Ouch!

Note to self: do not set the laptop on sunburned thighs. It's not pleasant.

Today was my first official "day off" of the summer. Because, of course, you can't have a day off without a job to be off from. So what did I do with my time? Well, first I made banana bread, which turned out to be more than I had bargained for. We ran out of flour, so I had to make myself presentable and run to the store to get some so I could finish mixing it up. Also, the walnuts are a bit to prevalent in the mix, though I don't think my family really minds. The nuts weren't chopped and I didn't want to take the time to do that myself, so I put them in a plastic bag and smashed them with a hammer. Much faster, and much more fun. ;)

Hmm, what else? I painted my toenails for no apparent reason. They are now bright green with daisies on them. I may not do girlie things very often, but when I do, I do them right.

And then there's the sunburn. How did I get said sunburn? Oh, and it's all over my upper arms as well as my legs. I was lounging in the back yard reading a book. The first bad sunburn of the season. I should be okay from here on out, especially since I'll actually remember to wear sunscreen. This is how it always tends to go with me. The annoying part is that my skin seems unable to hold a tan, which makes me susceptable to burn again if I'm not careful. It's my Norwegian blood (well, skin really), it's meant for the frigid north, not South Dakota. But I don't intend to leave just because of that. I'll just resign myself to being pink for a few days.

And now for the book. Just what was I reading while my skin got scorched? Today I started John Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress. I had heard of the story of Christian before, in a radio theatre production, but I had never read it until now. I have to admit that I'm jealous of Christian. I sometimes wish that the Christian life were as straighforward as his journey. Just imagine it: when a person decides to follow Christ, they actually leave home and set off for a destination that is an actual geographical location. Certainly the road is hard and full of perils, but they are physical and obvious. Christian climbs mountains and fights the agents of darkness with a sword and a prayer on his way to the Celestial City. Now, that's not to say that'd I'd prefer to have my life in danger at all times, but there is something appealing about that sort of mission. Perhaps it's only my idealized Romantic imaginings, but I long for something that feels like a real adventure. For a quest. And I know that the Christian life IS an adventure and we do engage the Enemy through spiritual warfare every day. I guess it's just easier to get excited when swords are involved. But everyone feels it in some way. That's why LOTR was so popular, because all people long for adventure, for excitement, for something worth fighting for. But as Sam Gamgee said, in his infinite hobbit wisdom, we are all only part of the Great Story. Each of our lives help push it along, even if we feel like we are small and unimportant. Or just plain boring.

Well, that ended up defferently than I thought when I started it. I think I should go put my poor sunburned body to bed and let it heal. Someone stole my signoff, so I guess I'll have to think of something more original and less trite. (Wow, I get repetetively redundant when I'm tired.)

Go in peace. (Nah, too formal. Better luck next time.)
-Kim