I’m on my last week of my first semester of nursing school. I can’t believe I’m doing it!

I had given up after getting waitlisted from the one school I had applied to and spent a year doing absolutely nothing but planning how to get out and live on my own. And then dad got diagnosed with lung cancer… thank God they caught it early but it reawakened me to the dream of becoming a nurse and I got my application together and applied to all the programs with deadlines that hadn’t passed yet for the next semester. I found one particular program that looked great and had great stats - some people spend years getting their application ready to apply here but from deciding I wanted to go to applying, it took me a little over a month! And I got in!!

God really does work in mysterious ways. If I had gone to the previous school, I would’ve ended up hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt but now I’m in a program that costs a fraction of that (free w/ my scholarship!) and will end up being able to sit for the same NCLEX-RN and have my employer pay for the BSN bridge program (or MSN if I decide to do that).

My dog and I are out living on our own in a nice apartment and I finally have the peace of mind that I’ve always wanted. I never thought that at this age I would have fulfilled this dream to be able to be out on my own (with my dog) and not in my sister or anyone else’s shadow. But here I am, living the life. I’m so happy!

I also joined a new Korean-American church with a great community and the fellowship has been really nice.

All in all, I’m so grateful to God for this time and opportunity and I truly believe that, if you ask, he will guide you down a wonderful path.

Daily Meditation

"The great pleasure in life is doing what people say you cannot do." -- Walter Babehot

Everyone knew Jacob was a bitter, old hermit who hated people. He lived by himself in a cabin in the woods. He never came to town, never talked to anyone, and never put up a mailbox or put in a phone. But he had one thing the townsfolk wanted -- the very first Bible brought by a preacher when the town was first settled. They wanted it for their centennial celebration.

Little Tom listened as the townsfolk complained daily about how much they wanted the old book to put on display. One day, he walked on out to the little cabin and just asked the old man if he could borrow the book, just for a week. Imagine the surprise on the faces of the people when the boy wandered back to town with the old, dusty book in hand.

Are we like the townspeople sometimes? Do we assume things won't work out without even trying? Sometimes help is there, just waiting to be asked. What have we got to lose?

**What can I request today that I have been afraid to ask for?**

(Excerpt from Today's Gift: Daily Meditations for Families)