Remember when you were eight years old?
Do you remember what it felt like to wake up on the first day of summer vacation?
Do you remember how somehow the air seemed crisp and inviting, how your heart was pounding, how the weather was somehow perfect, how you couldn’t remember a single struggle or trial occurring in your life, and how your inner being was absolutely overflowing with this unbridled excitement and joy?
All you knew was that this upcoming season was going to be FUN. You knew you were at the beginning of an epic adventure…
All you felt were butterflies in your stomach.
That’s what I’m experiencing right now… but I’m 22 and joyfully and excitedly embarking on playing an irreplaceable role in an epic adventure.
We leave for Chile TOMORROW.
My team, TEAM BURRITO, will be leaving at 1a.m. for our first flight.
The morning of August 9th, 2018 we will arrive at our first stop in Frutillar, Chile… It has German architecture, is an eleven hour drive south of Santiago, is on the largest freshwater lake in Chile, is across from a massive, almost perfectly conical volcano… AND IS IN THE MIDDLE OF WINTER.
It’s going to be epic.
– – – – – – – – – – — – – – — – – – – – —- – – – – – — – – – – — – – – — – – – —- — – – – – – – – – – – — – – –
These past few days (weeks) have also been full of goodbyes.
The goodbyes to my friends, family, retirement community members, professors, coworkers, soccer teammates, and kids that I nannied have been so sweet. They were difficult, but also absolutely lovely and only allowed me to love each of these people more. I hope my life will cross paths with many (if not all) of these people again.
Remember, though, that with “goodbyes” come “hellos.”
As I said goodbye to my Harper family, I said hello to my L-Squad/Burrito family.
My squad also had to say goodbye to two of the countries on our route. Due to civil unrest in Haiti, we sadly can no longer plan to travel to it or The Dominican Republic.
Yet, as we said goodbye to those two countries, we also got to say hello to Ecuador, Vietnam, and Indonesia.
Today, in the midst of a lot of (exciting) change, I’m thankful for Romans 8:28 “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to His purpose.”
Jesus has got me covered… And in the middle of my butterflies, surrounded by my Burritos, just having finalized all my goodbyes, I’m finally ready to launch!!!
