As is True of All Good Things,(Except for Heaven), This Too Must Come to an End

Sadly, in fact the National Bible Bee is coming to a close. Last night, my mom and I went to a family hymn sing. It was refreshing. I learned a lot of hymns I hadn't known before. This morning, we went to a worship and prayer service with an admittedly intense pastor. After that, we got to watch our friend Olivia win the primary final round for a second year in a row.
At lunch, we attended a luncheon at which Phil Vischer spoke. He is the creator of Veggie Tales, (and most of the voices) and a new puppet series called "What's in the Bible". He spoke on making sure your relationship with God is more important than even what you are doing to serve Him.

Later, we watched the beginning of the senior final round. No one died, even though seniors are red-shirts, (sorry, I'm tired and making bad Star Trek jokes). We had to leave early to tour the Opryland Hotel. It is a HUGE hotel with a river running through it and tons of shops.

When we returned, it was time for the closing ceremony. We sat together with almost everyone from Oregon. Various awards were given and we watched a video about the inspiration for the Bible Bee, Shelby Kennedy. Finally, we sang a worship song from our opening ceremony. It was a powerful time.

All together we sang, "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty! Worthy are You our Lord and God to receive glory and honor and power!"

Afterward we all went downstairs and had dessert together. I mostly had fruit, because nothing else was gluten- free. It was good to be able to hang out with and say goodbye to all my good friends from the Bible Bee. Even though I'll hopefully see them again soon, I got all emotional and almost cried. I've had a great time at Nationals, and I'm soooo glad I made it this year. Who knows what will happen next year. I can't thank you enough for your prayers and encouragement to me.

To leave you on a happy note, we saw this amazing watermelon at the dessert reception. I just had to take a picture of it. I don't know why it's so cool. Probably because it says "Bible Bee"!

Keep on glowing in the dark,

Elora

I Walked the Streets of Nashville...

The flag of Tennessee

The Ryman

A giant guitar (what "Honky Tonk" is, I have no idea)

I ran into Elvis, and he poked me in the eye! How rude!

Here are some photos from my mom and my jaunt through Nashville which I mentioned on my previous post.

Keep on glowing in the dark,

Elora

Day 3 of the Bee!

Since I last posted, a lot has happened. I went through my oral round, which was nerve-racking. I had to skip a few verses and I didn't get through all 25. After that, I was escorted to the Family Fun Room, where I had lunch and waited with my mom until all the seniors were done their oral rounds.

Then I ran to the dress rehearsal for our musical presentation in the opening ceremony.

Next, all of the contestants then gathered for the processional. We lined up in our divisions in height order, (yes, I was at the back of the line). Each of us went up on stage and got a medal, then had our pictures, (single and collective), taken many times. When the Primaries were done, I ran into the hallway to line up with the choir.

Our presentation went really well. It was a mix of orchestral music, an 85-person choir and scripture reading.

We saw a video from Joni Earekson-Tada, and Kirk Cameron shared his testimony and encouraged us. But everyone was really waiting for the semi-finalists to be announced. Someone named Mr. Bob Lepine announced them, but the guy who introduced him sounded like he said "Mr. Bible Bee".

Anyway, two primaries from Oregon, Isaac and Olivia, made it into the semi-finals. Also, one of our juniors, Luke made it in.

To ease any tension you may be feeling, I didn't make it to the final rounds. I wasn't really expecting to, so I wasn't too disappointed. I'm just a little sad that the Bible Bee is over for me this year. At least I get to relax the rest of the time we're here.

Today, (which is technically day 4, not day 3), we went and saw Olivia and Isaac compete in the semi-finals. Olivia made it in to the top five, (but we weren't worried about her), and Isaac got seventh. They both did really well.

Later my mom and I went to a mother-daughter tea party, then we went out and explored the city. We walked all the way to the Titans stadium and took some pictures for my dad and brother. I'll have to post some of the pictures on my next post.

I'm having a great time; thanks again for all your prayers!

Keep on glowing in the dark,

Elora

My Amazing Journey (Pt. 2)

So, to continue the story I started on the last post, we landed in Nashville. The first thing I noticed is that EVERYTHING is music here. We took a taxi to the hotel where the Bible Bee is being held. As soon as we got out of the taxi, some of our friends from Oregon ran up to us and said hi. I wasn't sure we'd be able to find anyone, so that was cool.

This morning, we had breakfast at a cafe near our hotel. My mom ordered grits, and I tried some. They were pretty good. Then I put blackberry jam in them and that made them even better, (for those of you who don't know, grits are a sort of corn porridge thing).

After that, we worked on a few stacks of verses.

Below is one of the music signs we saw. This one is in front of our hotel. There are also music notes and instruments in all the art and carpet design. The elevators even have Beethoven's 5th Symphony on them. I especially liked these signs because they are shaped like guitar picks.

Oh no! I stood next to the "No Standing" sign! That's like getting stuck behind a truck that says, "Construction vehicle, do not follow." It isn't even a good picture ;).

Keep on glowing in the dark,

Elora

My Amazing Journey (Pt. 1)

Hi everyone!

We made it to Nashville yesterday. Now I'm here AT the Bible Bee! Registration is at 3 Pm, so right now, I'm just reviewing verses and waiting around. I thought I'd give you a little update on our trek so far...

Yesterday we drove up to Seattle and flew to Memphis, then took a short flight to Nashville. On the way, I reviewed verses, studied 1&2 Peter and drank cranberry juice. For some reason, I always drink cranberry juice on airplanes. Maybe it's just because I like it. This time it reminded me of our green room at church, because I always drink cranberry juice back there too. Anyway...

Shadow the Comerson's dolphin we got at Sea World this summer came too ;)

To be continued.......

Keep on glowing in the dark,

Elora