Previous Challenge Entry (Level 2 – Intermediate)
Topic: Bitter and Sweet (05/28/09)
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TITLE: I'm So Jealous!
By Jenny Fulton
05/30/09 -
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“Paige, did you see those pictures? Somebody has GOT to help those kids!”
“I bet we could do it! We’d have to have a plan. I’m getting my teaching degree, you’re getting your intercultural studies degree, we know people who are getting their business degrees – after college we could totally go over there and start our own orphanage!”
“Definitely! We could study the language, intern in schools and orphanages, learn more about the way things are run…”
“We could do this!”
~~~~~ Time Passes ~~~~~
“Sarah! How are you doing? Feels like I never see you anymore!”
“Yeah…umm…sorry about that. I haven’t meant to be so exclusive, but…”
“Yeah, I know…Brad seems like a really great guy. Not all your fault, anyway. I feel like I’ve hardly been around this semester with…”
“Oh! He’s amazing! He told me he wants to go overseas and he’s really interested in languages… and… can you believe we graduate next year?”
“Crazy! Feels like forever ago! Do you remember when we used to talk about that orphanage?”
“Oh yeah! You know, we should get together and talk about that again! Brad’s a business major. I bet he’d love to come as well.”
“You’re still interested?”
“Of course! Aren’t you?”
~~~~~ Graduation Year ~~~~~
“I’m ENGAGED!”
“AHHHHH!!!!!!!!!”
“How?”
“When?”
“Let me see it!”
“You’re so lucky!”
“Congratulations!!”
~~~~~ Graduation Week ~~~~~
“Paige! Graduation is THIS WEEKEND!!””
“And your wedding is next month!”
“So…when do you leave for the Philippines?”
“A week after your wedding… doesn’t seem real yet.”
“I’m so jealous! You’re going to be traveling the world.”
“You’re jealous? You’re getting married! You’ll have someone who will always be with you! You’ll have a family! Besides, I thought you guys were planning on heading overseas.”
“Well…Brad just got this really great internship here…and I found a great job at that same company…and we both have loans, so it just makes sense to stay a bit and look into going overseas later.”
~~~~~ 5 Years Later ~~~~~
“Sarah! Oh my goodness! It’s been so long! These are your kids?”
“Paige! You look great! Yes, this is Caden and this is Micah. Caden is three, Micah turns one next month.”
“They’re adorable! I can’t believe you’re a mommy! How are you doing?”
“Oh, you know. The kids keep me busy. I don’t leave the house much anymore – takes so much time and energy to get everyone around and out the door it seems and… Caden! Those beans are for eating, not for sticking up your nose … So how are you doing? Any special someone yet?”
“No, there always seems to be so much work to be done at school, and then there’s language study, and a group of young Filipino girls I’ve been working with. I’m always busy, but somehow there always seems to be plenty of time to feel lonely.”
“Oh, but you’ve been so many places! You can do anything you want, go anywhere you want, whenever you want!”
“Yeah, but you have people to come home to – people who always care where you are and want to be with you wherever you go!”
“Still, I’m jealous.”
“Yeah? Well, me too…”
So, maybe there’s no such thing as a perfect life, though sometimes it feels as though the perfect life is just beyond reach. Maybe the beauty and perfection of life comes from seeing and acknowledging the bitter sweetness of each unique life God gives to each individual. Maybe it takes looking at our life through someone else’s eyes to see the sweetness of the life God has given us. What if we looked at our life through His eyes? What if we saw the bitterness as simply another ingredient essential to the creating of an overall life better than we could ever imagine? What if we thanked Him both for the gift of bitterness, and the gift of sweetness – trusting Him to bring them together in such a way as would generate the perfect, distinctive blend for our life.
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A few times I had to backtrack a bit to figure out who was talking--maybe a few more dialogue tags or attributions would help?
I like that you didn't portray one life path as 'wrong' and the other as 'right'.