It's not a vacation...

Wow. Don't let anyone tell you that YWAM is easy. Because it's not. It is seriously the hardest thing I have ever done. Physically it is exhausting. You wake up early but stay up late, you walk everywhere because you have no car, and you have tons of chores to do (but are fun if you are in an awesome group like the housing group). Mentally it is exhausting. There is so much richness in everything they teach us and every speaker seems to be overflowing with knowledge (I take pages and pages of notes each time). Spiritually, this is THE most difficult time I have ever gone through! God is scraping me clean and burning out everything and shaking away the dust and emptying me of everything I have ever known and stirred me so that I have no 'comfortable position' anymore.

When in YWAM, you are living so incredibly close to people that you either make life-friends or you get so annoyed with them that all you can do is try to love them. It's hard, don't let anyone tell you it's not. Therefore, be warned friends. So far YWAM is the hardest time of my life and the best time.

Love you all,

Rach

HEADZ

Me, Melissa, Jodie, Nadine, and Rebecca

Nighty Night Waikiki Sun!

Walking & Talking

Aloha! (Hawaiian for "Why, hello there!")

My week has been pretty dang crazy and therefore, there has been no blog-age. Sorry. Since you are probably oh-so-curious as to what I have been preoccupied with, I will tell you (in immense detail).

1:00-6:30am consists of sleeping in my bed (the only non-bunkbed!)

6:30-7:00am includes the daily preparation of readying myself to look somewhat presentable to my general public (this includes teeth brushing)

7:00-7:30am is jam packed with breakfast eating; either from our house fridge (oatmeal or cereal) or prepared by the kitchen staff (fancier with eggs, or pancakes, or waffles, or bagels etc.)

7:30-8:20am is our "time with God" (sometimes I get too distracted and get yelled at)

8:30-10:00am: WORSHIP in the Tin Cathedral (aka 'The Tin') la la la la love

10:30-12:30 is class taught by various amazing people

12:30-1:30pm results in me eating a yummy lunch in the courtyard with all my fellow Wammers and then washing my dishes

1:30pm me and Allie usually walk around or pretend to be funny for a little while...this ends promptly at 2:00pm leading into Salvation Encounter until 4:00

4:00pm is when we get to run freely through the woods (if we so desire) or other such things

5:00-5:30pm = DINNER TIME (I am very poor and get very excited to eat now)

6:00pm FREEDOM! (unless it's Thursday, then we have Launch at 6:30-8:30 in the Tin)

7:00pm I probably eat some of my Kashi cereal

8:00pm consists of dance parties and singing

9:00pm results in wandering Manoa Valley (particularly the Safeway shopping center*)

After that is sort of a blur... but it typically has something to do with Jodie & Jenna playing cards in the living room or the Tin with scary centipedes

So, ya, basically my life is one. big. party.

BONUS!

weekends include:

-laundry (at the Laundromat for $3.25 + laying in the sun with our laundry because we are poor and can't afford another round on the dryer)

-walking to the beach (it's a nice, brisk hour walk and I love it)

-taking a shower (I only shower on the weekends now)

-church!

-cutting our hair in the bathroom with random cutting utensils

*Safeway Shopping Center includes a McDonald's, Long's Drugs, yogurt place, Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, farmer's market, Laundromat, Post Office, a Hawaiian's-only-exclusive-bank, Safeway

LOVE LOVE LOVE!

-Rachael