By Alison Hawke in Personal — May 6, 2002

Monday Mission 2.18

Do you have any tattoos? If no, why not and what would you get if you did get one.
I have no tattoos or piercings. I don't want a permanent mark on me. Used to wonder about joining the freckles on my arms to make interesting designs when I was little.

Has anything ever happened that caused you to believe, or disbelieve, in a Higher Power.
I believe in God, the creator of the universe, Jesus Christ, his Son, who died for us, and the Holy Spirit. You can't study physics for long without being boggled by the precision and order that some say "just spontaneously appeared out of nowhere," however unlikely that seems. Does it take more faith to believe in evolution or in a Creator God? That and the time when my appendix burst, all the doctors were busy with a 6 hour cardiac operation, they couldn't give me painkillers until they knew what was wrong with me, and I was literally screaming in pain. Hubby prayed that it would stop hurting, and I fell asleep until the doctor came. You cannot go to sleep with that much pain. It woke me up in the middle of the night. It wasn't something either of us could have caused, and I went back to sleep between visits from three different doctors, until I finally got painkillers.

This weekend you and I are going to the nature park for a picnic. I'll bring the blanket and make all the arrangements. You pack the picnic basket. What's inside?
Fresh baked wheat challah bread that's still warm, cold chicken, Fritos, cheese, lettuce, and strawberries. Chilled pineapple juice to drink.

Have you ever been mad at God for something that happened (or didn't happen)?
People talk about "having a relationship with Jesus." No relationship is 100% smooth, I know I do things that he's not happy with, but I think it's better to yell about it and continue talking, than clam up and go silent. I've been mad about lots of things, and thankful for lots of things.

Post (or describe) an image of someone that is no longer with us. Tell us about that person.
Alasdair Prett died on October 14 2001, just over five months after he married Jess. I was at the wedding, and I've never seen either of them so happy. He was one of my best friends, I spent over two years sitting next to him in lectures, swapping jokes, him correcting the lecturer (once per lecturer per lecture only), quoting bits of "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" and wrestling with quantum mechanics, electromagnetism, nuclear astrophysics, electronics and mathematics. We were planning to buy plane tickets and fly them both out here in the autumn. I miss him.