Well I used to think I'm one heck of a healthy girl - I rarely fall sick, even when people around me do. Two nights ago I was proved wrong and taught a lesson for drinking too much frizzante (who could resist, it was so good and I was helping to finish up the bottle!) Well by too much I mean more than one glass, without drinking water after that. Which is bad bad bad for your soul. Note to self: must always always wash down alcohol with heaps of water. I developed a fever during the night after that - it was terrible! I've almost forgotten what it's like to have a fever considering I've not had one since 3 years ago I think. I remember how as a young kid I'd hate falling sick not just because I'd feel physically horrible, but emotionally as well when my mom fusses around me with that worried look on her face and clucks her tongue repeatedly and berates me for not drinking enough water and stays up all night to sponge me, rendering my sleep fitful at best. Not a good thing for a feverish kid but oh well, my mom is one of a kind. So on Tuesday night I had a terrible night trying to sleep soundly, especially since it's still so cold in Adelaide. Still, thank God for making me well enough to head to class yesterday. Now my nose is still runny and hurting. I hate being sick! It makes you feel so... blahhhh!

But I think me falling sick is deserving of a blog post considering what a rare occasion it is! Plus it's my first in Aussieland ha.

Looking forward to the two-week break and all that it entails. Oh woohooooo!! ROAD TRIPPPPPPPP!!

I got this in my email, and it was such a beautiful reminder I couldn't help pasting the whole thing on my blog - just to remind myself (and all of you reading this) time and again what it means to dream dreams.

"Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life."
Proverbs 13:12 (NIV)

Heads bent together, they study what to me looks like a mess but to them looks like something beautiful. The table is littered with glue sticks, magazines, scraps of paper, and scissors. "Mom," my daughter informs me as she looks up, "We're making dream books." Her eyes shine with possibility. It is clear that she believes in the dreams she is pasting in her book.

Looking at her, I am reminded of my own little girl dreams, of a time that I saw life as bursting with potential: I simply had to believe hard enough to make those dreams turn into reality. Life had not taught me otherwise then.

I listen as they discuss what they are pasting into their dream books. "This," says my daughter's friend, "is my desk area. And this will be my husband's, right beside me," she says with satisfaction. I don't tell her that she might not be able to afford a house that is large enough for two desk areas. That her marriage may get to a point that her husband might not want to be right beside her.

"These are my twins," my daughter says, her face shining with enough pride that they could be her real children. "Their names are Hunter and Hannah." I don't tell her that her husband may not like the names Hunter and Hannah. That she may not be blessed with twins, with children at all. I don't cloud their dreams with the realities of adulthood. I turn my attention to the dinner that needs to be cooked, the pressing needs that seem to overtake what I once dreamed.

But in my heart, I feel God whisper, What are your dreams? Have you forgotten? Have you lost hope? You could take a lesson from your little girl. I am challenged to hang onto what I once believed about life—to not let setbacks and heartbreak scream louder than the echoes of my dreams. What kind of woman can I be if I have stopped believing that dreams can come true? What kind of home can I create if it's a place where dreams are discarded like the trash?

God has planted dreams in all of our hearts. He did not intend for our dreams to get trampled by our own busy feet. Just like my daughter and her friend catalogued their dreams, maybe it's time for you to take some inventory in your life. 2 Corinthians 9:8 tells us, "And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work" (NIV). That includes your God-given dreams.

Do you remember your little girl dreams? What did they look like? Who did you dream of becoming? It's not too late to dream dreams, to envision a future that accepts reality, yet embraces potential. Just for today, allow yourself to remember your dreams. Smile, feel giddy, hope. Whether it's starting your own business, writing a book, having a great marriage, or running a marathon... whatever dreams stir your heart, don't push them aside today. Create your own dream book, even if the pictures are just painted on the canvas of your mind.