Reality has finally set in. How do I know this? Elle sent me a message that said, "I hate snow"! Was this the same girl who just a month ago, giddily ran around saying, "It's snowing! It's snowing! I just LOVE snow!"? Obviously reality had finally struck and Elle had come to the realization that this was really school and work...ugh!
Although the excitement of being in a new place is still there, the demand of work and school is beginning to set in...this isn't a "vacation" after all! I'm pretty sure of this fact for one reason in particular: Caitlin now has an entire drawer of her desk set aside for chocolate candy (instant stress relief...). Why, you may ask?...Well, let's see, because Elle is having to learn about new ideas and topics daily. And let's face it...she ain't in the south any more, honey! Life in the fast lane can be stressful. For example, just the other day, she entertained me with a story from class about "Shalom". Yep! That's exactly what I thought...how can "shalom" be that complicated or stressful? She explained that to me. "First", she said, "We were required to read about 200 pages about shalom before coming to class." I was surprised; I thought that shalom was just a Jewish greeting that meant "peace to you". Although she could not relay to me what else was involved in the study of this word, she stated that they then had to sit through an entire lecture about shalom. At that point, she had heard enough, but apparently they were not done with shalom yet. The students had to break away into groups to discuss shalom...and THAT is where the "peace to you" ended for Elle.
I'm not sure if it was just the frustration of school and work or possibly the fact that she didn't have any chocolate on her at the moment, but the young man who asked her to tell the group how she felt about shalom most likely wished that he had never asked that question. So, with the question asked, she answered..."If I hear the word, shalom, environment or pubic policy again today, I am going to ABSOLUTELY SCREAM!!!" Calmly responding to her outburst (as the male population are wont to do...which frustrates the female population even more...), this young man then informed her that it was her responsibility to care for the environment. Now, if Elle's endorphins had all been in the proper place at that moment, she may have agreed with him...instead, she told him that the world had been around for a very long time and people had been doing just fine taking care of it and SHE was NOT going to worry about it; her brain just could NOT hold any more serious information like that. Then, he said it...the thing that REALLY set her off. "Well, Caitlin, if you don't do your part in taking care of the environment, the Earth will one day look like Mars." "MARS???...REALLY?!", Elle exclaimed! "And you know this HOW?...you're from Mars?! THAT explains EVERYTHING...YOU'RE A MARTIAN. Men really ARE from Mars, after all; just like that book says!" Well, needless to say, not much got accomplished in THEIR group discussion session about shalom; it was anything BUT "peaceful".
The snow, the public transportation, the constant discussion of politics, the foreign land...(OK, we southerners consider ANYWHERE that is not in the south a "foreign land"), Elle is beginning to have to consider issues in her life, other than that "super cute pair of shoes" in the store down the street. And hopefully this little "day of shalom" has taught her a thing or two about having peaceful moments in her own life. For instance, there is one thing she should obviously NEVER leave home without...Her Chocolate! Because we ALL know that a little bit of chocolate makes a whole LOT of things MUCH better...even having to deal with MARTIANS!
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