It Finally Came!

So I have a friend going on a missions trip through her college and I wanted to support her. The college group was raising their support through a coffee organization, which I thought was pretty cool and unique so I ordered two different kinds Valentine Blend, and Good Night Moon. Yesterday, my coffee finally came in and the smell was amazing! But I pulled my self-control out of me and waited till today to drink it. It was SO worth it! The sweetest moment of the whole day was when I made up a batch of the Valentine Blend and my family decided that it would be awesome of them to help me drink all the coffee. As I sat down at the table with my coffee cup brimming full of that amazing dark drink and began to study for my Sociology test, my two younger brothers decided to join me at the table. One having his colors and color-by-number and the other having has his word search they sat down to do with their "work" and began to drink their coffee. It was so cute. I love those little moments in life that turn out to be the sweetest moments. Don't take for granted any moment of the day, because you never know how you might be blessed through even the smallest of things.
 
~Laura Arminta

When the Opportunities Come, Grab Them!

   Two months before October I bought tickets to New York to go to a dear friends wedding. I talked my other friend Joni to come with me, so that after the wedding we could explore New York together. You only get about one chance to do this. =) It was really God opening the door. I would have never thought that I could go out there. As fun as the idea was, there was no way I could be setting money aside for a trip like that. So, He sent a tax refund. =) He has a funny sense of humor. The refund was enough to pay for a round trip plane ticket and some spending cash. He also provided a way for Joni to come too. I was pretty pumped about this. I had met Joni and Kate-the young lady getting married-on a misson trip to Chiapas, Mexico.



 

We had not seen each other since then and we were excited to once again see each other face-to-face. Joni's flight was to arrive twenty minutes after me....so that meant I would get to see Katie first. haha. But God had other plans. Joni's flight was uneventful but, mine on the other hand was quite adventurous. I tend to run into adventure without even trying. I flew out to JFK without a single problem, I ran to my next flight and boarded it right as they were given the call to all last minute passengers. Of course then, I would have a seat way in the back and so I "strolled" through the tiny aisle till I came to my window seat. My first thought when I sat down was, "Alright, I made it! Better call home and let them know." and my second thought was, "I'm still going to beat Joni to Buffalo!"

    At about 8:00 PM the plane began to back out as I settled into the seat, I was feeling pretty confident that this flight would be a breeze. But alas, it was not to be. Why should it be? Life would be so boring if there were not a few bumps in the road, a few "not going to go your way" moments. The plane took a long time getting to the "road" that leads to the runway and then it just sat there waiting for it's turn to get cleared for take-off. I guess New York City had had a storm just before I flew in and so some other flights had been delayed causing a slight traffic jam. We sat in that lovely airplane for an hour waiting to get cleared. People began to complain, I still have not figured out how that helped them. I just realized that I was beginning to live the stories I had read of people sitting in an airplane for a few hours. How cool is that?! I can now relate. =P

I taught this kid how to pose for crazy pics.

      9:00 PM came, the pilot told us over the intercom that we were going to have to return to the gate--at those words my heart did do a little nose dive--but we were going to fuel up and change flight attendants. You could hear all the passengers hearts sink by the way they took the news. I took the opportunity of fueling to talk a little bit to the girl next to me. She was from the Philippines and was on her way to see her boyfriend from Canada. I thought that was pretty cool. We talked about how they met, phones, and a few other random things. One of the coolest things in life is to meet new people. I love it! So finally at 10:00 PM, two hours later than planned we took-off.

My first thought, "I'm feeling tired."
 
My second thought, "Hey now, this is cool. The little pillow cushions on the chair bend. I wonder if it was to keep the other guys head from falling over the line into the other persons personal bubble. The guy who thought this up was a genius."

My third thought, "Sad day, Joni will beat me to Buffalo."

      The rest of the flight was uneventful and I met up with everyone at the airport. It was so amazing to catch up. It was like we had never been apart, we "just picked up where we left off" ~Joni. The wedding was beautiful, Katie's family was awesome and I loved getting to know them.

 

The night before the wedding Joni, Katie's soon-to-be sister-in-law Megan, and I could not sleep so we watched "The Little Princess" on Joni's phone, and then Megan and I talked about everything under then sun from eleven o'clock at night to two o'clock the next morning. Joni and I got to explore the town a little bit on Sunday and see the beautiful fall foliage even though it was drizzling out.

On Monday we went to go see the Niagara Falls. Never in my entire life did I ever think that I would see the Falls. EVER!

 

    We also walked into Canada by going over the Rainbow Bridge. We thought that the fact that we walked into Canada was one of coolness. haha. We walked through some of the Clifton Hills, a massive sized amusement park along the street. I have never seen that many people in one place. There were people everywhere! I had a Tim Hortons mocha over there as well and I could not figure out how to get the tab open on the coffee lid. That goes to show you how often I buy coffee. =P It was worth the trouble though.

Joni's boyfriend. =)

Figuring out the coffee tab.

Joni and I

      On Tuesday, Joni and Letchworth State Park. "The Mini Grand Canyon of the East." We got to see the most beautiful, scenic views ever. New York is  like an artist's palate. Sprays of red, orange, and gold were splashed across the tree leaves.

 

The result is breathtaking beauty. It was a time that I will never forget. A time of memories, moments of awe, and a time of learning to take every moment and enjoy it. =)

         ~Laura Arminta