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I recently went on a trip to Scotland. I also recently learned that I want to go back to Scotland. Maybe it was just the few places we visited or because I was happy to be with good friends, but it was honestly the most beautiful views I've seen (and I'm living in a place with some pretty spectacular views). Driving along the road with the sea on one side and forested, hilly mountains on the other was just splendid. We stopped at Loch Lomond and took a boat out to a small island called Inchcailoch Island where we explored for awhile. The bluebells were in full bloom in every direction. Never in my life have I been someplace like this island. Although the flowers were beautiful, they weren't what made it special. I can't quite explain it. Something about the place just felt.....holy, I suppose. As I walked down the path, I felt some weight lift from me. It was serene. I simply wanted to walk in silence because I felt like if I were to talk, I would somehow soil or tarnish the peace of it all. It was the first time that I have ever felt the physical presence of God in nature, and boy was it cool!

Switching gears, I find it amazing that the kids still find ways of shocking/surprising me each and every week. That's why working with kids is the best thing ever! They keep finding ways to prove you wrong, make you look twice, or make you shake your head. In the most recent instance, a two year-old boy and I were face-to-face making funny faces at each other when suddenly he leaned in and licked my nose. Somebody has been taking notes because as many people know, I too am a licker. If something comes close to my mouth, I'm going to either smell it or lick it. Clearly, this boy and I have strong animal instincts.

There were plenty of times growing up that I was angry about something dumb. Well, when those moments arose, my parents had this wonderfully frustrating method of bringing me out of the funk. Rather than letting me stew in my anger, they would say or do something silly until, against my best efforts to keep the frown, a smile or laugh snuck out. And of course, this just made me more upset because I wanted to be angry at the moment, but as much as I hated it, it did help make me happy quicker. So now it's my turn! We have a boy who often gets upset over small things, and one day he was upset about something while we were on the way back to his house. I didn't want him to leave Quakers on a bad note, so as he was grumping, I TICKLED HIM! He fought it hard at first, and I have to admit that for a moment I thought I was only going to make him angrier. Then the switch flipped, and a smile turned it into a full-blown tickle fight for the next ten minutes. Thanks for teaching me the Happy-Angry Technique, Mom and Dad.

Oh and I ate haggis while in Scotland. It was okay.