don't let the sun be the one to change you baby (i wanna learn how to love)

thank you mom for teaching me to be strong and independent.

thanks dad for making me a critical thinker.

thank you ms. eales for the lessons in acceptance and equality,

and thank you jeff for showing me some people really can give me a fresh start.

thank you bryan for the practice in patience and understanding,

and thank you jared for keeping me a kid at heart.

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thank you daniel for helping me learn to make tough decisions.

thank you nick for showing me what unconditional love is.

thank you kevin for revealing to me how tough i really am,

and thank you nathan for showing me it's okay to not always get what i want.

thanks sam for being an example of a stable, godly man.

thank you brandon for the lesson in mending burnt bridges.

thanks max for teaching to be realistic about who cares about my heart,

and special thanks to michael for reminding me how beautiful life is.

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thank you tamara for letting me expose my innermost thoughts to someone.

thank you emma for being a voice of reason.

thanks courtney for teaching me to stand up for myself,

and thank you heidi for all your wisdom and time.

thank you ainsley for being an example of a true, genuine heart.

thank you jeffrey for understanding my frustration - even when no one else did.

thank you nzinga for showing me i'm always loveable.

thank you sarah for letting me trust,

and thank you keegan for teaching me to not give up.

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i am blessed.

- ella faye

silence reveals where we really are.

so this super cute, nice guy in my residence made a bet with me.

and for those of you who know me well, I don't lose bets (within reason).

i have to run 5km.

i might actually die before i win this, but i'm seriously going to try until my death. i hate losing that much.

i really, really hate running - a lot.

but, i am learning something,

the more i run, the closer i find myself drawing to God - how random!

i pump up my worship playlist (with the exception of this morning's run - which I did significantly worse at...) and just go for it, i think the idea of honouring God take the focus of my pain.

this dare is seriously enhancing my worship time - i know, it's nuts.

but it's pretty awesome. i might not win over mystery boy by improving my athleticism (although it is an ulterior motive), i might not lose all the extra weight i gained after my dad died (but it sure isn't hurting that goal), and i might not even win the dare, but I know i'm benefitting.

also, a girl in my program is running with me.  it's nice. she's someone i really wouldn't have guessed in first year i'd end up friends with - after, i'd never been drunk and they had messy monday - freaky fridays (or something along those lines, aha) on her residence floor. but she's pretty hilarious and awesome. and it even works out because although she's a significantly better runner, my legs are twice as long, so my slow pace works out for her.

silly mike doesn't even know how much i'm gaining from this dare. i'm pretty sure i'll win two fold (watching him come to my hot yoga class when I win will be one more benefit). it's funny how things work out like that sometimes, what a great couple of surprises.

now - studying for my exam on saturday. i love you all, but this blog might be the downfall of my marks this term :P

- ella faye

it's funny how you find you enjoy your life when you're happy to be alive.

Member that time, when I said I would improve my work ethic?

I didn't happen,
aha.

Well, It kinda has, I mean, I have been working really hard on my speech due Wednesday, about why I disagree with the use of Turnitin.com and how come students should avoid using it when alternate methods are offered.

I think I'm totally on a roll, and I think I make a really convincing argument.

However, that doesn't help the fact that I have a monster midterm tomorrow and I haven't even cracked the textbook. lamelamelamelamelame.

But. I want to tell you a completely silly and ridiculous story that made my day yesterday.

Andrea wasn't the only person baptized yesterday, and one little girl who may have changed my life.

In her story about her life, and how she came to follow God, she mentioned being totally terrified of geese.

I had to let out a little laugh as she said this, and a friend of mine said to me "It's like she's reading an insert from your blog!" (you can see the post he was referencing here)

This girl could not have been older than 13, and she was talking about her fear of geese, and how when she prayed once, the geese just all peaced out and she could walk where ever she was going in peace.

Super lame and hilarious story, with super huge meaning. I love it, it's like the story of my life.

I am not alone, in my fear of geese, or, anything else for that matter.

And God has control of even the most minor details of my life, because even the most trivial things can be a big deal in my life.

I am so, so blessed. Also, I'm super glad this fear of geese thing is being brought to light.

If the fear of geese is affecting your everyday life, click here for a great guide on how to avoid attacks from geese. this is serious people. follow these instructions, so far this year, I have not had any dangerous encounters.

now, back to studying!

- ella faye