I wasn't crazy about my small group at first. I mean, the girls all seemed really nice, but I felt like they were all these perfect Christians and so, even though they were nice, I couldn't just be myself around them.
But that slowly changed, and especially over the past few months I've come to really appreciate our small group. Our discussions are raw and honest and emotional. People are dealing with some pretty big issues, and our group is a safe place to talk through those issues without fear of judgment, or, worse yet, people saying, "You know, you should..." We have a "no advice" policy. We just listen and love each other through whatever's going on. We're all kind of fumbling through the same problems together.
We only have three weeks left together, and we were thinking we wanted to mark the end of this time in a special way. We've been talking about leaving bad stuff behind because God is calling us to something greater, and someone had the idea that, at our last small group, we should burn something that represents what we're leaving behind.
Last week, Emily and I went to King Spa. Oh my holy, this place is amazing. They have baths and all these themed dry saunas (for example, the gold room and the charcoal room) and a lounge area where you can read or play games and a food court and a movie theater (with super comfy recliners where they show movies like "Hitch" and "The Karate Kid") and even a "meditation room" where you can basically just go take a nap. They also have services you can pay extra for, like massages and body scrubs. The $25 entry fee gets you 24 hours in the spa. When I saw this on the website, I was like, who goes there for 24 hours??? After my visit, I totally get it. I am wishing I knew about this place sooner so I could have spent every Saturday there this winter.
Anyway, Emily and I had never done a spa day before, so we showed up with our swimsuits and were immediately told that nudity was required in the all-women's area. Emily and I looked at each other like, um... I guess we're taking this friendship to the next level. And it really wasn't as bad as I thought it would be because there were all types of women there, not just perfect bodies.
We spent about three hours there, and then went out for sushi, feeling totally relaxed and renewed.
The next day I was texting with Leisa, one of our small group leaders, and told her about me and Emily getting naked at the spa. She was intrigued by this place and thought we should plan a small group outing. "Naked field trip!" I exclaimed.
"Yes, let's get naked and burn shit together," Leisa replied.
"And that will be like, boom, drop the mike, we out," I said. "No one can touch us. No other small group compares."
(The dropping the mike thing is kind of an inside joke with our group. Sometimes, if someone says something profound, someone else will make the motion of dropping the mike.)
Then, last night, things reached a new level of hilarity when we decided to go around and share our tattoos. We were meeting in the corner classroom at church, which has windows on two sides and is right next to the street. When it was Mallory's turn, she said she had a tattoo on her upper rib cage. "Show us!" we begged.
"I don't know..." She was reluctant.
"Oh, come on, it's just us girls," we coaxed.
"All right, fine, but you have to tell me if somone's coming," she relented.
And wouldn't you know, the second she yanked up her shirt to show us, our pastors (a married couple) drove by and waved. Mallory, her shirt still up, waved back, then realized she'd just flashed her pastors.
The look on her face was priceless. I don't know if I've ever seen someone turn so red.
And that's how our small group rolls- getting naked, burning stuff, and flashing the pastors.
But that slowly changed, and especially over the past few months I've come to really appreciate our small group. Our discussions are raw and honest and emotional. People are dealing with some pretty big issues, and our group is a safe place to talk through those issues without fear of judgment, or, worse yet, people saying, "You know, you should..." We have a "no advice" policy. We just listen and love each other through whatever's going on. We're all kind of fumbling through the same problems together.
We only have three weeks left together, and we were thinking we wanted to mark the end of this time in a special way. We've been talking about leaving bad stuff behind because God is calling us to something greater, and someone had the idea that, at our last small group, we should burn something that represents what we're leaving behind.
Last week, Emily and I went to King Spa. Oh my holy, this place is amazing. They have baths and all these themed dry saunas (for example, the gold room and the charcoal room) and a lounge area where you can read or play games and a food court and a movie theater (with super comfy recliners where they show movies like "Hitch" and "The Karate Kid") and even a "meditation room" where you can basically just go take a nap. They also have services you can pay extra for, like massages and body scrubs. The $25 entry fee gets you 24 hours in the spa. When I saw this on the website, I was like, who goes there for 24 hours??? After my visit, I totally get it. I am wishing I knew about this place sooner so I could have spent every Saturday there this winter.
Anyway, Emily and I had never done a spa day before, so we showed up with our swimsuits and were immediately told that nudity was required in the all-women's area. Emily and I looked at each other like, um... I guess we're taking this friendship to the next level. And it really wasn't as bad as I thought it would be because there were all types of women there, not just perfect bodies.
We spent about three hours there, and then went out for sushi, feeling totally relaxed and renewed.
The next day I was texting with Leisa, one of our small group leaders, and told her about me and Emily getting naked at the spa. She was intrigued by this place and thought we should plan a small group outing. "Naked field trip!" I exclaimed.
"Yes, let's get naked and burn shit together," Leisa replied.
"And that will be like, boom, drop the mike, we out," I said. "No one can touch us. No other small group compares."
(The dropping the mike thing is kind of an inside joke with our group. Sometimes, if someone says something profound, someone else will make the motion of dropping the mike.)
Then, last night, things reached a new level of hilarity when we decided to go around and share our tattoos. We were meeting in the corner classroom at church, which has windows on two sides and is right next to the street. When it was Mallory's turn, she said she had a tattoo on her upper rib cage. "Show us!" we begged.
"I don't know..." She was reluctant.
"Oh, come on, it's just us girls," we coaxed.
"All right, fine, but you have to tell me if somone's coming," she relented.
And wouldn't you know, the second she yanked up her shirt to show us, our pastors (a married couple) drove by and waved. Mallory, her shirt still up, waved back, then realized she'd just flashed her pastors.
The look on her face was priceless. I don't know if I've ever seen someone turn so red.
And that's how our small group rolls- getting naked, burning stuff, and flashing the pastors.
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Rose