say goodnight, not goodbye

well, it has been an interesting week....probably the most news-worthy event is that david and I have called it quits....yep, we ended our 2-week grade 8 relationship...sigh....but the hilarious thing is, it was the best break-up in the history of break-ups...so sit right back and i'll tell you the tale....and i CHALLENGE any of you out there to top this with a better break-up story...

so the last two weeks were very fun, david and i got along great; we've always had a lot of chemistry and we laugh constantly - he really is one of the funnest people i've met this year....but as things went on, i think we both started to realize that the timing was really bad....we both have other "issues" that we are attempting to sort out in our lives and we started to feel like things were moving way too quickly....it just started to feel...unnatural....so david went on a Navigators retreat this past weekend, and i had my own mini-retreat here in Kingston - mostly consisting of me getting super organized and spending a lot of time praying about my priorities and what type of person i want to be - mainly principled, and acting on these principles, focused, disciplined, etc....as I prayed i realized that one of the most important things i know i need to be right now is independent....learning to be okay on my own, and not needing people so much to define me....especially with me travelling next year on my own (i'm thinking now of teaching ESL in taiwan or dubai, UAE), i need to get used to being ok with just being with me....

so okay this is where it starts to get funny....so david gets back from his retreat and i get a rushed email from him on monday basically saying, "we need to talk. stop by after class. -me." so knowing that nothing good could possibly come of that, i email him back saying, "ha....i know what's coming and i agree. see you shortly." So nervously i skip the rest of class and walk to his house...he opens the door and i'm like, "hey! so....ok let's just get this over with....let's make this the FUNNEST breakup ever!" and david, being just as adventurous and silly as me, is all game...so we download chantal kreviazuk's "say goodnight, not goodbye" and make it our breakup song....we listen to it while mentally enjoying a slideshow of the last two week's memories together (ah...longboarding, chopping oinions, taking soren out for breakfast).. then we enjoy a "grade 8 akward dance" to end our grade 8 relationship.... then we do "classic breakup lines"...."david, its not you, its me" and "jen, its not me, its you...and you're weird!"....and "david, you're a wonderful person, but, i think i need something deeper in life right now."....haha it was funny...

so THEN, we talk for real about why it just doesn't feel right, and yadda, yadda, yadda, we're done....so then we decide to take pictures of the 10 Stages of Getting Over a Breakup....being together, conflict, forgive but not forget, blameshifting, anger, sorrow, bitterness, thoughtfulness, acceptance, and friends .....so we took pictures of us in all these stages (as soon as i figure out how i will upload them), and it was hilarious....so then we finally say goodbye, and i'm on my merry way...and then as i'm walking away, he's looking at me and we run towards each other in an embrace, faking regret and saying, LOUDLY, "dear! i take it all back! i change my mind! i love you, i NEED you!!!" and then he stops and says, seriously, "k, so i'll see you tommorrow?" and i'm like, "yep, sounds good!" and then we part, laughing.....ahhh, i love that kid, and i'm sooooo excited to be his friend....:)

alright, so if any of you have any better breakup stories, i CHALLENGE you to beat this one....cuz i think it was the best one in the history of ever.....!

More to come on the more serious things that have been floating through my head....cuz there have been lots- no really!....i.e. my struggles with mixing faith and global politics, teaching ESL in an oil country, thinking about the possibility of being a pastor (eek! but i'm a WOMAN!), reflecting on the Holocaust Industry (a book by Norman Finkelstein which argues that the Holocaust is being exploited by some Jewish organizations in order to recieve finacial compensation and justify Israeli war crimes-whoa -its heavy stuff), thinking Christianly about technology and such....wow...stay tuned...!

-Jen