Closing a Chapter

Well, it's official. This week concludes my first semester at the University of Idaho. And honestly it's a little bittersweet because I know that one of the easiest semester of my college career is coming to a close, as far as academics go. However, I am so looking forward to the additional memories i will be creating in this wonderful white house on the hill that has, with everyday, increasingly become my home away from home. To those of you who do not know, or particularly understand sorority life, i encourage you to, like many things, not judge a book by its cover... or rather... covers that have been placed on it. Sorority life is so misjudged and misunderstood by the different views that Hollywood, and word of mouth places on it. I can assure you that, (at least in my chapter) nothing can be further from the truth.

Living in Kappa Kappa Gamma has truly been a real support system for me, and i know that without the help of my fellow sisters, especially in classes that i struggle a great deal in (Math, you know who you are) I would not have had nearly as successful a first semester. This has solidified especially in the last month, where everything is finally gaining a rhythm and i'm getting used to the ebbs and flows of the collegiate life (you like that last sentence? College is doing me good! i'm learning big words! ;)

God is so good in his provisions for my life. Every day, almost within seconds of me feeling the least worn down, or out of it, I find encouragement from someone in my life, lifting me up and motivating me to go on. It never ceases to utterly AMAZE me that God cares so much for my well-being, and the well-being of those around me - even when I am not spending time in His word. This is evident in lieu of the recent baptism service we had at my Moscow church, Resonate. Before every baptism, they have a short video of the person telling their story. I was filled with such inexplicable joy after every video I had a hard time containing myself, and I felt the need to talk to every single person that was baptized that night, but i'll have you know i refrained, because I know that I can be a little overwhelming to people the first time i meet them (this was a lesson learned the hard way when i was a kid, and that's another blog for another time).

To list a specific instance where God used someone else (namely a child, as always) to brighten my day, i'll tell you about one of my work study experiences....

I was at my work study, switching it up a bit and playing with the boys, because i usually do the craft with the kids at the craft table, and I decided i wanted to branch out. We were playing with plastic dinosaurs, and lions, and tigers, and sheep, and rhinos, and other various forms of animals in God's Kingdom. Either way, one of the little boys walks up to me, and says: "Alyse, you're exquisite!" to which i replied: "Why thank you Tommy, do you know what that means?" And he said: "Yeah! It means like super pretty or something! And that's what you are!" I said: "Wow! Yes you're sure right! Did you get that word in your vocab list this week or something?" And he said: "Sure did". At this point, one of the other little boys chimed in and said: "Yeah Alyse you're really pretty!" and then another little boy agreed as well. 

I don't know what it is about the children at my work study, but they are perhaps some of the sweetest children I have ever met. I will greatly miss working with them next semester. What is also a blessing from God is, he has provided me with the financial means to not need work study next semester, which opens up free time in the afternoon to build relationships with people that have been placed in my life. I am so incredibly excited for this upcoming semester, even though I will be at 18 credits. I say... Bring it on crazy semester! I'll be all rested up from Christmas break, and i'm used to most of your tricks by now! ...honestly, we'll see how that goes, but who accomplished anything without a little confidence?? 

To catch all of you up on my adventures in the last few weeks, I have needed to be rescued from different situations by my wonderful Big Sis Kara Siers. These adventures mostly involved me dropping my brain somewhere on the asphalt beside the vehicle (if you know me, it's true and you're laughing right now), and this almost always ends up resulting in a dead battery, or the keys sitting in the cup holder in view from the driver's window in the parking lot of Moscow Rosauer's... was that too specific? It is a wonder to me why my brother lets me borrow the car still. Honestly. And, i have a panic attack every time I come out of work study, even though i've double checked and rechecked that the lights were off, and the keys were in my hand. People probably think i'm crazy, because i'm walking out to my car in the dark of night (thanks to earlier sunsets at literally 3:00) saying under my breath "Oh dear God please let there not be a dead battery, oh please oh please oh please!" Now, it almost always works, and there's really no reason to fret.

