Things I Learned This Month | May 2018

It's time to wrap up the month of May with a list of some of the things I learned this month!

1. I really, really love the UK. 
Granted, I knew this already, but getting to spend Memorial Day weekend in London and Oxford reminded me how much of an Anglophile I really am. I was so happy to be back that I jumped up and down. All weekend.

2. It is possible to die as a direct result of too much studying.
I spent a day showing my parents around Oxford, and we took a tour of the Bodleian Library. Which was so much fun, since I spent tons of time studying there but had never taken a tour. Evidently, fire has never been allowed in the library. Understandable. But this means that until the invention of electricity, there was no heat in the building. Which meant that if it was freezing outside, it was freezing inside. At least two students in the history of the library died of hypothermia.

3. In spite of this fact, I really miss studying.
Evidence of my eccentricity: while I proctored a test earlier this month, I found myself reminiscing fondly over my favorite exams in college. Yes, I had favorite exams. Dr. Bieber's, to be precise. Missing exams is a surefire indicator that I'm a student at the core. Whether I actually pursue further schooling or just do independent work, I want to be learning for the rest of my life.

4. Pea cake with lemon buttercream icing is surprisingly good.
I saw this in the Victoria and Albert Museum cafe when we were in London. Since it is an unalterable family tradition to get tea and scones in the V&A (because they are hands down the best scones in England), I didn't get the pea & lemon cake, but I made a mental note to try it at home. The day after getting back, I did, and it's surprisingly yummy. (I used this recipe, if you're interested. The icing was too sweet, but that's tweakable.)

5. I prefer the 1984 NIV Study Bible to the ESV Study Bible. 
The notes in both are good, but the NIV Study Bible has way more cross references, which I find really helpful.

6. Third Culture Kids: Growing Up Among Worlds, is just what I needed to be reading at this point in life. 
I'm reasonably familiar with the TCK experience, being one myself. I also think that I'm a reasonably well-adjusted TCK. That said, this book has been hugely cathartic as I realize that many of the things I think about and deal with on a daily basis are common to third culture kids throughout the world. For example, the feeling of being as at home in an airport as anywhere else in the world. Or wrestling with how to answer the question, "Where are you from?" and realizing that this is a different question than "Where's home?" Or having very strong loyalty to a sponsoring organization (for me, the army) even after you're no longer living with the parents who are actually members of the organization. I'm going to be thinking about this book for a long time.

7. My father is the baby whisperer. 
I'd heard legends, but never seen him in action. My parents and I watched a 6-month-old for an evening, and Dad was amazing. Mom and I enjoyed holding the baby, feeding the baby, and playing with the baby, but the instant she started fussing we were so out of our league and Dad took over. Within moments she would be chuckling and giggling. Every. Single. Time. Whatever that gift is, it's innate, not learned, and I don't have it. I can keep a baby safe, but I definitely can't guarantee a happy baby. I'm in awe.