It is the last day of May. I attended my first ever prom Saturday night. It was a truly wonderful evening. Christin and I and some of her friends ate out at Lock’s Point and the dance itself was awesome. I really had fun, despite the fact that some of those teens dancing looked like they were trying to have sex with clothes on while standing up. That was gross to see. We went to the after-prom party and didn’t get to her friend Allison’s house until five in the morning. The dad cooked everyone breakfast. I don’t think I would have enjoyed my own prom if I went to it five years ago, but I enjoyed this one at the age of 22.
I still went to Sunday school and church, but then slept most of the afternoon. Kimberly and Christin came over after church last night and I introduced them to Les Miserables.
Classes end in two weeks and then I’ll begin my Master’s Commission journey.
It just occurred to me that since I’ve come to Regent I may not have explained the other people I have come across. Of course there is David, who is the youth pastor at Parkway Temple. He’s 27 and a very good friend. He’s my mentor and he helps keep me balanced. His brother Chris, who just moved here from South Africa, is 22 and plays guitar. He’s become a part of the church and we’ve hung out a couple of times. Last Thursday we went to see Star Wars.
Kerstin is my friend from Germany. She is my age. She talks to me about boys in her life. She feels that I understand her, but also makes it known that she only wants us to be friends, despite the fact that we play this flirting game with each other.
Brian is a couple of years older than me, yet many times I feel as though I am his mentor. We used to only talk movies, but our conversations have recently moved onto other topics.
Nicole is 25. She’s from Atlanta and will one day make the perfect Italian mother once she finds the right guy. She says her body is screaming at her to have a baby now. Wow! She’s so beautiful, but she feels like a big sister to me. Her body shape is so similar to Sarah’s that I often just want to hug her, but try to resist the urge.
Then there’s the other Chris, the theater major who just turned 26. He’s never had a girlfriend and he’s crazy about Kerstin. He grew up with all sisters, and he says that has made me very careful around women. He has a mind for missions and has done much work for Teen Mania.
The whole Hampton Roads area here feels like a melting pot since there’s such a military presence. It feels like a mix of both northern and southern cultures all thrown into one big suburb. It’s a very clean region thanks to the high state taxes. Evidently a lot of people work here, but will live just over the North Carolina line, just to avoid the taxes. Banner Elk was an easily definable mountain village, but Hampton Roads is a small materialistic version of America.
Nevertheless, at the moment, it is home, and memories are being made. I’m very happy to know I will live here in the time that I will. It’s teaching me how to love others and to raise my future children.
Goodbye May. Hello summer of 1999.
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