The weeks following Thanksgiving have passed as fast as I thought they would, and have caused me as much stress as i anticipated. I had two art projects, two portfolios, and one final to study for. Thankfully I only had that one real final, because it should be common knowledge that i am a horrible test taker. My art projects went over well, and paid off with the work I put into them. I like to think that i saved all of my creativity for my final projects, and if I slacked off all semester to save up for these, it was worth it. Doing my art projects, I realized just how much I am in love with the arts, and how much of myself is devoted to them. It truly was my joy to do them, and I know without a doubt that at least one of my majors is what I will be doing for the rest of my life.

Here's a few of them:

We also went serenading last week, we sang Mariah Carey's "All I want for Christmas, is you", much to the delight of fraternity men on the campus. Which was pretty cool, because i've only been in like three of the fraternities before that, but I think i'll keep on hanging out at the two i do hang out at... because they weren't as cool as the ones i spend my time at.

Other than being needed to be rescued once every week, the last few have mostly consisted of asking myself: "what's due this week? and what's the least that I have to do?" Which is so not what i'm used to asking myself. And for me, thanksgiving break could not have come fast enough, and now that it has, i'm looking forward to Christmas. I'm just worn out, and next semester the 18 credits might be challenging, but i'm sure it will work out. It's weird, all semester when i've felt the least bit overwhelmed, I feel almost an instant calm as well. I know that's from all of the prayers my brothers and sisters all over have been saying for me. And in lieu of the season coming up, thank you so much for the prayers! And also thank you for reading!

As always,
~Alyse :)

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In regards to finals, here is what i learned:

1. If you can get out of a test with a portfolio, do it.

2. Art projects are always better accompanied with Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers movies.

3. Being an art major rocks, because there are no written tests.

4. REST.

5. Study sessions with your sisters are THE BEST.

6. When it feels like your brain is going to fall out of your cranium, you've been studying real hard - good job.

7. The internet is the devil, quite literally - especially Pinterest.

Midterms, Kappa Inspiration, and a wall

So, two weeks ago was midterms. I actually didn't have that many tests (only two) and I feel very fortunate, but i think my homework load almost equaled the stress my fellow sorority sisters were feeling this week.

Still, with those two tests, combined with stuff for the house and everything else going on in my life my mind was pretty much mush by the end of the week, and i'm surprised i have anything to talk about in this post... or if it's even intelligible at all, so we'll see how this goes.

Honestly though, I really can't complain too much, because my homework and week was not even that bad.

Anyway,  a few weeks ago, I made a post on Facebook with a whole bunch of quotes of thoughts I had for that day, and that I would talk about them in this blog post! 

Those thoughts were:

"Hey there Jersey Shore"

"Hey ma, if I return home with monster thighs, will you still love me?"

"Having it be 80 degrees outside with the sun setting earlier messes with my head"

"Kids are genuine, their honesty is the best"

Well, The comment about Jersey Shore was on my second day of work study at my new location, and I was riding my bike downtown and this guy, who totally looked like he was a hardcore whitey  New Jersey wannabe from the Northwest, was on his phone, walked out really slowly in front of me, and when i looked annoyed that he did that, (because my brakes are going out... life of a college student) he gave me a once-over with an expression that was a mixture of a disgusting "Hey-there girly" and "who do you think you are?" very confusing, and i'm not sure I will ever be able to ignore the notorious Moscow-Men-Stare either... although it is not a prevalent to me now as it was the first week of school.

Aaaaannnd, on a slightly more recent note (considering i started this post like two weeks ago... ptsh, as if that wasn't obvious) I am officially a Kappa Kappa Gamma of the Beta Kappa chapter at the beautiful and WONDERFUL University of Idaho. This has been a week of mostly reflection (when i have time) showing me how much I have grown in at least the last year. This is even more prevalent when I look at pictures and am reminded of where i was at, and what I was thinking in that picture... I'm loving it. I cannot wait to live my life, i'm so full of it, and I hope that when I am a seasoned adult I will still feel this feeling through the continuous renewal of life from my wonderful creator. Today, I just outlined my classes for next semester, and it is looking like I will be very busy with some art classes. This is slightly funny to me, and i bet a lot of people back where i am from (holla PF!), because in High School I did not take a single art class, and was incredibly involved in all sorts of performing arts... believe me i've heard it enough times. Either way, I am enjoying the challenge, and through various circumstances in my life I feel like God has truly prepared me for this season in my life.

