at "home" in Nebraska with my parents. The only thing that makes it home here is the fact that my parents live here. Sorry Lincoln, but you don't have all of the childhood memories that Norman does. You don't have the old house on Trenton that Jonathan jumped off of and onto our trampoline... and then onto the ground... really hard. Ouch. You don't have Eskimo Sno that tastes oh so good on a muggy and hot summer day like today. You don't have Griffin Memorial Park where I spent 10 summers playing softball with my friends. And you don't have the experiences that shaped me into who I am today. I lost my first tooth, got my first car, and found my passions in Norman.

You DO, however, have a house that I live in right now that allows me to rest, contemplate life, and sort through things in my life! That's something great about this place. I'm away from a lot of the things I know, and that causes me to look at my life from an outsider's perspective... Funny how you notice some things that you never could or had time to examine while you're "inside" your life. Sounds funny, but here's a list of things I've learned:

-You don't have to do something EXTRAORDINARY to have an extraordinary life.
I don't know about you, but for the longest time, I thought that I had to be super sold out to a cause and do something to the effect of selling all my possessions just to serve along the homeless and live amongst them, eating whatever and doing these difficult things that I didn't really want to do just to make an impact in this world and change the course of our society. I know that Mother Teresa did things like this and I want to be like her, but I didn't stop to think about something she said that now has left a great imprint on my life "In this life we cannot do great things. We can only do small things with great love." Wow... I missed the whole thing. These past few weeks, I've realized that I can't and shouldn't do everything myself. I need others and all I have to do is love the people I come in contact with EVERY DAY. That's the simple truth.
-I love to create things.
There is something so calming and fulfilling to paint a picture, sew a pillow, recover a chair, or put together an arrangement of furniture. Call me crazy, but I just feel so at home when I'm making something out of a lot of things that are cool or things that look like nothing at all. I can't imagine my life without art and creativity. Take that away, and I'm dead. You take away my paint and I'll sew. Take away my thread and I'll take pictures. Take away my pictures and I'll do something else. Take away everything and I will just sit by myself coming up with great pieces of art in my head until I go crazy from hallucinations and I die... seriously. I. love. art.
- I love to love people. I need people.
This time with my family has been great, but I realize my need for my friends. When I'm away from them, it just makes me really fidgety and frustrated. I long to just sit with one- anyone of them- and talk about life over a cup of coffee. Also, it I've been cooped up for a long time (more than 4 hours) in my house, I like to go somewhere, even if its just to read a book. As long as I'm surrounded by people, I'm good. I need others. I believe that community is essential to life. Put a sick person in a room by themselves, and I promise you that they will die a WHOLE lot faster than a person surrounded by people that love them. Its in our blood.
-I'm pretty stubborn, short-tempered, and intolerant when it comes to certain topics, discussions, and people. Its not with everything, but I'm short-tempered when its concerning politics so I just keep my mouth shut. I am pretty stubborn/ short-tempered with discussions concerning food... odd, but true. I'm pretty intolerant of people who are SOOOOOO opinionated on things that they THINK they know everything about, but don't. Again, I keep my thoughts to myself most of the time, and try to keep it inside.
- I am NOT great at long distance running.
I can do it. I love it. I feel like I've done my body good, but I'm just slow as molasses. I'm sure anyone reading this could beat me...
-I have a lot of life to live...
and that's just something that excites me more than ANYTHING! There's a lot that is going to happen- graduation, jobs, wedding, houses, babies, travels, loving people, family time. I can't wait! :)

So, a lot has been on my mind, and a lot more will probably come. While I'm still sorting all this out, I'm going to read some books and I'm excited. I just finished Serve God, Save the Planet by Matthew Sleeth. It was bittersweet for me. That will be left to another day. In the mean time, I'm starting Crazy Love by Francis Chan... should be great!

-Love Deeply

Melinda Leanne

So Little Time...

So, I do realize that my blog title is a rip off an old, cheesy, Olsen twins' TV show on Fox Family... and I'm OK with that.

But on more serious note, there's so much to be done here on earth. Just thinking about it all sends my head into a spin like I'm on the time warp amusement park ride at the state fair. I have heard about, seen videos of, and talked about more serious issues this semester than I've had my whole time here at SNU previously, combined. I'm in an AWESOME class called International Economic Development here this semester and its totally rocked my world. For some good and for some bad reasons too.

