In the land of Megan...

• Trixie is still in the shop with over 7k in damages, but the good news is that my claim was taken care of by Friday, in what I hear was the quickest settlement ever (100% fault on other driver). I feel really lucky. Everyone has been really helpful and nice, the settlement went smoothly, and a few days out it hit me that I could have been seriously hurt. Instead, I feel great, even though I'm still rollin in the Chrysler 300. It's my ride. That's right!
  
  
• On Sunday, a pizza man fell down the stairs outside of the house across the street, hitting his head. I was in the laundry room with the door to the outside open, so I heard the fall. I looked over to see him flopped face down on the cement and not getting up. I ran over to help, asking the neighbors to call 911 and retrieving a blanket for him from one of the apartments. Also, I got to flag down the foxy firemen who arrived on the scene. Once it seemed that the pizza guy was going to be okay, thoughts and conversation turned to the actual pizza. One of the firemen held up the receipt asking who the pizza belongs to. I pointed to the neighbor and said, "Hers. And she needs to sign for it" (making signing motion with hands). In times of trouble, I crack myself up.
  
  
• I'm heading to Minneapolis for a few days in early May to visit my friend, Chris, and my cousin. I'm ready for a few days off. Chris and I are going to see the Swell Season, and I'm super excited to see them with her. Yay!
  
  
• I met with one of the directors for the Israel program. I'm looking forward to the trip even more now, although I haven't selected days to go yet. The start of the trip is in Tel Aviv and the end is in Jerusalem and at the Dead Sea. While Jerusalem/Dead Sea are my top priority, I want to be there for the whole thing, but my funding is for a limited amount of time. The director would like me to come for the entire trip, too, so I'm going to see about getting additional financial assistance to help make this happen.
  
  
• I'm in love with my new red shoes.
  
  
• On Monday I went to hear the Dalai Lama speak at an honorary convocation. I really enjoyed it. A few years ago I saw Archbishop Desmond Tutu, and he was an incredibly charismatic and animated speaker, bopping around on stage. The Dalai Lama was different. I found his quiet calm powerful, and I agree with his message of compassion, starting with inner peace as the first step toward a greater global peace. He comes across as a simple man from an isolated place, and it was interesting to hear his limited world view in response to some questions. He doesn't hesitate to say I don't know when he doesn't know either.
  
  The man has a fun sense of humor, and I liked seeing him laugh at his own jokes. One person asked a serious question about the AIDS epidemic, and at first he gave a serious response, talking about education and advances in medicine. Then, he said that while he knows the disease can be contracted from blood transfusions, his understanding is that it's often spread by sexual activity. He immediately followed that up with, "I say, give them rubber!" and laughed. So did we.
  
  
• Without going into much detail, I'm happy to report that lately I've been doing things and making choices that are really good for me. I'm reaching a state of much needed completion with some old hurts, creating real and final peace with situations or people from my past in the best possible way. I feel stronger and healthier as a result. Megan R. is learning the art of letting go! This is carrying over into the present moment, too. My life has been a bit of a roller coaster lately, with some truly wonderful, special highs and a few dips. Yet, through it, I'm recognizing that my heart is open, everything is as it should be, and I don't need to resist that which isn't how I want it. I just need to let go and turn toward what I do want. It feels good to *finally* be getting this.
  
  
• I'm recommending Randy Pausch's The Last Lecture to everyone.