The Belated Holiday Thoughts

Lists, lists, lists!!! They are lovely things that help you to remember... unless of course they too get lost... or ignored.  Ooops! Anyways that's what kinda happened with my "holiday reflection" list once school life started once again. BUT thanks to report card procrastination I have time to write my list. So without further ado, here are some hopefully brief thoughts :)

1. Sometimes it's hard FOR ME to transition into holiday mode. Productivity can feel soooo GOOD that when it suddenly isn't necessary for survival I just can't help but feel like I NEED a project! So I tried to convince myself that reading the two books I brought was a project (which of COURSE it is because I've divided my bookshelf into "read" and "unread" books). 
2. Holidays give ME a lot of time to think... since of course there are usually no "official" projects. Think... and write lists of course. Time to think and time to BE. Be who? Oh dear, more thinking...
3. Throughout Asia I keep encountering fellow travelers from the same set of countries, which tells me how few countries have the privilege to spend money on traveling. And I'm in that few. It makes me think.
4. I'd lay by the pool and think about what to do that day. Being here is a privilege and it's special... but it's also just being in a place that normal people live in. Different things are normal to different people, and here normal is beach and sun and heat. No big deal right? 
5. And yet I still get so excited to get to a new place and EXPLORE! I've been back in China a month as of today and have already booked trips to the Philippines, Japan and Chicago for up to 5 months away. Which means just because I'm moving back to Canada traveling isn't coming to a halt!
6. Yep, I did some thinking about home too - mostly about the JOB aspect. The conclusion: do my best to apply to openings where I'm interested in living and then rest and trust God to guide my path. Kinda simple, but I didn't quite get to this conclusion until the end of the holiday. Being human I sometimes learn slowly.

There. Done. List can now be tossed! I've been so productive AND I even wrote and mailed the postcards I bought while traveling today. Plus I have applied to a bunch of teaching jobs within the last week that I'm pretty excited about and am waiting to hear... though I really only need one :) High 5 to myself! Though I will try to curb my "new place" excitement until I have a job. Until then, back to report cards.