I must confess I am suffering from serious withdrawals from the performing arts... I have the shakes almost on a continuous daily basis. However, there is just simply no time for any classes not relating to my major. No time has never been a real determent for anything related to what I want to do, and being on my own has given me quite a surge of confidence.

This past week (Oct. 24-29) I officially hit my motivational wall. A boy what a wall it was. It was my first time fully experiencing what it felt like to procrastinate all week and cram a four-page essay into one night. I can hear the laughter now. One of my professors pretty much put it into perspective. Since it's halfway through the semester, and we just got done with a gruelling week of Midterms, everyone is really tired and in desperate need of a vacation. Isn't that the truth.

For the most part, after having Midterms and my Inititation into KKG, my life finally feels like it's quieted down and I have entered into the routine of college. Just in time to schedule new classes. I met with my art advisor last week, and sometime in the next two years I apparently need to take a figure drawing class. For those of you who do not know me, or know what a figure drawing class is, this is quite a shocker.

#1: a figure drawing class is when you draw a real-live person in their birthday suit, and no there is no confetti or birthday cake.

#2: just think of me in this setting and i'm sure you're going to get your laugh in for the day...

I swear this will be like something out of Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2, and i usually don't blush, but i'm fairly positive my face turned a nice shade of crimson.

On a spiritual note, be praying for me, the last few weeks have been especially challenging getting any sort of quiet time, and my soul is definitely suffering from it. Although the other day i was on a walk through the admin lawn, and I happened to look up into the beautiful burnt orange, yellow canopy above me to see the natural stained-sky with the warm sunlight shining behind it, and i'm positive that I got a glimpse of heaven, because my soul leaped for joy. I felt so carefree in that moment, which is saying something, because I have had only a few moments in my life these last few months where I have had the blessing of feeling that way. No complaining, just dealing with young-adulthood.

Anyways, this last week has been pretty lax, meaning "relaxed" (in order to be cool in college you have to learn to abbreviate well). And there's really nothing else to report! I honestly do not know when my next post will be, but i'll try for next week... there's really no promises though haha. I hope all of your lives are going great, and thank you so much for reading, it means so much to me to know that people care this much about my life!

Keep Calm, and rest :)

In Christ,
~Alyse :)

Lost

As a precursor to this entry, please read Luke 15:8-10

...supposing you just did... that is what this post will mostly be about this week!

The reason I chose that is because literally the day after i made my last blog post half of my junk on my shelf fell behind the bed/wall space, or a.k.a. the "no man's land". This was the, shall we say... a cherry on top? (or crescendo?) to so many other things falling behind there. I had been putting off rescuing all of those lost knick-knacks for weeks, but finally it was imperative that i rescued them from the abyss of the dirty, dusty prison in which they had fallen. So, much like the woman in Luke 15:8-10 I rescued a mirror (which broke, *sad face), a bobble-head turtle, and something else... now it's been a few weeks, give me a break. So, in all actuality they weren't items that were detrimental to my existence, but it is one of my quirks to not leave things behind or lost... even if they're inanimate objects. Seriously, when I was little it was ten times worse, but even today a green pepper fell off of a shelf at Wal-Mart and i wanted to rescue it. I think this is a result of movies/shows like Toy Story or The Brave Little Toaster, they gave life to stuff that doesn't talk! Whatever... this isn't what this post is about...

To get to the "No-Man's-Land" that all of my stuff fell into, i had to move my dresser with all sorts of other junk in it, and being American, there's some substantial stuff in it. If you're at all familiar with the amount of upper body strength that i possess, you would be greatly impressed to hear that I actually moved this HUGE dresser out of the way to get my knick-knacks who were being held ransom by the abyss behind the bed/against the wall/to the right of my dresser... anyway... much like the woman n Luke who was actually searching high and low throughout her house for something that was worth more than my helpless knick-knacks, I pursued my inanimate objects with vigor and in the process, rearranged my second shelf so things would not be so easily lost in that horrible area behind/beside/between the wall/bed/dresser.

...and, everyone, that's what today's post is about...

