GRATITUDE...

The night before the MCAT I got a call from Danielle, and the first things she said was that I would need to get a pencil and paper to take some notes. She then proceeded to tell me everyone who would be praying me literally hour by hour througout the day, and I was so overwhelmed with gratitude! And all I can say is that prayer works... I had the best day yesterday! Things started going my way right from the beginning. When I woke up it was raining, and I immediately thought of my arrival in Rwanda. It rained that day too, and the woman who met us at the airport told us that visitors who come with the rain come with blessings. I got to the test site with my good friend Shannon, and we got in line to register. There were three of four different rooms where they were testing, and she and I hoped to be in the same room because we have studied together all summer, and I knew it would just a huge blessing to be in the same room with her. She was told room 123, and so was I. The person behind me started the next room, so I was very grateful!! I knew that it was going to be a good day.

I started the test, and I can honestly say that I felt really good about it. I felt like I was able to do my best, and really concentrate, which I know is a fruit all of all of your prayers. I had hoped for interesting passages in the verbal reasoning section, and my hopes were far surpassed. The third or fourth passage I read was a passage about an island off of the coast of Ireland named after St. Michael the Archangel. I looked at my watch, and saw that it was 11:00. The same exact time that Michael Downs was starting to pray for me. I had to actaully stop for a moment and let it sink in.

A second passage in that section was about the art of videography. It told the story of a man who helped changed "home movies" into an art form when he turned on his camera to capture the images of the pope traveling through the streets of Rome. He saw it as a beautiful event, and his expression of the film was then considered a work of art, since his intent was to portray his personal experience to others.

The last passage that was significant to me was the ninth (and last!) passage. It was all about american sign language, and studies reagarding the aquisition of visual language. I immediately thought of the entire Tripi family who all speak in sign, and I remembered Nate Tripi's e-mail to Danielle saying "I have completed praying before I go work with my knees on rough cement floor to bless and believe in nicole and her spirit will be succeeed her goals!" The Tripi's are an absolutely AMAZING family, and they have been just showering me with their prayers. As I read that last section, instead of feeling tired, I thought of them and felt a lot of love and inspiration!!!

The science sections went well too. Kaplan had trained us at a very intense level, so when it came to test day I felt really comfortable with the test. Because of your prayers, I felt strong and my mind felt light and clear. I think the best thing I can say is that I honestly felt like I was able to do my very best. I am so grateful for that, and will be excited to see the results in October.

In the meantime I'll continue working on applications, and will be spending about three weeks at home in Ohio. And I will be remembering you all in my prayers each day. I've never had an experience like this before--- a day COMPLETELY covered in prayer. And I honestly felt it every step of the way.

What really lifted me up yesterday was thinking about each one of you. From Honduras, Guatamala, California, Michigan, Montana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Washington, Oregon, DC, Chicago, Minnesota, Connecticut, Louisiana, Indiana, Virginia... my thoughts were with you, and I was just overwhelmed with a sense of gratitude for your friendships. Thank you for being you, and for being in my life. Yesterday I found myself often wondering how I possibly came to be blessed with so many wonderful people in my life?? I am so, so grateful. I told my roomate Amy last night that if nothing else, this experience has convinced me of the power of prayer, and I feel a very strong desire to pray more for others. On that note, if you ever have an intention to share, I would love to be able to pray for you as you have prayed for me.


I hope you all have a wondrful day today, and thank you from the bottom of my heart for your love, support and prayers! To Danielle, thank you so much for contacting so many people to ask for prayers. I am beyond grateful, and it is truly the best gift that I have ever been given. Those of you who have been on an NDE at Notre Dame know of "palanca" letters. The word means "to lift up" and that is exactly what happened yesterday. My body was in the test room, but my spirit was united with all of you. What an awesome experience!!

Thank you, thank you, thank you...

All my love,
nicole