Humble Pie & Holy Pauses: When Plans Pivot for Purpose

Okay, so where do I begin??

Being honest, I don’t really know what to write. I had been anticipating this blog day for a while now. It always seemed so much easier doing my own personal ones, or going in late to see if we had any missed days that needed to be covered, then enjoying putting something together.

For me, it becomes more difficult when it’s graded or when something is expected of me. Like—how much creativity do I have? How do I not offend anyone? How do I make sure to cross every “t” and dot every “i”?

Is it going to be good enough?? AM I enough???

I know we’re here to enjoy and learn. We’re here to grow and change. We’re here to know that we are not alone—and it’s okay to stumble, trip, fall, and even face plant. The goal is to get back up and know who your village is. And as the posts have shown, there is always a mention of family, village, and growth. And that’s exactly what we’re doing.

We’re taking a huge slice of humble pie.

So as my people-pleasing self eagerly anticipated my blog day, I was set on us going to see a gorgeous sunset at Sounio. But as the days moved forward, we found out that wouldn't be happening. Thankfully, our loving professors—aka Mama Jones and Daddyo Lawson—had our backs with another amazing plan: we’d be going to see the Olympic Stadium! Even though I was still exhausted from the day before, I was so excited for this to be my blog day.

YET… I woke up to a good ol’ slice of humble pie.

Now, a little backstory: Mama Jones warned us early on about how Greek living might be. And until this morning, we hadn’t seen a single rainstorm or power outage.

So please know—we are all safe and well taken care of. But it was humbling to remember how quickly and easily we often have things back in the U.S. When our power goes out, there are workers, trucks, text messages, phone calls, and sometimes even discounts for the inconvenience. And some people even have other places they can go.

Mind you—I was still too excited about today’s adventure to worry about having no power or AC for what felt like a few hours. A few of us went down to the shared basement where it was cool, while others chilled in rooms that still had AC as we waited for lunch and to head out.

YET… we had to pivot again.

At this point I was like, “Okay GOD. I hear You loud and clear. We did way too much yesterday. We needed our rest day—one day earlier.”

I mean, we can always make plans, BUT God our Father surely knows what’s best for us to truly enjoy ourselves.

So although I was sooooo excited to explore the Olympic Stadium and take pictures and videos for my blog day, I had to enjoy that humble pie and slow it down a notch—after the 1,000-step climb down. YES, I said 1,000 steps! Daddyo Lawson lovingly and joyfully does both the climb up and down every year. How does he do it? Must be his willpower and the Holy Spirit! Because let me tell you—some walked up, a few walked down, and most of us gladly enjoyed the relaxing ride down after walking and climbing to the top of the castles. No matter who did what, yesterday wiped us all out. So again—that humble pie was real. And thankfully, really good.

As today turned into a no-power, slow-down kind of day, we focused on packing, making a last-minute run to the AB (since it’ll be closed tomorrow), and a small group of us bussed over to the outdoor mall to explore Jumbo (aka if IKEA and Walmart had a baby). Yes—you’ll want to buy the whole store, even if you don’t need a thing! I, of course, forgot that torch lighters can’t go on planes. By the time I ship it back, I’ll probably find the same one in the States.

The day only got better when our Jumbo crew returned to find the power back on and AC blowing strong! We all got ready for an impromptu pizza dinner, and of course had to squeeze in an ice cream run—because our days here are surely winding down.

Now I know I talk a lot and could keep going on, but I’ll end it here because I feel like I’m missing out on the fun. From what I know, our group is in the basement watching a movie while I’m in my room typing away. LOL. I give props to everyone who’s been so disciplined in balancing fun with reflection and helping to keep our SEU blog going strong.

Well, till next time.

Samantha Tkm aka Rose – out.

P.S. Don’t forget to come back for more—we’re not quite done yet!