What are we doing with our lives? What are we pursuing? We may not have stone idols to commit adultery on God with, but we have something almost more sinister. Our idols are what consume most of our time. They're hiding under the thin veneer of our happy little lives. What are you devoting your time to? What am I devoting my time to? To be honest... i don't even know half the time, which is still probably the same thing. Scratch that, it is. if we're still riding the "Honesty Train" most of the time I'm thinking of what I need to do next, and am never present. All the while there's a banner in my head that reads: "Welcome to college and being an adult, Alyse" with a welcoming committee shaking my hand, saying "so glad to have you here, so glad..." 

--right about now is when i'd insert one of those adolescent stars with the word "sigh" after it, but that's just so juvenile, but i'm so far from that now... 

I've decided that when all is said and done, and i've come to the end of my physical life, I want to be satisfied with everything I have done in my life. I don't care if I make mistakes**, I just want to say I put my all and everything into all and everything that God had for me in this life. I want to be used greatly by God in all of his works everywhere I am, and I want to live my life knowing the people I come in contact with. Darn it, i'm going to LIVE! I'm going to double and triple God's investment in my life, even though i'm the worst person with finances, and struggle with self-control. God will use that to refine me in the fire. God, bring it on, I want to be all you've created me to be, mold me so when you look at me you will say "Well done my good and faithful student". 

Recently, a man I didn't know that well passed. He was a respected Police Man in the Northern Idaho area. It saddens me I didn't get the opportunity to know him better, but no matter, because the people that he touched have also touched my life. He was a man I looked to as a brother in Christ and it comforts me that one day I know i'll get to see him someday in heaven, and have the rest of eternity. I am fairly certain God has told him that beautiful phrase: "Well done, my good and faithful servant." (Luke 19:17). R.I.P. Jonathan Mathew Franco, you've affected this area more than you realized. 

God is good. God is great. God is eternal. There is nothing in all creation that could separate us from Him, or His love. God is God.

Thanks for reading, I hope it was an encouragement to you, and never forget the strength of the One who we serve.

In Him,

Alyse Emily Neal

**What I mean is: I am not going to go through life living the 'morning after' gospel, messing up and then asking God's forgiveness, what I mean is I'm going to live wholeheartedly with what God has for me, abiding in his voice, and meditating in his perfections

Here's some pictures for thought:

Plastic Red Cups (or blue, whichever)

So, it has been made apparent to me that red plastic dixie cups are the staple of all things related to College Parties...
Correction: i've known this for a while, but either way i'm putting it in this new post. This staple is so apparent that in various job trainings I have had, they highly suggest that you remove any pictures of you on social websites that have you with those shiny Red Cups (or blue cups).

Food for thought:

if Red Cups (also blue cups) are such a strong symbol that for hiring purposes you have to remove pictures of yourself with them from social media, can you apply that to your life? i.e. what do YOU stand for? Do you even want to stand for anything? It is funny to me that some people read articles that have titles like: "what you can tell from a person's shoes...." well, of course you can tell what a person is like by their shoes, they picked them out? Are you picking up what i'm putting down?

Well, this last week has certainly been interesting to say the least. I experienced my first mixer at Delta Tau Delta (spelling? Sorry boys!), and i must say it was very classy. And no, I did not have any wine... just to reassure those of you who doubt my extremely iron-clad will. They were kind enough to provide sparkling cider for those of us who did not want to drink. Once again, very classy :)

Labor Day weekend was a very fantastic rest from all of the business of the first two weeks of school. I believe in my last post i expressed some worries over financial issues, but as always God has totally provided means for me to stay at Kappa Kappa Gamma, and has showed me some creative ways (from the advice of several of my extremely beautiful and wonderful Kappa sisters) to manage my time as far as homework goes. Sticky notes are a friend when space in your planner is full, AND using your online resources such as CALENDARS (who knew right?) which your teacher suggested the first day, and making an intelligible list of your classes so you can check them off is quite a good idea :)

This last week has not gone exactly how I would have wanted it to go, however. I have had absolutely no time to journal or read my bible. Even now a memory of my mom saying: "you make time for the things that are important to you"... *sigh*  it seams that mothers are always right. Well, either way i'm going to make time, because tomorrow, Friday, I am going to run away from Kappa for an hour or two and seclude myself somewhere and MAKE time for some good 'ol bible reading. Whew! Now let's see how it works out...

