Back to Denver

Being back in Denver has brought a mix of emotions. It's been good seeing old friends and being back in a beautiful place where people ride their bikes often and read good books and eat at fun places. After being in Denver for two years, I have realized that some of my friendships here are the real thing. They are loyal and have become my family away from home. I found out the day I returned to Denver that a dear friend, mentor, woman I admire, has a brain tumor. A group of us went over to her and husband's house that night. We cried together and we laughed together. This is the church. It's about going through things together. It's about suffering with people and taking on their pain. It's about unconditional love. As hard as that night was, it was also so good to be with those people. It felt right. It felt like family.
Unfortunately, I was quick to get back into my busy lifestyle once returning to Denver with working during my days and having plans every night. Always running from one thing to the next. My roommate last night told me I have to learn to say "no." The hard thing is I want to have all these plans. I thrive when I'm around people. If I learned anything from my time in Uganda.. it was the exact opposite. The slow pace of life and laid back schedule suited me well, but it also challenged me in hard ways to really reflect and think about the situation there. That time in thought lead to a lot of frustration, emotion, and anxiety.
So jumping back into life I think brought on some illness. I developed a fever last night and woke up with one today. I can't remember the last time I had a fever, and it's a symptom of Malaria.. so naturally, I was a little freaked out. I looked up symptoms of Malaria online.. sure enough my symptoms matched! I went to the urgent care center at Denver Health first thing this morning.. and after 6hours, they determined I had the flu. Malaria is unlikely, but they need to do more tests tomorrow. So the result of me having the flu means staying home from work, canceling my plans, and resting. God does have a sense of humor.. doesn't He?