Seeing my parent’s faces as I walked through security at the Chattanooga Airport was enough to break my heart. Â I know lots of people say they have the best parents, but they’re all wrong. The thing is, I actually do. My mom and dad would do anything for me, and not in that spoil-you-rotten kind of way. They’ve done everything they could to give me every opportunity, to make me into a responsible, mature adult, and they’ve always been the models of wisdom, intelligence, and love.
So now I am taking all that they’ve given me, and I want to share that with the world. I want to take my mom’s strength and generous heart; I want to take my dad’s steadfast love and joyful spirit. So we’re not really going to be apart, because they’re right here with me. (Cue the “awww” and sniffles)
I got to L.A. Wednesday, and was generously taken in by a sweet friend, Priscilla, who I knew from working at Kanakuk Kamps. We had some amazing sushi for dinner, and then we picked up another Kanakuk friend, Katie, from the airport.
 I spent Thursday with Katie being touristy down on Hollywood Boulevard. We saw all the celebrity’s stars and handprints as well as the Hollywood sign. I met up with my friend and fellow Racer, Alyssa, to have dinner on the Santa Monica Pier.
Friday, I met back up with Priscilla, Katie, and a new friend, Meredith, and we took it back to our childhood roots and headed to Disneyland! We got there after the park opened at 8 and stayed right up until close at 7 pm. We had the BEST day riding rides and meeting the Disney characters. I got to meet my favorite–Minnie! And Tigger thought he was hilarious when I went in for the hug, and he put both his paws on my head and began to give me a 30 second noogie. He obviously had no concern for my braid. We closed the day by watching the parade of all the Disney characters… I definitely felt like a kid again, and it helped to distract me from being anxious about my trip!
After Disney, I went to the airport to meet up with all my squad mates. It was such a sweet reunion! We are now all sitting around at our gate, catching up and waiting for our 12:45 a.m. flight. I think this is my first red eye flight–I guess this is just the start of a lot of firsts, huh?
We get in to Guatemala tomorrow morning about 6:45 a.m., and will spend 5 days in a hostel in Antigua doing some launch training. Then all the teams will disperse to our different ministry locations throughout Guatemala, and I’ll be on my way to the orphanage in Chimaltenango!Â
I can’t believe this is happening! It’s so surreal–even still. I’m not sure when it’s going to hit me, probably in a month or two. 🙂 I’m so excited, I can’t even handle it. I’m exhausted from hiking around Disney all day, so I’m hoping I’ll be able to sleep on the flight… we shall see!
