On your mark… get set… GO!!!

Time to update the blog I think. To all of those reading, I am so excited to begin sharing my journey with you! This blog will not only be a way for me to keep up with everyone, but I hope an extension of my ministry. I hope the experiences I describe in this blog will reach others as well. So share your thoughts and hearts back with me! Comment, e-mail, I want to feel as connected to everyone as possible! So onto the update…

I can’t believe how time flies! Today I leave for Ejido Buenos Aires, Mexico to begin my training for the Novas Project. Our training will be 8 weeks long and is essentially an missionary boot camp! We will be learning very practical skills such as plumbing, carpentry, how to grow an organic garden, childcare, and communicating across cultural and language barriers. We learn these skills in preparation for what our community might need so that we can serve them to the very best of our abilities.

While I am so excited for Novas to begin, it is a bitter sweet excitement. While I hate goodbyes, I feel I have gotten all too used to saying them. God has taken me further and further outside of my comfort zone over the past 4 years and has prepared me for this moment. Yet goodbye never gets easy for me. The comfort is knowing that it won’t be long till goodbye is followed with a joyous reunion. This week was full of goodbyes. I was able to spend time with my YAM group, with Ashley, Julie, Lindsay, Abby, Ben, Austen and Amy. All of these dear friends have impacted my life in more ways than they know, and I love them all so much. There are also many people who I didn’t get to see or talk to, yet will miss just as much. You know who you are. 🙂 It will be difficult to be away, not able to call to tell a funny story or relive a past memory or inside joke. Yet I pray that this time apart will be a time of growing and that our bonds will be stronger when we are reunited! I also said goodbye to family. My parents and brother were, of course, the most difficult goodbye. Ryan left on Friday, so our goodbye was early, and Mom, Dad, and Dee took me to the airport for our last farewell. Fighting tears, I gave one last hug and kiss and went through security. The final look before heading to my terminal was difficult. My family is so important to me. They are a constant source of support, love, and guidance, and I love them more than I can say. My comfort is knowing that while I am saying goodbye, I will see them soon and will be with my Novas family.

So for the last few days I have been in McAllen, TX with my grandparents, getting ready to go and enjoying time together. It has been a wonderful stay, and I am so grateful for their constant love and generosity.

To all my loved ones in the States that I am leaving behind for now, know that my heart is with you always and you are never far from my thoughts. I will be keeping you all in my prayers and will update often on what God is doing in my life. Please do the same for me!! I want to stay connected to every part of your lives! I love you all so very much. So off I go to Mexico, Adios Texas!