Living the Day Up, and Learning From an Old Mistake

One thing that I really enjoy, is being able to go through highs-and-lows during Max Out. Today is the epitome of having both highs and lows.

Let's start with the highs:

A GREAT speaker event (Parry Shen is awesome) on Friday, and after taking Parry back to the airport, I was able to go to Uncle Bill's, and really catch up with a close friend of mine. We used to always have a bunch of classes together, so this semester was really weird not having him within close proximity to talk to and chill with. This was a much needed time to just really get back in touch, a break from our equally busy, hectic student lives.

Today was ResCollege Olympics, and needless to say, I was there to play soccer. Granted, I didn't mind playing for any particular rescollege, so I ended up playing on both the RUSoFo team, and one of the Park-Mudd teams. I haven't been able to really get out and exercise much, because I've been so busy ironing out logistics to make sure Parry Shen's talk (see previous high) went as smoothly as possible. Soccer has definitely been used as a stress reliever; great weather, and just being able to do some physical activity was much needed on my sanity. I played a total of 5 games of soccer, had a lot of fun, even though our teams didn't make it to the finals.

Went to Journey's Easter weekend service, and I really enjoyed the speaker, and the verses that were covered (Phillipians 3:1-10). I particularly enjoyed this service because I felt it applied to my life so much sooner and recent than usual (see low). And to be expected, I just love worship, because I'm so musically inclined. There's always that warm fuzzy feeling with a side of goosebumps when I hear a musical and/or lyrical phrase that I really like. Anyone have music they can give me/recommend? I'm always open to new music, be it Christian or not.

Finally, I got to catch dinner with one of my close friends, and she also happens to be one of my favorite people. We have both been really busy lately, and having MCATs imminent has stressed both of us out, her especially. It was definitely good to just get away from all the work, and just be able to sit down and talk over a nice light meal at St. Louis Bread Co. and then cap off the night with Fro-Yo. I feel like why I enjoy her company so much, is that we can literally talk about everything; our experiences and backgrounds are similar so that we can relate to stuff that the other is talking about. I definitely want to make time so that we can have more of these short catch-up times.

On the flipside, my only real low:
After RCO soccer ended, I rested up and prepared for my intramural soccer game. Initially, I was excited because I had been playing so much soccer today, that another game was just adding onto the joy. It turned out that the team we were playing was literally a ragtag band of freshmen that decided to organize a soccer team; most of them have not touched a soccer ball in however many years, if at all. Honestly, one would think that playing an easy team would be more relaxing, less stressful. Au contraire, ma cherie. Our team started out playing pretty slow, and being not used to playing a truly competitive team, we played incredibly sloppy, and as a result, the first half score ended as a 0-0 tie, despite many good chances and potential opportunities blown. To cap off my frustration with this, the other team ended up trash talking us because they knew the only reason why they were keeping up with us was because we were playing so poorly.

I can't quite explain it, but this really set me off. The trash talk went straight to my head, and I found myself yelling at my own team, language barrier turned off, the whole nine yards. It was only sometime in the second half, that I realized it was negatively affecting how I was playing my game, and including the game of others. With the insight and input of some of my teammates, I switched off the field, and literally cooled my head by pouring cold water on myself. We finished the game 4-0.

This game was a real eye-opener for me. I haven't felt THIS angry at anything in a very long time. I suppose I believed that I changed that part of me, that I could control my temper, that I wouldn't let anything of the sort phase me. How quickly the temper re-emerged during this game, over an essentially trivial matter, really scares me. I really got to reflect on this during dinner with my close friend (see above); it definitely put stuff into perspective.

It indicates how much further I have to go from committing oneself to one's religion, versus surrendering oneself to one's religion. I have a long way to go, but at least the thought and realization is comforting.

Sorry about the wall of text. Busy day, no?