I've learned so much about these awesome people like Muhammad Yunus (my huuuuuuge crush) who are not afraid to get dirty and fight poverty and oppression at the root of the problem, dedicating their whole life to speaking up for the poor. This man, while he is not a Christian, is living a more Christian life than several "Christians" I know... and that's including me. I'm not leaving myself out of this judgement because I've been made more aware of the things that I'm doing that aren't helping others as well as the things I'm NOT doing that's not helping others.

Pretty crazy thing when a Hindu is acting more like Christ than you, a so-called Christian, are. That's a pretty tough thing to swallow, but its true. What even more difficult to process is the reality of extreme slavery, whether sexual or not, that is so prevalent today in the world. I mean, its 2009... we have the iPhone, online banking, smart cars, and clothing that is more high tech than computers in the 1960s! Why can't we figure out how to get humanity on the right path towards living a full and wonderful life for our Wonderful Creator?

There's so much hurt and pain in this world. So much love that needs to be shared. So many lives that need to be helped. So many homes that only need a mere cent a week in order to climb out of the lowest level of poverty and be able to sustain a somewhat better life... There's so much to do, but I've got so little time, it seems.

I sure can't do this alone. Not when I'm only here for few brief breaths.

Choose Your Friends Wisely:

Lately, I've understood the importance of this phrase that I've heard several times. No, I'm not having problems with my friends, but I've heard about so many others' problems and how its effecting them.

One thing I've realized lately is that the friends you hang out with and associate yourself with have a direct impact on your development and who you are/ become. A person can change drastically for either good or bad depending on those surrounding them.

I know this might sound a little obvious, but I guess that the magnitude of this fact have been made known to me these past few weeks. With that said, I feel we all have a great responsibility to watch our actions and how they will impact those around us.

More importantly, we should "choose our friends wisely" and never forget the most important relationship we need to nurture and rely on is with God, which should be the friendship that we allow to shape us.

Its so simple, but it really is vital and important....

I 'shoulda gone to design school...

Awesomeness, thy name is Pottery Barn...

College

This is an example of a Blog that a Junior in College writes the week before finals:

- 10 page paper
- Financial Analysis Report
- Case Study Report
- Vocal Performance
- Pulling out my hair by its individual strands until I have none left


Notice how short, pessimistic, and disgusting it is....

The Lee Wedding

This weekend, I was blessed to be the Maid of Honor for David and Beth Lee's wedding. It was held at 2PM on Saturday, November 22nd at Trinity Church of the Nazarene (my home church) and was a beautiful fall wedding!

Here are some pictures from the whole day that I took when I had time in between running errands and fluffing the dress! :) Hope you enjoy!

Angela and Katie Beth did our hair! It looked so amazing!

Sweet Keagan stayed SO STILL for Katie Beth. It was so cute...

The Beautiful Bride!!!

Beth's AWESOME Shoes that matched David's

Sweet Girls...

The Wedding Dress!
The girls tying the difficult bows for each other.
All of us with Beth before the dress goes on!
Beth sat sideways on the piano bench for 30 minutes before the ceremony started.

It was SUCH a great wedding. I've always wanted a fall wedding, so even if I don't get one, I can at least say that I was in a beautiful fall wedding with warm colors and wonderful young women! :) I hope you and David have a blessed marriage, Beth... Love you both. :)

Pumpkin, pumpkin, pumpkin...

I simply love pumpkin... ANYTHING!

My favorite pumpkin creation would have to be my family's pumpkin bread recipe, though. Every year, I look forward to the day when I can walk in a supermarket and see the overflowing display of pumpkins for sale. I would go so far as to say that pumpkins are one of the major things I am thankful for during Thanksgiving... right under God's love, my family, my friends, and the luxuries of like I've been blessed with. Yes... that simple vegetable (its a vegetable, right? the whole argument about tomatoes being a fruit because the seeds on the inside and such always makes me second guess myself...) is something I'm legitimately thankful for.

What you might not know is that pumpkins are very special to my family, and here's why:

Way back in 1981... well, maybe that's not TOO long ago ;)... My dad proposed to my Mom that night before Halloween (oh, how romantic, right?!?!?). Ever since I can remember, my dad has bought each person in the family our own pumpkin as a way to remember that night. I think it's a sweet gesture, and it was always a treat to find 4 beautiful pumpkins gracing our front porch each year when I would come home from school. Some years we would paint or even color our pumpkins with markers, but EVERY year my mom and I would cook the pumpkins. This brings me to the real reason why I love pumpkins so much.

