"An over-entertained man is a cookie cutter. We must be brave enough to be bored. For without stillness there is no depth." - Gregg Matte

How true those words are. Most of our lives we are constantly searching for one way or another to abate any possible boredom within our lives. We call as many friends as possible before each weekend night, we arrange plans to go on trips, or we record our favorite TV shows so that we have something to do when we get home. Why is it then that we are so fearful of being alone? Is time spent by oneself truly that undesired? I've seen within myself a constant desire to be wanted by others and I somehow think that this is both important and can be satisfied by being busy doing one thing or another. How long will it be though until I not just know, but am willing to understand, that my joy in life will never be dependent upon another person? Momentary happiness may come from being around others or receiving praise for what you've done, but the joy of life can only come from something beyond what this world has to offer...something that I strongly believe can only come from God via Jesus' sacrifice for us. I've determined that I need to be willing to spend more "me time" focusing on what is important, rather than concentrating on the best way to slowly let my mind grow weak by constant distraction. Focus on the pain, focus on the joy, and focus on what I can do to become a better and stronger man.

In other thoughts of the week, what are those dreams that we're meant to pursue? Should we continually attempt to shoot for the stars and risk failure with each shot or should we shoot just above the horizon and achieve something great, but not as lofty? Alas, I'm in a bit of a quandary, for to take on one set of dreams it means to lose out on another. There never is truly an opportunity in this life that is without cost. What is the limit that we're willing to pay to entertain our desires and hopes? I've determined that it's worth shooting for the stars, to send my grappling hook in that direction. But what if I DO catch something? Should I pull it in and risk altering my course? Or should I simply acknowledge that yes, it could have been caught, but I chose my current course? Then again, what if only failure is met, will it be worth the rejection? Regardless, I think the potential rewards for most of our grandest dreams far exceed the potential loss in their rejection.

On the non-serious side of life, this week was Shack-a-Thon. I love this one week out of the year that people build shacks around the MSC and live in them for a week. This year was a little bittersweet, because I knew that it would be my last chance to do it. But it was SO much fun, I've missed being a part of life on campus, and I met so many new people that are truly wonderful, and deepened my relationships with some of those that I already know. I've discovered that my greatest joy seems to come from doing some sort of manual labor. I know it sounds weird, but I felt like such a real man after spending 8 hours building a shack, beating nails into wood, and constructing something that once didn't exists, but thru my hands and sweat it was forged into existence. I really want to learn how to be a blacksmith later in life. I think it'd be so awesome to take a raw piece of metal and form it into something that has a purpose and is beautiful. Back on topic...this week was great, involving very little sleep, but a whole lot of fun. And I hope that some of the relationships forged and grown continue to develop. The coming weeks are going to be a little tough though, because senior design project stuff needs to be completed and the working model is still a long ways off. I can't believe it's only a month until I graduate! Crazy!

Tip of the week: Don't eaves drop on a conversation that you aren't supposed to be a part of.

“Don’t let one thing lead to a mother” - Anonymous