The hardest thing so far in my college experience (at least this week) is definitely time management. And, I may have already said that in my last post, but hey, this is definitely not a high-end blog, and I also highly doubt that it will blow up like, oh, say, a certain cooking blog having to do with Julia Child? Whatever, I'd have to put so much into this thing, and i'm a full-time student! Okay, so again "you make time for the things you want", well then, my priorities are elsewhere... nice execution of time management ay?

Well, that concludes this week's entry. I'm also not promising one will be here next week, but keep your eyes open on facebook for links, because that is usually when I have made a new entry. Thank you all for your prayers, and keep them up! I think the biggest thing is discernment and wisdom with my time and where I put my attention. Love you all! And share this with anyone you feel would need any kind of encouragement!


Some verses to check out that are good for praise to God:
Psalm 50:1-6
Psalm 65
(basically any psalms)

For some awe-inspiring ones:
Psalm 91:14-16
Job 38 (extremely humbling)

And just a good one that we did in service for Real Life Post Falls:
Acts 26

*basically, there's a whole lot more where this came from, and if you're really interested, God's the one behind it all, and I or definitely someone in your life is probably aching to talk with you about Him. I hope that this was encouraging to you, and I pray that that is what it would be to my fellow brothers and sisters, as well as a sort of catalyst for change.

In Him who is my life and breath,
~Alyse :)

First week... done

And so ends my first week of my College Adventure. I experienced my first frat party, and sorry... nothing too super cool, no dance floor so... there was nowhere I could bust a move, which was really depressing. I was expecting to draw guys over by my awesome dance moves, but to no avail. Sigma Chi is really spread out so, maybe they should take that into consideration? I had been practicing for so long, *sigh, if I only had a comment card.... that was definitely an example of sarcasm.

First of all I am absolutely in love with all of my art classes. My Art 111 class is immediately after my Math 108 class (yes, math isn't my forte, but that's why God made other people better at math...), and it is seriously such a release. No joke, this Thursday our assignment was to sit outside and draw... BEST! I also have to do a sketch a day, which I will promptly do after I am finished with this entry. Mostly this week was scrambling to figure out how i'm going to pay for sorority fees and art supplies and books, but God works things out for good, because a few other girls offered to share their books with me at half, so at least they're cheaper. Also a wonderful older sister said she would let me borrow any and almost all of her art supplies, so life is good!

What seems to be the coolest aspect of college for me is that there is always someone doing something. I get asked almost all the time if I want to go to a movie, get some pizza, or swing dancing at Theta Chi (single-handedly the BEST fraternity on campus). Of course I had to say no to quite a few things, which is strangely quite freeing.Also, I can go downtown whenever I want (ten minute walk), and the walking actually isn't too bad! And maybe the most confusing thing is not finding where my classes are, but figuring out Blackboard, the evil online returner-inner thingy that enjoys eluding me to my assignments and purpose in life. I did not realize how technologically illiterate I was until I came to college. I guess the best plus is that I don't have to use a lot of paper and printer ink. Although I have a sweet printer that scans, prints, and copies papers, gotta save money.

Since I have been down here I have experienced the wonderful Resonate church, and Cru (formerly known as Campus Crusade for Christ). Both are very encouraging and I can assure you all that I am getting connected. Last night was actually my first night, and it was bliss! lots of cool people who have been through life and sweet events to participate in.

For those of you who are wondering how in the world you live in a house with eighty other girls, it's not as horrible as it sounds. Which is funny for me, because I have never lived in a house with any girls for that matter (besides me ma), and i'm absolutely loving it! Also, we're not all together at the same time... I think I would definitely lose my mind if that was the case. The closet space was not as much of a problem as I thought it was going to be either. I ended up getting rid of a lot of clothes, so if you see something around town that looks like I would have worn it and the girl wearing it says she got it from Plato's Closet or Beau Monde Exchange, it's probably true.

Moscow is so cool, because everything is seriously a ten (maybe 15) minute walk away, but it feels big enough to where you don't and mostly won't know everyone. I feel that my next few years will be very blessed and quite an adventure.

For those of you who are praying for me, thank you so much, it is greatly appreciated and I feel so blessed to have people like you in my life.