My mom and I have shared wonderful memories together cooking pumpkins over the years. There's just something about cooking with your mother that builds a special bond between the two of you, and I am so excited for the day when I will be able to pass this tradition on to my own daughter. My mom and I would cook all 4 pumpkins, which ends up becoming a lot, and we would bake pies and bread for the next few months until it was all used up. This would usually cause us to give either the pumpkin or the baked goods away. There's nothing better than a pie or loaf of bread baked with fresh pumpkin. Using the canned stuff is unheard of in our home! When most people hear that I cook my own pumpkin, they often become amazed at how much work I go through, but it is actually as simple as mashed potatoes... If you have never used fresh pumpkin, but have always wanted to, you are in luck!

Here is how you cook a pumpkin:

Be sure you have a good, sharp knife to prevent cutting your finger. Trust me, a good knife makes a world of difference when cutting up a pumpkin!

1. Cut the pumpkin in 1/2
2. Remove the seeds
3. Cute the pumpkin into quarters
4. Cut off the rind (hard outer part) and stem. You are now left with the lighter inside of the pumpkin, or the "meat"
5. Chop the pumpkin into cubes, about 2"x2"
6. Put the pumpkin cubes into large pots (as many as you need) and fill them with water so that all the pieces are covered.
7. Boil the pumpkin like you would potatoes.
8. Remove from stove when a fork easily pokes the soft pumpkin pieces.
9. Drain the water.
10. Spoon the cooked pieces into a blender and blend until smooth with no chunks.
11. Store pumpkin in Tupperware or other storage container. You can refrigerate it until you want to use it, or even freeze it for later use.

* Use 1 1/2 cups for each can of pumpkin a recipe calls for*

It's that simple! I hope that you will try it out sometime because fresh pumpkin REALLY DOES make a difference!

"Love is composed of a single soul inhabiting two bodies."
-- Aristotle

Oh Facebook....

These were some of the status changes I saw on Facebook right after Obama won tonight. Janette and I sat here refreshing the page over and over again... it is pretty entertaining.

Person 1: "Is blue we're blue"
Person2: "Is moving to Texas and hope they break away:
Person 3: "Is SCCCCCCCCRRRRRRREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAMMMING!!!!" (maybe not enough E's in that one...)
Person 4: "Is headed to and island with Alex"
Person 5: "Not MY President"
Person 6: "Everyone: please stop the hate and violent talk. Think love and peace." (Good advice Stephen)
Person 7: "used to be proud of this nation"
Person 8: "is welcome to socialist america...**expletive**. im going back to CANADA."
Person 9: "is sleeping"
Person 10: "is make room for me, Aussies. You all think straight."
Person 11: "is wow. i cannot believe this. i can't believe this country put a muslim in the white house. wake up, people." (OUCH....)
Person 12: "its about time we get a brotha in the house...."
Person 13: "its official, abomination."
Person 14: "maybe... New Zealand....that would be cool." (yes!!! New Zealand is cool, but I would go there for other reasons than an election result...well.. I guess that would depend on the consequences, but not because of THIS election...)
Person 15: "is wondering if Texas will secede and elect McCain/Norris for President."
Person 16: "is hoping that all the annoying people who are threatening to move to Canada actually do."
Person 17:" is worried. i'll be honest. but i'm going to try to give obama a chance. even though its hard." (wow.. that's one of the most positive response yet!)
Person 18: "i wonder if they'll put a fried chicken joint in the White House?" ( that was WAAAAAAAAY out of line...)
Person 19: "is thinking our country is already in hell and has been for awhile....where have you people been?" (yeah, no matter what you think about the election result, there is no doubt that we weren't a perfect nation prior to this day)
Person 20: "forgive them Lord, for they know not what they have done." (wow, that's an intense response)
Person 21: "knows McCain is so happy everyone wants to leave the country he sacrificed his life for."
Person 22: "is thinking high-schoolers probably can't move out of the country. so, don't talk about it."
Person 23: "well...i have an extra copy of the koran..... $50........ any takers?" (oh my.....)
Person 24: "IF I WERE IN THE SECRET SERVICE I WOULD QUIT"
Person 25: "is congrats obama. I love the always classy McCain. he is a true American hero."

** Disclaimer: The content of these views do not reflect the views of this blogger, but are rather a glimpse into the online world of Facebook and it's members' opinions.**

I hope this makes you think about just what happened... there are a lot of opinions out there...

Just call me Alvin...

Wednesday I got my wisdom teeth taken out, so I am currently sporting a pair of chubby cheeks! The whole experience hasn't been bad yet. During the surgery, even though I was fully awake, was rather relaxing and I felt as though I could have fallen asleep. The gas they gave me was awesome and definitely worth the small fee.

