Friday, August 10, 2007

The beginning...

Wednesday, May 23, 2007

The beginning...
Hello! This is my first official blog, and a part of me wonders why I'm even posting this. Who wants to read anything about my life? But I'm thinking that this is going to be the easiest way for me to get updates to you, my family and friends, while I'm in South Africa. I figure I might as well start now!

I'm getting really excited about going, although reality is beginning to set in. A year. I'm leaving for a whole year. And then I think about why I'm going, and the babies that I'll have the privledge of caring for, and my arms feel empty. I can't wait to go hold some babies! I know it's going to be a tough year, although I also admit that I have no idea what exactly is in store for me. I struggle with trying to prepare myself for what could be, but also trying not to have too many expectations of what it will be like. I know now matter what, my expectations won't be correct, and I can't be fully prepared.

I feel like I should explain in a little more detail what I'm going to be doing, for those of you who don't know the whole story. Early last fall, I started looking into missions. I knew without a doubt that I wanted to go do orphanage work after I graduated, but I really didn't know how to persue that. I though about returning to Bolivia, where I had spent two months doing missions in the summer of 2005. I loved that experience, but I felt like there were a couple of rather large roadblocks. One of the major ones being my lack of Spanish! In my search, I found an orphanage in South Africa that I absolutely fell in love with. It's called The Love of Christ ministries (TLC) and is located just outside of Johannesburg. I fell in love with their obvious passion for the babies and toddlers that they take in, and their committment to seeing these beloved children of God grow to reach their full potential. I could so clearly see that Christ was working in this ministry, and I wanted to be a part of that. I sent an application in stating that I would like to stay for six months. Within a few weeks, I heard back from TLC. They had received my application, and asked me if I would consider staying for a year rather than six months. If ever I had needed confirmation that I was doing what God wanted me to do, this was it. A green light; I was on the right path.

And so the adventure began. At that point, I still had a year to plan my trip, come up with funding, buy tickets...all that fun stuff. It seemed so far away! And now here I am, with only four weeks left until my September 8 departure (yep...I'm counting down!) It's been a crazy 11 months since then! But I find myself nearing the end of the craziness, and I can hardly believe it. I'm no longer working at Starbucks (no more driving to work at 4am! Yeah!) The girls and I moved out of our house a couple of weeks ago, and we're all adjusting to the new "normal." I'm living at home now, which gives me a chance to hang out with my parents before I go, which is awesome! My funding is all in, and I can hardly believe how blessed I've been. My family and friends have provided such a blessing to me, allowing me to fully finance my trip and also make a donation to TLC. And well before the deadline, too! So here I am. Feeling anxious and excited, and also really ready to spend some quality time here in Colorado before I go.

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