All day long I have tried to piece together one entire thought...but it has yet to be. So here is a look at a few of the many things running around my mind.

1) Ice Cream

I've said it hundreds of times, ice cream makes everything better. Today is a rainy, cold day and I'm feeling a bit under the weather myself...unable to sleep all week due to a busy mind...at one point I cried out in the silence of my home, "These thoughts have got to stop!" And then it came to me. Ice cream. So I sat down with a bowl of Whitey's Strawberry Ice Cream and for those 10 minutes, all was well in my mind. :)

2) Living Alone

I've mentioned before that living alone has taken some getting used. I realized today that I have had a light bulb burned out in my upstairs bathroom for 3 months now. I can change a light bulb with no problem, I just haven't. A roommate would never let that go for so long. I also do not know how to buy groceries for myself only. I've always shared my food with my roommates - they knew they were free to take whatever I had...but living alone, I have no one to help me finish up all that food that is soon to go bad. It is an art to buy for one...I'm learning!

3) Summer Journey

My summer journey is starting to become a reality as I begin to nail dates down and cement plans with those whom I will see. Though I'm looking forward to all of it, I have to confess that my reunion with my "family" from Senegal is at the top of the list as I have not seen my best friend for two years and the others for longer than that! I know that it will be a time full of laughter and genuine conversations...all of which I miss dearly and long for daily.

4) Defining Moments

In considering the movie I mentioned in my last post, "Becoming Jane" and how it reflects a defining moment in her life, I have been forced to consider my own. Heaven forbid, if a movie or book were ever done about me, what would it be about? I have my ideas, ones that I am not likely to share with such a broad audience, but I can say that I hope it will all end happily. And I suppose in the very end of it all, it does...I'll get to be Home at last.

5) Next Step

Perhaps I am not alone in my tendency to wonder what is next. This week I will be talking with someone about a possibility for my near future. I have a few other ideas on the back burner in case this one falls through...but I wonder where life will take me next, who it will involve, what dreams will come true and which ones will remain question marks. If I am to remain here, what will it look like? Life has not followed the path I had hoped for, which leaves room for a reshaping of dreams...I just wonder what it will all look like.