6-Week Round Up: In Which I Recommend Grafitti Alley, Acia Bowls, and Other Important Things

I’m back in Boston after a relaxing and rejuvenating winter vacation at home with my family. Vacation gave me time to think, to talk a lot, to re-prioritize after the rush of studies when I sorta lost who I was and why I ever came to Boston in the first place. I didn’t think I wanted to come back, when I was still in Wisconsin. “Next year?” I thought. “Never.”

But now that I’m here, I’m glad to be back. I love my classes, am excited about everything I’ll be studying this semester. It’s just that change is hard for the best and youngest of us, and for the awkward and oldest of us, change is harder.

Here are a few things I’ve enjoyed over the past six weeks.

A Book:

Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand. I listened to this on audio book with my siblings when we drove to Indiana to visit my Grandma over winter break. The story features Louis Zamperini, an Olympic runner of great promise who was first lost at sea and then imprisoned in a Japanese POW camp during World War II. His experiences in the camp were so graphic, demeaning, and cruel, my siblings turned off the CD and refused to listen any more. I listened to the rest of it later and was rewarded with one of the most powerful stories of redemption I have ever heard. I went away pierced to my soul with a new understanding of God’s power to heal and to restore what is broken. Any God who can help a man to forgive someone who’s hurt him that much is a God worth serving, I thought. The grudges I hold over tiny matters looks trivial in comparison.

For those of you who would like to share the story with young people, check out the young adult version, also by Laura Hillenbrand. Although I have not read the young adult version myself, according to its 5-star Amazon reviews, it removes the most graphically violent scenes and simplifies some of the language while still telling a powerful and complex story. According to reviewers, adults would enjoy this version, too. Ten-year-old Kaitlyn, my former school student, has listened to it on audio and tells me she loves it.

A Blog Post: 

Luci Martin, from Three Green Doors, has long been one of my favorite bloggers. Recently, in a post titled “Well Hello There,” she wrote about her struggle with depression. “When fall came the darkness returned,” she writes. “It wasn’t just the shortening days. It was deeper and darker than anything I’d experienced. Depression feels so selfish and narcissistic. What do I say when people ask, ‘How are you?’ Do they want to know that I’m struggling again?” If this has been your experience, or even if it hasn’t, this post is well worth reading. You will relate.

A Daily Planner: 

For those of us who think like overachievers but struggle to keep our heads on straight, the Full Focus Planner by Michael Hyatt is a gold-quality tool. It enables me to easily outline my days much more comprehensively than any planner I have owned before. But I find its greatest value in the way it helps me to prioritize and think through what—of everything I could be doing—I should be doing. Mr. Hyatt, who designed the planner for his own use, believes the relational and spiritual parts of life are as fully important as the accomplishment parts, and the design of his planner reflects that belief. To reap the planner’s full benefits, be sure to watch his tutorials on how to use it. Or better yet, read his book Your Best Year Ever: A 5-Step Plan for Achieving Your Most Important Goals. Keep in mind that the planner’s layout applies more directly to business people than say, a stay-at-home mom; but many of its features could be useful to anyone. Warning: It is pricey for a planner. The two I’ve used so far have been gifts, and I’m not at all sure I will invest in another one. The thinking and organizational skills I’ve gained, though, I will carry into other times and other planners.

Acia Bowls: 

My friend Jayden came to Boston with me when I returned after winter vacation and stayed to hit up the Hop-on Hop-off Trolley Tour and all of Boston’s finest Goodwills. She tells me the trendiest food on social media lately is the acia bowl (pronounced ah-sigh-ee, just in case you aren’t up on the trends like I’m not up on the trends). It is a frozen acia berry smoothie covered in yummy things like fresh fruits, cacao, and coconut. We each tried one at Life Alive Organic Cafe on Commonwealth Avenue and found it delicious.

Charley of the Month: The photo at the top shows Charley and Jayden and me in Graffiti Alley, Cambridge. A friend of mine tells me we could see the same at any railroad station…but I disagree. Graffiti Alley is better.

For examples of even more amazing city graffiti, check out these links:

• The World’s Best Cities for Street Art
• Best Places to Find Street Art in NYC
• Ten Street Artists You Should Roam the World For
• 10 Places Where Graffiti Is Legal
• 16 Must-See Examples of Chicago Street Art

Graffiti is just cool, idk.