January: January of 2019 was an uneventful month. However, this was a very exciting month for me. This was the month I toured Lee University for the first time, and the month of when I decided I would attend Lee for the next four years of my life. A ten hour drive from home, it was an unpredictable decision, but nothing compared to my brother’s decision to go to a school which is a four day drive away from home. When I toured Lee, I knew this was where I wanted to go. I felt fully at peace, nothing which I had felt from the Lord when I toured the other schools which thus confirmed my decision to go to this wonderfully incredible school.

February: Nothing really happened at all in February besides the same old routine of school. I did go vegan for a week with 

my friend, which was quite an interesting experience. I learned some facts about myself, and I hate to admit it, but I caved at the end of the last day. I did not even make it a whole week. But, I also learned that vegans cannot have honey because it is considered an animal product! I could definitely never survive without honey. I now see the incredible strength of people who are vegans and even vegetarians, and they have my utmost respect.

March: During March, I decided to try out for tennis, I lip-synced a song from Mamma Mia for a fundraiser, and I spent quality time with my friends and family.

Every year my youth group goes on a mission trip over the summer, and this year we decided to go to Costa Rica. So one of the fundraisers we had for it was basically a talent show. We served BBQ to our guests and turned the talent show into a competition where people could give money to their favorite act. One my my personal favorites was when two of the guys from the youth staff got up on stage and performed “Sisters” from White Christmas.

I also went to Devoted for the last time for a few years. Devoted is a women’s conference which brings in women speakers from around the US who all preach on a theme. It is always incredible and God filled. I am sad to miss it this upcoming year, but I am beyond sure God will minister to me in different ways. Devoted 2019, my family joined me for the first time, and I was very thankful they got to come. This is always one of my favorite weekends.

The rest of March was spent working on school and homework, as well as getting to spend time with my best friend, who I rarely get to see save several times in a year.

April: April went by quickly. I played my first tennis match, and I also won my first tennis match.

It so happened that I was the only girl on the team, but since this was only the second year of this team being in existence, it makes sense. However, I learned quite a bit about the sport as well as made some new friends. That month, I grew a new love for this sport, and I now love going out with my friends and hitting the ball back and forth. I spent most of the month playing tennis and doing homework.

May: This was an exciting month. I went to prom with my best friend, I finished high school, and I made new friends. Here are some pictures.

June:

June was full of graduation festivities. I graduated in Richmond, VA with a few hundred other home schooled students which I finally received my high school diploma. 

It was a momentous occasion, and an event I will remember for the rest of my life. I was so glad to finally be done with high school. I also registered for my first university classes at Lee, which was exciting to me because I got to walk around on campus and actually solidify my slot in the school as well as making it feel all the more real that I was leaving in a few short months to stay here for school. I also helped out with my church’s kids camp. We held it at a local pool, and they put me in charge of the 4th and 5th graders. Let me tell you, they were quite the handful, but I had help and it was an exciting week. 

July:

July was quite the busy month for me. I went to Iowa for the fourth of July with my family, and then I went on the long awaited Costa Rica trip. This was my second time visiting Iowa with my family. We went with my grandparents, and I got to see where my grandfather grew up as well as where he, my Oma, and my mother went to school at the University of Iowa. Primarily, we visited where my grandfather, Ted, grew up in Exira, Iowa. We stayed for the Fourth of July where they have an annual parade, carnival, and fireworks: the best fireworks I have ever seen. Overall, the trip was exciting because I got to see where my grandfather grew up and see the places where my family has made so many memories with before. 

The latter half of July, I spent in Costa Rica with forty other people from my church back home. We had been there two years back, and this time, we came back to finish what we started. I loved getting to spend time with everyone and getting to know them all better as well as learning more about the Costa Rican culture. It is a beautiful country, and I hope one day, I will get to visit again.

August: Now this was an interesting month. The first half of it, I spent hiking trails along the AT, and the latter half I spent moving into my dorm at school and getting acquainted with the collegiate peoples’ ways.

I absolutely love hiking, especially in the warm months where everything is green and full. Every year, my brother and I try to find a new trail to hike, and we take a day out of our summer and go hiking together. This year we went to Mary’s Rock. After we made it to the top, an older couple came up twenty minutes or so after us. As we were about to leave the peak, the couple asked us to take a picture of them together. They told us they climbed this mountain every year for their anniversary. However, then they started asking us some questions. “Are you guys married?”. I stared at them for a second not sure how to respond, but then my brother stepped in and said, that we were not. “Oh, so you’re just friends.” The man asked.

“No, she’s my little sister.” my brother replied. I just crumbled up inside.

“Oh, good for you.” the wife remarked.

After that, my brother and I hiked back down laughing about it the whole way down.

A week or so later, my brother and I decided to convince my dad to hike with us at Mount Rogers. He had hiked it many years before with several of his old friends. But now, he got to hike it with us.  Looking back on the trip, we had quite an exciting adventure: we had to swerve the path of an angry bull, we got caught in the middle of a thunderstorm, and I lost my phone along the trail somewhere. (Now, I have become notorious in my family for leaving my phone places, or losing it somehow. But it always finds its way back to me, haha.) Despite these minor predicaments, we made it to the top and back! And we got to see gorgeous views along the way.

