why/how am I on the Denny's email list

I’m writing this post alone in a cafe at the airport in Denver, CO before I call the shuttle service to take me to my hotel so I can go to a business casual conference for Jesus. I feel afraid. This was after aggressively sweating on the flight over. But like I wasn't hot. Very temperate climate in that plane. Just unexplained excessive underarm sweat. Also I think there's fingernails in my turkey wrap. On the plus side the fingernail wrap came with a surprise cookie. 

Remember the senior project I spent 50% of my last post complaining about? GUESS WHAT I COMPLETED IT YESTERDAY. After weeks of being in the self-imposed senior project prison, I turned in the final copy and I felt like an elephant got up from sitting on my face. AND I think I may have even tricked my advisor into thinking it’s good. So if anyone is looking for a free woman hmu.

OK SERIOUSLY WHAT IS SO CRUNCHY IN THIS TURKEY WRAP. THERE SHOULD NOT BE CRUNCHIES IN HERE. Lord, hear my cry. 

My worst fear is starting to come true. I got my first taste of feeling like I'm losing my Spanish. This is actually my worst fear and I cannot let this go on. BECAUSE IF I LOSE IT I CAN'T SPEAK TO MY CHILEANS ANYMORE WHICH IS ACTUALLY THE WORST THING I CAN IMAGINE. help help help. But don't worry because classic God saw my sadness and 3 days later sent an Argentinian man to the rescue. I went camping with my family in Yosemite and God dropped a solo traveling man named Roberto on a motorcycle with nowhere to sleep at our campsite. I got to speak Spanish with him all night and regained a small amount of my confidence back and weep over how beautiful his accent was. Moments like those is when I realize that sometimes God does stuff just because he knows we would love it. Like what are the chances of that. Seriously. And now that I have a life again (post senior project) I'll be able to start putting my Spanish to use again. YO CHUY EXPECT A PHONE CALL SOON.

A couple weekends ago Johnny May took all the current Young Life team leaders and future team leaders to an overnight at a pal's winery down south. We ate together and laughed and affirmed each other and cried a lot. Like if anyone is in the search for ABSOLUTELY WONDERFUL PEOPLE INSIDE AND OUT there's a hot market in San Luis Obispo.

This past weekend was my everything. My Chilean homestay mom, Marjo, was in San Diego for work so after SHE GOT TO COME STAY WITH MY FAMILY AND SEE MY WORLD. And I brought one of my best pals Julia to come see it too. I took them to all the classic San Clemente spots and then I strapped backpack chairs on them and we had a *~beach day~* until 2 drunk guys started hitting on Marjo and invited us to a naked rave where we paint our bodies like dinosaurs. Tempting. Next time. Sunday morning I got to bring Marjo and Julia to my best pal Laura's house in San Diego and I got to have breakfast with my best friend since age 3, one of my best pals from college, and my Chilean mom. LIKE COULD THAT BE ANY MORE SPECIAL. NO. And then I dropped Marjo off at the airport and came home and on Monday we had a bbq at my house. I LOVE COOKING MEATS WITH MY FRIENDS YOU GUYS. Also I have extremely musically talented friends who played music for us all night. Yes there was a cello in my home. Wanna know how many things I love more than watching friends play music for friends? NOT MANY THINGS. And oh I could actually start weeping at this part. Our neighbors behind us that we don't know heard what was going on and popped their heads over the fence and asked if they could come over. IN JESS JANSENS OPINION THIS IS WHAT BRINGING HEAVEN ON EARTH IS SUPPOSED TO LOOK LIKE. Being with people and doing things that create something that people are attracted to and want to be a part of and then welcoming them in with open arms when they come regardless of who they are. Ugh. Speciaw fwiends.

***another V special God moment*** I helped out at the Young Life fundraising banquet and started chatting with one of the sweet, sweet elderly couples there. The sweet, sweet woman asked me if I worked at Tahoe Joe's and I said YES. This couple had come in over a year ago to Tahoe Joe's where I was their waitress and I guess somehow I had talked about my Young Life kids with them and she said she's been praying for me and my girls as "the waitress at Tahoe Joe's" because she couldn't remember my name. I DON'T EVEN REMEMBER HAVING THAT CONVERSATION WITH HER. Now all I can think of is how there could be people praying for us that we have no idea about. I told her she can go right on ahead and start cc'ing those prayers to God's office in Santa Barbara in just a few months. Ugh, sweet Evelyn.

Just blown away by how wonderful humans are this month. I don't know how I could ever say enough thank you's to Jesus for that. So sorry for the excessive caps lock in this one.

Gonna go slip into some business casual now. Bye everyone.

the month maggie learned how to surf and I became employed

SORRY HELLO YES I KNOW I'M LATE. HAPPY SEIS DE MAYO Y'ALL.

