The Title of this photo is: "30 SPF ain't enough."  Actually, it doesn't look too bad in this picture.  Feels a little different in the real world.  Today Briana and I (along with 40 or so other Ross Students) went to Toucarie Bay to do some snorkeling.  I saw brain coral, fan coral and some others I can't name.  There were many multicolored fish, a needle fish, an eel and some species of Scorpion fish.  I wasn't really out that long but the sun here is intense.  

     I spent the rest of the afternoon studying Histology, which today was mostly reviewing the cell and its components.  Actually, I really enjoyed it (aside from the girl who was avoiding studying and talking in what she might call a "whisper" to everyone who was there).  Classes won't start until the 8th of Sept., but the upper classmen here are saying it's a good idea to start reading now.  

      Aside from the fun and the cranking of academic gears, it has really been impressed upon me how important it will be for me to stay connected with Jesus.  As much as my classmates and I are going to bond over this experience, it is also going to be competative.  In the end, I'm the one who has to memorize the material, spend the hours between book ends and, pencil in hand, take the exams.  This kind of thing definitely brings up the questions of "who am I," and "what am I made of?"  I was listening to a song the other day and one of the lines was a quote from St. Irenaeus: "The glory of God is man fully alive."  That is my meditation as I lean into all that is ahead.  Thanks for reading.

    John