The Climb (for the Georgia Peach)

I have NO idea where the weekend went!! Bruce and I had "date night" on Friday night. While we were on our honeymoon, we decided to institute a once a week date night. We didn't put any restrictions on where, when or how, but we did say that once a week (and once school starts back it needs to be for at least a couple of hours - now it's sort of one night a week) we will do something for the two of us. We decided Friday would be good last week because it was the end of our first week back at work and we knew would need a night out!! We went to Chili's and then came home to watch he's just not that into you. It was phenomenal!! I wish it had been out when I first started college - I think I may have made some different decisions - though I hate to think of experiences as mistakes (more on that later).

We really wanted to sleep in on Saturday morning, but I needed to go the DMV to get my name changed on my license. Not only was it a name change, but I was transfering my Connecticut license to Georgia. I didn't anticipate it being a process. Ohhhh, how naive I can be.

First of all, I wasn't paying attention when I was mapping the closest location. Because I thought there was a DMV location at North Dekalb Mall. Turns out (after going there and wandering around the mall aimlessly for 20 minutes) the location is at South Dekalb Mall. But we didn't go straight there. Bruce took us to the location he knew from when we registered the Jeep in Georgia last year - but when we got there we realized that it was a tag office, not a DDS (where you can get a license). So THEN we went to the location at South Dekalb Mall. We waited in line for 20-25 minutes, got to the front of the line and the woman told me that I would need my birth certificate. Now - my birth certificate is safely tucked away in my parent's safe deposit box in Connecticut (I know, great place for it, right?). I was floored by this discovery, because I was SO CAREFUL to read the instructions online. I just couldn't believe that I had missed the part that told me I HAD to have my birth certificate. So the woman told me I was out of luck, and sent me on my way with the paper that said what I needed. So we're walking towards the car, reading the sheet where I read that I need "one item from column A." Which meant I needed either an original and/or certified copy of my birth certificate or my passport. I had my passport with me. (I KNEW I had read somewhere that I could use my passport!!) So - back in line for 25 minutes where Bruce and I ask the woman if my passport would suffice, because it seems like it should. She (condescendingly, if you ask me) asked me if I had my passport, scoffed at the fact that I did and then gave me a number. Let me ask you this - why are people so rude when I walk in prepared and with a smile on my face?!

Needless to say ... three locations, two tries at the line and about 3 1/2 hours later - Sarah Weaver is a licensed Georgia driver!!

It's amazing, though, how much time is wasted at the DMV. We really didn't get much done after we got home.

On Sunday we were at church for the morning and part of the afternoon - Kim had asked me if I could teach the UCC part of the Inquierers Class that was taking place after church. We had about 12 people interested in joining!! (For our size church, that's incredible) We got home from the class and only had about an hour before I had an appointment at the Apple Store - there is a backlight problem on my computer screen and it needed to be sent out. We got home and I was just exhausted. Little things accumulated all weekend and - combined with the fact that it was still oppressively hot & humid in Atlanta - I was on the verge of a meltdown. I just felt like I had two days where I didn't really do much (I still have clean laundry on my floor needing to be put away) and I didn't get anything done. A waste of time? Maybe. But here's where today's wedding story comes in ...

I was having a hard time finding a father/daughter dance. Most of the really good ones are also REALLY country - and my father isn't a fan (to put it nicely) of most country music. So Bruce and I decided to try to pick songs that spoke to the relationship that we have with my father and his mother. I thought back to my freshmen year of college - my parents gave me a journal before I left and they both wrote notes in it. My father wrote - simply - "no experience is ever a waste of time" and has repeatedly told me that in the 6 years since I started at Ursinus. It's simple, but has really resonated in me. I know my actions and decisions haven't always reflected the person I want to become - but they are all part of the road that have gotten me here - and will get me where I want to be.

I couldn't think of a better song to describe my appreciation for what my dad has done for me than Miley Cyrus' The Climb. It's all about the fact that the journey is what is important, not the destination. Before each song started, Bruce and I took to the microphone to explain why the song was so important to us. Here is my dad and me dancing ...

He was telling me that he didn't recognize the artist. I told him that it was Miley Cyrus, Billy Rae Cyrus' daughter. He said "Ohh." Then I had to admit it to him: His daughter had picked the single off of the Hannah Montanta movie to dance with him to at her wedding ...

... a lot of laughter ensued. Followed by my dad saying, "Well, no experience is ever a waste of time!!"

So - even though this weekend was a little frustrating, NO experience is ever a waste of time. It's about the journey - it's about the climb!!

Peace & Blessings,
Sarah :)