Here's my April:

April started with the 3rd annual #gloryglorytrip to celebrate the resurrection of our Lawd. For the past three easters I have driven a minimum of 20 hours to spend less than 48 hours with 35+ strangers in beautiful scenery. That weekend actually GIVES ME LIFE. My highlight this year was Saturday night when all ~60 of us gathered around the fire to worship and share about what Jesus is doing in our lives. I want to cry just thinking about how special it is. In the midst of break-ups, losing jobs, doubts, death, gratitude and joy, strangers gather and celebrate the one thing we have in common--Hope. It's a weekend that gives me a huge glimpse of what I think heaven will be like. Gourmet curry cooked over a camp stove, sharing coffee, a beautiful earth, A LOT of laughing and butthole jokes, and sharing all of it with other humans and our big good God. WHERE ALL OF THOSE GREAT THINGS FIND THEIR ORIGIN ANYWAYS. If you think there's camp curry in a world without a loving God who creates good things, I would beg to differ.

THE "GRAND CANYON"

But probably the most rewarding part of the weekend was when we stoppped at a gas station in the middle of Arizona where there were two matching flame visors in the clearance section for $5.99 each and I talked the cashier into giving me them both for $6. BOGO DEALS ALL DAY.

#ministryinvestment

The second weekend of April, Claire, Allie and I decided that we needed a Level One Retreat. So we drove up to Big Sur and found this free campsite that isn't really a campsite. We fire roasted shrimp and corn and watched the sunset over the VAST ocean. We laughed and cried and prayed and read academic articles together. Once again, HEAVEN ON EARTH Y'ALL.

The Kingdom

The third weekend of April was what I like to call Jessi's first bachelorette weekend. Me and the gals I've been meeting with every Thursday night since the beginning of time went for an overnight *~getaway~* in San Simeon. We mom walked on the beach, pizza parlored in Cambria, drank wine in hotel rooms, and hit up a karaoke bar. There was this Elvis look-a-like who ran the show that really enjoyed us. Like really enjoyed us. Too much. When you get 9 IDIOTS together in a karaoke bar we're gonna steal some hearts, ok. But the best part was the last hour unofficially turned into SPANISH HOUR. Some Mexican gentlemen asked Lillian and I to dance and it was incredibly uncomfortable and comfortable at the same time. Then I made my new friend Bernardo do a karaoke performance of "A Dios Le Pido" with me. It was my everything. The next morning we went to a coffee shop and had more gal chat. After 24 hours of celebrating each other, we all went around and shared our fears about what this next year could bring for us as we all part ways this summer. I really do believe this is what Jesus and Paul envisioned when they talked about community. A community where we can learn to love God and people AND OURSELVES while also being able to admit our fears and our questions and our frustrations and our doubts and when we REALLY MESS UP because we know that there is nothing we could say or do that would create a place of judgement or make us less worthy of God's love. I don't think I could ever thank Jesus enough times for these gals and their role in my life.

#borrowedtime

I don't really want to talk about the days in between the weekends this month. They've been painful. They mostly consist of me not doing my homework and then having to actually pep talk myself into going to class and then feeling flustered and like a big floppy sloppy idiot for the entire class period because I didn't do any of the homework. And then me coming home and eating a lot of chips and hummus and trying to work on my senior project. I'm actually ashamed to admit that to you all but DON'T WORRY because the month of May I plan on really putting on the smack down and doing my work. Because ONLY 5 WEEKS LEFT I CAN DO IT. Here's an example of how Jansen brings down the academic hammer:

competency

One week day activity I will talk about is when Alyssa, Lauren and I taught Maggie how to surf. Just a couple of sandy blonde surfer gals hitting the waves together. It was the most fulfilling work I've ever done and after Maggie rode her first wave I finally understood why Jesus Christ put me on this earth.

surfer maggie

Also in case anyone is interested in watching this sermon that was AN ACTUAL FAITH GAMECHANGER for me by my favorite pastor Mike Erre, here it is. Like seriously, everyone should watch this.
http://www.evfreefullerton.com/blog/sermons/light-and-darkness/

You wanna know what else is a gamechanger? The fact that I became an employed woman on Friday. I just committed the next 3 years of my life to full-time Young Life staff in Santa Barbara. So lol to when I said there wasn't a chance in france I wasn't moving to Latin America after I graduated. I guess that's what happens when you tell God you'll go anywhere in the world. Sometimes he'll put you just 90 minutes down the road. UGH THAT GUY. I'm so excited about this *~life decision~* that I could throw up and will be writing a longer blog post about it on another day. But just wanted to fill y'all in. Because you know, HOW COULD I LEAVE THAT OUT.

localmissionaries.com

Congrats if you made it to the end because that was just a lot of stuff about my life that probably most people wouldn't care to know. But you care. So thx 4 that. There are so many feelings/things I'm learning that I had to leave out in the interest of time that I would love to share. So hmu if you want more where this came from ;) Also walking past jasmine flowers can really turn someone's day around. Also I'm writing this post at Linnea's next to some Kenyan missionaries that I made friends with and now they're sweeping up their own mess that their kids made under the table. TRUE SERVANTS. K bye everyone.