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Goodness gracious. It's been a good few weeks. Hectic. Busy. Beautiful! I'm here to boast about my friends. In the midst of the crazy that was last week-- finals week, packing up and move out week-- was my birthday. I really didn't expect much. I would find joy in the fact that it was the last day of finals, my freshman year was complete, and a summer full of uncertainties and questions was all that lay ahead. I would enjoy my summer-- no matter how many questions I had, and that would be my birthday gift to myself. I would watch all my friends leave and know that I would see them again, for another great year together. Surprise, surprise, I have some pretty great friends. On Wednesday, the day before my birthday-- while everyone (except for me) still had several exams and a lot of studying to do-- I was going to collect firewood with my Lifegroup partner, Kyle. We were to have a bonfire on my birthday-- a little wood-sy celebration. Before I could walk through the doors of the PAC, he says "ehm.. so, yeah we can't go to the woods today because.. I lied to you.. HERE'S YOUR FIRST CLUE!" What am I thinking? "Whaaa... t just happened? okay, yep.. this is happening." I read the clue. It goes something like.."You need to save Mcafee.. but to do this you have to collect three relics to take to the Mistress of the Woods.. something something.. go to the land of small places." Evidently, that "land of small places" is the photo house. So we trek over there, Kyle's beaming with secrets, and I'm still in shock. In that instant I knew my day was hijacked, I had no choice, and I would love it. As we turn the corner to the photo house, I recognize Hannah's purple shoes, and she tells me to choose my weapons. There is an array of cardboard swords, hatchets, nun-chucks, and a shield. I go for the shield, they chuckle and tell me to pick an actual weapon as well. With shield and hatchet in hand, I follow the next clue to the million dollar entrance. Jonny stands there, the back of his car is open, and he is ready to rumble. He calls to me stand in the middle of that grassy area, and he gives his little "Keeper of the Gates" monologue. I am just waiting for him to ask "What... is the air-speed velocity of an unladen swallow?" He tells me I must duel him for the key to the Realms. He cues theme music-- it blasts from the back of his car. Matt hobbles out and hands him his weapons and disappears with the sketchy carriage that awaited him. So we fight. His futile attempts do no good, his nicely duct-taped sword breaks, he runs away, I call him a coward and proceed to decapitate him. His dead corpse hands me the clue telling me it is time to take a break "for lunch and merriment." Jonny is slain and joins my ship, as I like to say. After a great lunch and falling asleep in cozy Barefoots chairs, I am abruptly awoken by a screaming Ruth-- telling me of the maiden that I must rescue. We wake Jonny and head for the Savage woods. We see Trey has Sarah captive, and so we charge with hatchets and swords in hand. Megan Kersey and Kaitlyn attack from behind the trees, but of course we kill them easily. I ended up killing Kaitlyn several times that day-- zombie, perhaps? After defeating the girls, Trey tells me that to save Sarah I have to solve a riddle. He starts spewing off some American culture reference and soon gives up after seeing the confusion on my face. "So," he says, "I guess we will fight." He jumps down off the fort-thing, and pulls out two pencils. Yes, pencils. My shield goes up and we fight. It was one of the better fights I had that day, and I won. My shield showed signs of a struggle, but I saved Sarah, and Trey was dead.. dramatically so. His pencils were no match to my cardboard hatchet.
This clue sends me to Neptune's fountain (???). We set sail for the fountain behind Jennings to find Beckers there, looking so innocent and sweet.. pff. After Kaitlyn attacks, again, and does not back down, Beckers comes to my rescue. She tells me I have to retrieve her conch from the fountain. I get in and start feeling around, they're all chuckling and I see they're all looking at the bowl type structure in the fountain, standing as tall as me. "You've got to be kidding me!" I demand Beckers help me up, she gives me a lift and I get the conch out. Half wet, completely happy. We take a break, for studying and packing and such activities. I walk into Heritage wet, carrying several pieces of cardboard, including clues, a hatchet, and a shield, and a key and a conch. After a little break where I can't focus enough to get anything done, I'm called to go behind Pollard and Sullivan. Problem, these two buildings face each other. So I figure we try going behind Rogers, right between the two. Ruth accompanies me, and we find Jonny. He takes a good 45 seconds to stare at us. Matt's hand pops out from behind a tree with a camera. Jonny then leads me on a lap around Rogers, hand raised, almost marching as if into battle. I follow, figuring I should comply with anything and everything. We come back around to the entrance to the tunnels. And Two shady ladies await. It takes me a minute to recognize Andersen and Courtney. Painted mustaches, interesting costumes, and nerf weapons in hand, they await for me to approach them. They ask me "What does it mean if your blood type is O-?" HA, Kyle will never let that one go. I reply between laughs "That I'm an international donor." They hand me the "eye of the sphynx" and a clue telling me to venture into the woods at 9 that night.
This quest has been going on all day, and still it's not over. I can't believe my friends. I really didn't expect anything. Everyone has so much on their minds, so much to do and study, so much to pack and get ready for. They all have plans. And yet, they've spent their day doing this. Putting together this ridiculous quest. And I can't help but know that I am so blessed to have these friends. Friends who care enough to do this, in the middle of finals week, and friends who know me well enough not to send me on any ordinary scavenger hunt, but to send me on a quest, full of duels and keys, realms and forests.
Beckers' mom, sister, and best friends were here to get all her crap packed and home. They made pizza. Beckers and her family of 34 make the best pizza. I enjoyed it with my coffee. And then I went to church, and I became a member of City Fellowship Baptist Church. And I took part in my first members meeting there. And I fell more in love with God when I saw his body love each other that way. And I was reminded why being in Jackson this summer isn't going to be that bad. I get to know these people that I already feel so loved by. What a great place to be.
You could call it bliss. My night was.. bliss. We waited till after Food for Finals to go to the woods. We walked over to the woods, where they trusted me to lead. Baha. It was dark and I had never been on this side of the woods, but they gave me a flashlight and Kyle was close behind. We walked and walked, and then stopped. We walked a few steps off trail where a white box sat. I squatted close to the box and opened it. Play-doh, dinosaurs, sour patch kids, a toy wrestler set and notes from friends. Ah, bliss. "Thank you!" I didn't know what else to say. So I smiled at my friends. I know it's not a rare sight, my smile, but I hope they knew it was true. That box, and those silly toys and hand-written notes told me they loved me and that they knew me. Bliss. And we were still a few hours short of my birthday, technically speaking.
So I say thank you. Those two words should mean so much, but they sound so weak. But that's all I know to say, though it's true joy speaking those words. There are so many names that bring joy to me, so many that I thank for making this year what it has been.