Well, I guess that concludes this entry for August 26th, looking forward to a fun weekend in the great Moscow area with great friends, and inexpensive ideas to hang out... I am a college student after all!
~Alyse :)

Owls, Keys, and Fleur de Lis...

So, this new chapter of my life is shaping up nicely so far, however; it is such a different atmosphere. All summer  God was definitely preparing me to test my mettle, asking if what I loved and believed in was actually what I loved and believed in. The past few days, that test has been as strong as ever, and i'll have you know that i'm sticking to my guns, not just my perfectly toned and nicely shaped biceps, but, oh... you catch my drift, yeah?

Anyways, this is me on Bid Day at my new home Kappa Kappa Gamma with three ladies I greatly esteem...

They are perhaps some of the most BEA-utiful ladies you will ever meet inside and out, and definitely make living in the house SO much fun. Unfortunately I do not have more pictures than this, but fear not! There will be more!

To close this entry (i know, small one today, but just wait) I would like to "assign" some homework. Really just check it out, Romans 12:2. I feel like i'll be living by this verse this next year.

Thank you so much for reading! Feel free to post a comment!

Goodbye ya'll! I'll be back soon, promise.

So, it is the night before I leave. I am not sure if it is a defense mechanism or not, but I keep on pushing away the thought that I am closing a chapter in my life. For the past ten or so years (we moved here Labor Day of 2001) I have been going to school. While other friends and family have graduated and moved on before me, I realize that I am taking a large step into independence and life. A life of my own. Full of my own choices, decisions, realizations, mistakes, triumphs (with God's help), sorrows, blessings, and ultimately; growth. I am sort of scared, but like i said, instinctively I am choosing not to think about it, because I feel like some part of my is going to cling to my door jam crying: "MOMMY NO! PLEASE ANYTHING BUT COLLEGE!"

...however...

Perhaps the greatest step towards being who God's created you to be is TRUST. Huh, now there's a novel idea... the very virtue that God has wished for us since creation is what is necessary to make the toughest and wisest decisions {check out Proverbs 8). Faith is along the same lines of course, and if you're wondering what "Faith" is exactly, check out Hebrews 11:1, and after that check out the rest of the chapter, and just keep going, and once you brave the horror-story known as Revelation, start at the beginning I guess :) Find someone who you can discuss questions with, and importantly let me know and i'll try to pray for you. Or let believers around you know and they can support you as well, because my friend it is a Constant Battle. Ephesians (another sweet book in the New Testament) describes this battle, and i encourage you to check that out as well, specifically Ephesians 6:12.

It is definitely my hope and prayer that with this blog that I can truly honor and glorify God. I also pray that i say what He wants me to say, and if you want to join in, I would definitely appreciate it. I realize that there are hundreds of other people doing the same thing, and i cannot promise how consistent this blog will be once school gets rolling, but I will definitely try, and until then enjoy this nice long run-on sentence, and I hope that I at least made you smile today :)

~Alyse

p.s. enjoy these photos that give me inspiration!

The Countdown

So, only a few more days until i brave the ferocity of rush week at the University of Idaho. That was a joke, i'm actually anticipating it to be a ton of fun. Anyways, if you're looking for a magnificent work of grammatical correctedness within each of my postings, i can assure you there will be no such thing, and i gather you have gathered that evidence yourself from the last few lines.

Packing is never fun, and i actually really do not enjoy it at all. I am one of those people who needs a list when shoving my items into those magnificent cardboard boxes, and no such list has been given to me. Also, this is not a weekend sleepover either. I'm packing for the year (or at least semester) and being the last sibling of three I do feel a sense that i am abandoning my family (okay an hour and a half away is not necessarily abandonment).

The thrill of being out on my own is eclipsing any sort of nervousness i have right now. I'm sure once that first week has passed it will hit me, and the story will be a little different, but right now... LET'S GO!! So many things to take care of however.

I think my biggest mindset is preparing my spiritual body armor right now. Though it's hard when you've been so busy, but that's really never an excuse with God. He made time for me, the least i can do is set aside some for him, yeah? Welp, that being said i am going to use this time to get to know the creator a little bit.

Thank you for reading! I'll be posting more soon :)