I have been living off of apple sauce, soup, and yogurt these past few days and it hasn't been too bad. I heard a lot of horror stories before my procedure, so I was thinking that I was going to have a horrible experience, but it honestly has been rather fun.

I think its funny feeling groggy and loopy, and there's nothing better than sitting around while all of your friends are stuck in class! lol

What has meant the most to me is all of the sweet sweet friends who have stopped by to visit me and bring me little goodies. So, thanks Sarahbeth, Janette, and Marian... you all have been so sweet to me! It also is great that my other friends have text me to see how I was. Some people never cease to amaze me with their giving hearts.

I look forward to the day when I can bit into a piece of meat, but until then, soups and apple sauce will have to do...

Early Senioritis

So, I am sitting here at my computer thinking about all I have to get done early because of my oral surgery on Wednesday (oh horrid wisdom teeth, only 4 more days will I have to deal with your pain and frustration) and I decided to delay the work. Why? Well, the answer is very simple: I don't want to work right now. I'm sure there are several people other than I who just aren't motivated to write a paper over the Wall Street Crisis for Managerial Accounting either on a Saturday evening...

If you are... it's ok, I will be praying for you tonight.

So what will I do to pass the time? Copy Jeff's forward from the other day and fill it out for myself!!!! I'm sure he will agree with me that at times, these things make you feel like you're in middle school again, but the content of my answers make it so much more mature... at least that's what I'm telling myself right now. So here it goes:

I am: sitting at my kitchen table watching ESPN and eating soup.

I dream: about crazy things that scare me and I know are super insightful at the same time, but I never can seem to remember them when I wake up the next morning.

I think: that there is more to life than the clothes I wear, the car I drive, and the size of my bank account.

I know: that I am blessed beyond what I deserve and that this morning was a gift from God so that I might be able to spread His love to the world around me.

I want: to be the one who reaches out with a hand full of grace to those around me, and never forget the history of grace God has bestowed upon me.

I have: a wonderful boyfriend who is filled with God's love and each day I grow more and more in love with him.

I wish: for world peace... and no, I am not Gracie Lou Freebush...

I hate: that I've grown uncomfortably comfortable with my hypocritical behavior.

I miss: Saturday Father/Daughter dates at Jimmy's Egg in Norman every week.

I fear: I will one day look at my life and not remember all the wonderful moments that got me to where I am at that time and place.

I feel: unmotivated to be a driven person today. (sounds just a little funny, doesn't it...)

I hear: every little voice in my head that tells me I'm not good enough, and I often let that be the influence of my decisions.

I smell: my laundry after every load- there's nothing like fresh clothes out of the dryer!

I crave: for the day when I no longer continue to be stressed out and controlled by my list of things to do.

I search: for obtaining things in life that don't matter.

I wonder: "why people are so concerned with politics when they won’t help the people they see everyday." and I would have to completely agree with you on this one, Jeff...

I regret: all those days where I gave into the lie that children aren't capable of REALLY making a difference in the Church, but that they are simply present in the world to "someday become the Church."

I love: gerber daisies and everything they mean to me: love, friendship, God's Creation, life, beauty, and growth.

I ache: for those who are stereotype as being lazy because they are homeless and poor.

I care: for my family and I love them very much.

I always: care if my things are clean and in order.

I am not: excited about the upcoming elections.... sorry, but that's the truth...

I believe: a god is not God if he fits inside our heads.

I dance: whenever I can... I love dancing and I will be a dancing Nazarene until the day I die...

I sing: all the time, but get really self-conscious about it when I'm in my apartment because I live with music majors who are training to become professionals... lol

I cry: often and sometimes with others. Crying is a great release.

I don’t always: change my oil when I should... sometimes I've gone twice as long before taking it in.

I fight: with myself on a daily basis... I am my own worst enemy and my thoughts have been known to consume me.

I write: in a journal to my husband I started almost 2 years ago... it's something I'm very proud of.

I win: the end... :)

I lose: my patience when people base their opinions on their ignorance...

I never: want to go a day without loving .

I confuse: myself in accounting and stats sometimes.

I listen: to God less than I talk to Him, causing me to miss out on the things He wants me to be a part of.

I can usually be found: in the SGA office or my apartment.

I am scared: of being alone.

I need: to stop eating things that makes my stomach yell.

I am happy: that my parents are coming to town on Wednesday! :)

I desire: close, intimate relationships with those around me.

I hope: for the good in people to prevail.

I have: been delaying my homework way to long... it's time to face the music!

Hope you know that the Lord never allows us to endure that which we can't endure... all we need to do is ask Him for the strength to overcome.