Fun with the Schneiders

"How good it is, how pleasant, when brothers dwell together in unity!" Psalm 133:1

I'm here in Morgan Hill, CA. This little town is my old hometown. Morgan Hill restricts its growth, so things haven't changed too much in the last two years, but staying here with the Fiorellos (my godparents) the people have really changed. It is a joy to be here, though I'm missing the Schneiders right now.

But the next part of our trip is already underway.

So here are some of the best memories from the Schneider visit:

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CALIFORNIA AT LAST!!!

Here we are! California!

My thoughts of California:

1. It's HOT HOT HOT HOT HOT here!

2. When it gets hot in Colorado, it's hot and dry (like an oven). When it's hot in California, it's hot and wet (like a tea kettle).

3. Random fact from Evan: "Ah sweet! I love random facts... uh... uh... uh... uh... think of something random... uh... uh...

4. Fact from Zach: "All cats eyes are blue when first born. That's a fact." Love those educational facts from those amazing Schneiders!

5. "Umm...."

6. Fact from Joss: "Tucker [Schneider's dog] looks like a Lab right now." He's a Golden Retriever. Trust my artistic sister to give you a little picture of our stay.

7. "Ummm..."

8. I, Catey, am in FIRST place in Bible Scattergories!!!! Joss is in second.

9. Real fact from Evan: "Mosquitos prefer different blood types." Trust my educational cousin to give you all a glimpse of our evil statemates, the bugs. (Euw).

10. This is an amazing time for all of us. Hiking today was so much fun. I wish we never had to leave. Thank you, God, for blessing us with friends!

Enjoy the photos!

Glimpses of Utah: Desert Trees

"He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water..." Psalm 1:3

Utah:

I stared out the car window. Cracked hills peered back, lazing in the 104 degree heat. Yellow and white rock slouch against a pale, cloudless blue sky. Each stone is marked in dark brown and grey lines, like tears. Long river marks carve deep into each formation.

Scrub litters the rock face. Grey-green leaves and tangled vine patterns are the vegetation of this sparse and empty area. A whisper of wind blows heat across the sky.

My sister calls out: "Mom! There's water in the road!"

A mirage. Illusions of water caused by the heat that shimmers along the blacktop.

Absolutely bare. Absolutely barren. Completely deserted. Nothingness. A wilderness.

I looked out the window again at the empty sand. By the side of the road, something startled me.

A steep slope formed the backdrop. Rocks of grey, yellow, brown and pink color lay across the slope, like a rock waterfall. Heat shimmers off of the stones and the small flecks reflect back at the sun. And, out of the nothing, a tree grows. The tree has deep green and blue-grey leaves, thick and shiny. They are pointed upward, in a circular pattern.

And then we passed by and it was gone.

That struck my fancy.

I have been in the desert before. I have been where there seems to be endless pain, rocky choices, strangling heat. But God blew me to that place, like the wind blows a seed. And I grew where planted. And even where there is no water, God gave me nourishment.

I want to be like a tree in the desert- refreshing among the thorns and sun. I want to point back to God. I want not only to grow where I was planted- but to BLOOM!

Those were my thoughts of Utah.

-Catey

Lovely St. George Utah

Hello everyone!

This is the close of Day #1 of the California trip.

Since I didn't write anything explaining the California trip, let me catch you up to date. My family and I used to live in California- I did for almost thirteen years. So when we moved to Colorado in 2006, we left a lot of friends, family and memories behind. Now, two years later, we are finally going back for our very first visit. A lot of the people we'll be visiting we haven't seen since we moved!

Today we drove about 10 hours to lovely St. George, Utah.

Some facts about Utah:

1. It is one of the top five ugliest states in the union. (Sorry. If you're from Utah, no offense. I just don't find the scrub, yellow rocks and sand that attractive.) (And if you've never been to Utah and you're not decided what you think of it, look at the picture at the top)

2. There be lots of Mormons here! My mom made it a point to take note of all the Mormon churches. There is even a temple in St. George!

3. It is HOT here! It was 93 when we got out of the car today.

Okay, there's my rough synopsis of Utah.

Here are my observations of the trip:

Observation #1: My brother Tim is a true Yuen- he travels like a dream! He barely even needed his toys to keep him entertained!

Observation #2: The rock formations make me think constantly of the flood. Thousands of pockmarked formations shaped by erosion in round formations, square formations- all with the rivulets of mighty waters marking them.

Observation #3: I have seen only two kinds of plants in Utah. The scrubby kind with grappling clawlike branches and Joshua trees.

Observation #4: Somehow the Joshua trees and the scrubby uglies manage to grow directly out of the rock face.

Observation #5: When I say the 'rock face', I mean it! Many of the rock formations have "faces" in pattern of color.

Observation #6: Roundabouts are EVIL! If you're a Coloradan, this may not sound like a big deal. But the roundabouts here in Lovely St. George, Utah tend to be bigger and MUCH more confusing! A brief roundabout story:

We were looking for a hotel. And when I say this, I should also add we had a very specific idea. When we finally figured out where the La Quinta was, the roundabout business started. We went around the first roundabout twice before moving on to the SECOND roundabout, which we went around once before making a wrong turn that landed us back at the FIRST roundabout- and then we found out that La Quinta didn't have any suites available. I thought we were going to have to go through both of them AGAIN!

Okay, well, Day #1 is about to end. I'm going to watch a movie with my sisters and brother and then go to sleep. Tomorrow, I go from Lovely St. George, Utah to Hugely More Lovely Oakhurst, California. Pray for me!

P.S. Keep watching Sparks of Illumination. I was inspired to a devotional that I don't have time to write tonight. I'll try to write it tomorrow, though. I should have a picture then, too. -C

Broken World

Broken World
Open eyes greet the light
Walking into a dark world.
With small steps, I faced the darkness
Shattered hearts
Fragments of lives before me
Tears become rivers
Rivers are oceans
This is our home.
But small and helpless me,I stood alone.
And yet not alone.
Change is in the wind and I feel it with me.
I was not made for fear
I was made for this,
To step out of the darkness
And stand against the evil.
You and me and the Savior- all the people
We hold out our hands and ask
To give to the hurting places
To mend a broken world
One soul at a time
From the inside out
To fix a broken heart
With love