melikalikimaka

(all of the following pictures were taken in the last 2 weeks with my new camera-phone!)


whats up party people? i'm just chillin in memphis this week doing some rite aid work stuff... i'm really enjoying it to tell you the truth... and i really enjoyed that week and a half in MJ as well! I'm looking forward to the last few days in May and the month of June- just to give you guys a heads up, here's what summer looks like:

Back to MJ saturday or sunday the 26th/27th (if i get off before 10pm, i'm driving home)- then knoxville for memorial day (sorry i didnt make it up last week gma and gpa!!)

The june rotation starts in nashville, and then that first weekend (june 8th-10th) i'll be going on the state-side church mission trip, and thats always a blast

the NEXT weekend, Aryan and I are considering taking a trip to washington DC for the weekend to 1) visit brent 2) see the opening DCI show (complete with bluecoats action) and 3) go on an awesome road-trip... it'll be a rough trip, but i'm up for it- and i'm really interested in making it happen, BUT, i dont think i can do it alone so it will kinda depend if i have someone with me or not (looking at you here, Aryan)

and then on friday the 29th, the burka family (immediate) is packing up and going to Maryland for about 80-90 miles of hiking spread over 5 days (odds are we'll end up doing 100, honestly...) i'm excited about getting back out there... i've been walking 3-4 miles every other day and doing the elliptical on the days i work out, its been a great leg work out and i think i can do it- it feels really good to say that- I'm not gonna just sit around feeling sorry for myself because my leg hurts (i'd say less than ever, but its still something i have to struggle with some)... honestly- i can sleep through the night and i have been for several months now and that's made ALL the difference- i've got to tell you- for about a year there i couldnt sleep right, and thats hard to explain... we've all had days, maybe even a week or two where illness or stress have prevented us from resting well, but i went for over a year without sleeping through the night missing anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour and a half every...single... night... wow- just looking back on that... it was a bad time for me- not something i'd like to repeat... you know- the pain, and the worrying about what would become of me, and worrying about what changes were happening to my body just made me want to hide in my room MORE- and that made everything even worse... it really all started when i got out and started swimming... it didnt work in that the pain was still there-- even worse on days i swam-- and i didnt lose any weight... but it was a mental thing- i was OUT working on it- and after 6 months i switched over to the current regimen which i've just been really happy with... its great to have my pants fit a little better, and to hear people ask me if i've lost weight... to watch the progress with the weights and feel it with my arms... to really sweat again- and i've been back out playing frisbee again... yeah i'm not really "better", but i've made some progress and i've TAKEN BACK some of those things that had eluded me... something as simple as playing frisbee, or getting out and walking 4 miles without thinking about it- sleeping through the night... THATS what i'm really happy about...

there's a point for each of us when we face adversity where we have to draw a line in the sand... we've got to say to ourselves "thats it! i'm not backing up any more. i'm going to fight back with everything i've got, and no matter what, i'm not going to yield any more to this- I can beat this"- and i dont know when that point was for me... it wasnt really a specific moment in time like you think it might have been by the way i describe it- it was more of a thing where i looked back and noticed that i had already made the decision.



i've got 2 people i really think of when i look back over these last 2 years with this leg/health thing... Chun and Aryan... man... you guys really stuck with me and supported me every time i got down about my leg. There were so many times that i was a downer, or just felt like garbage for lots of leg-related reasons... it was every single day- multiple times a day... and you guys just listened and told me it was gonna be ok and offered any kind of help you could... and i really remember that. Sincerity cannot be faked- it always shows through and you two sincerely cared and were sympathetic to what i was going through every single time- and thats real. I remember Aryan, how you were never afraid to say what was best for me- even if it wasnt easy- its being able to say the hard things that separates 'friends' from 'good friends'-- and thanks for showing me that taco bell isnt really good just because its cheap...! I remember when Chun was trying to offer suggestions and said i should do yoga (and yes- i know many others have suggested this), but it wasnt the suggestion that really meant something- it was that when i said "well i'm kinda scared to go, i'd probably be the only guy in there" and he told me without missing a beat "i'll go with you, man, it'll be fine"... and it just hit me... There is so much fluff in the world- there are so many fake, scripted, knee-jerk things we do every day in our relationships, friendships, conversations- the real stuff stands out... i hope that someday i can pay that support back to someone in some way- sometimes i just need to shut up and listen instead of trying to solve everything. Thanks guys!


(me at work-- i'm behind the other guy)