In the other half of the month, I said goodbye to my best friend knowing it would be a while till I would see her again, but I moved into my dorm room at College and made incredible new friends. Starting my first semester at Lee has been an incredible journey. I have met so many new people, and learned so much not only from my classes but about life and myself. I love these people to death, and I would never trade the friendships for anything in the world. The transitional period was hard, but the people made it easier. I would never have made it through my first semester at school if it were not for these people.

September:

My birthday month! September was mostly filled with figuring out new routines, and forming better relationships with my new friends. One of the best highlights was playing bubble soccer. I could hardly breath in the bubble, and I wish I had pictures, but, unfortunately, I do not. It was hilarious to watch and play! September was also the month I was born. All my friends surprised me at school with a scavenger hunt which led back to the dorm lounge where they set up decorations and food all for my birthday! It was the sweetest thing. We had cheesecake and watched a movie together. 

October:

Every year at Lee, we have an event called Dorm Wars. At this event, every dorm on campus puts together a dorm wars team in which the team competes one day in three events: a mystery event, a shopping cart race, and an obstacle course. The dorms are broken up between the upper class dorms between men and women, and also between the lower class men and women dorms. Each dorm is judged on spirit, cheers, and 

of course how well they do in each event. I was extremely glad to be apart of the Snora dorm wars team this year. We worked hard and practiced every week up until the day of Dorm Wars. When the wars finally started it was jammed packed with students all across campus; it is actually one of the most attended student events of the year. The lights were going crazy inside, the music was blaring, and the fog machine was doing its job. Everyone had worked so hard for this moment, especially Snora. We were ready to win. Not only was it our RD’s birthday, but it would also be the first time we won in eleven years! It was pure chaos in the gym and it all came out in the excitement. 

Snora led the dorm to a win in the mystery event, however, we did not win the shopping cart race. It all finally came down to the obstacle course race. So much of our victory would depend on how we did for this event. I was to lead the obstacle course team on the course we were to take: spin around a bat five times, jump through tires, crawl through a tunnel, swing across two platforms on a rope, and hurdle a five foot wall. We had prepared, and we were prepared. We would not know what we placed in this event until we heard who won the whole dorm wars. Anxiously we all waited to hear. The MC held it out to the very end, but finally he announced the winner of the lower class women’s dorm bracket. “And finally, the 2019 Dorm Wars champions for the freshman women’s dorms. 

Hm, I seem to have forgotten. Oh wait, I remember, it’s their RD’s birthday!” The whole stands stood up screaming and jumping flooding the floor. We did not wait to hear the rest of his announcement. I could see Hannah, our RD, sheer joy, everyone was in disbelief. Could we really just have won Dorm Wars? The first time in eleven years!

Along with the other crazy festivities, I went with my service club on a fall retreat to a cabin in the woods. We played board games all night and made s’mores. It was fun getting to know everyone in the club a little better.

November:

November was much more low-key compared to October. It was back to the grind, then  Thanksgiving, then back to the grind again. One of the best highlights of November was when my floor went camping. I cannot remember the last time I had been camping, but we all decided to give it a shot together. Thankfully, we had some experts in our midst to 

help set up a campfire, and to bring the sleeping bags and tent. It was a cold night, but a night full of bonding and laughter in the cold damp tent under our sleeping bags. That evening, we tried to fit eight girls into a single tent. I have never been more cramped, but the trip made me thankful for civilization and heat. Even though sleeping was a trial, I loved every minute of it. 

Coming home for Thanksgiving was a wonderful relief before finals. My brother took me rock climbing for the first time, and I have to say, I will never be able to go back. It was so much fun, and I loved every minute of it.

November also brought the Snowbash. The Snowbash is a semi-formal between my dorm, Snora, and one boys dorm, Medlin.

December: Well, besides coming home for Christmas break, not much else happened in December. I went ice skating in Chattanooga with a few girls from school, learned how to play Spud, finished my finals, and packed for home. While I waited at the airport for my 4:30 P.M. flight to Charlotte, the plane kept not arriving. I waited, waited, waited. Finally, we get a report from the airport staff that the plane is on its way. By this time I had already missed my connecting flight from Charlottesville to Norfolk, and also had a breakdown on the phone in the middle of the airport while on the phone with my mom. I ended up spending the night in the Charlottesville airport waiting for an early morning flight the next day all by myself. After many hours of waiting, sitting, waiting, I made it home by 10 A.M. the next morning to my family and soft warm bed. Later, that week, I got to see my best friend again. We made Christmas cookies and watched movies together.

So many things happened in 2019, and I hope these memories will last a long time. I learned so much, and I made so many new friends. I can only hope, I can make these relationships even stronger than before and continue to grow in my walk with Christ, in maturity, and continue to try new things in 2020.

Happy New Year!

XOXO,

Janey Lou

see 2020’s reflection: here