I’m sure you can all agree with me when I say that I never expected this year to look like this. I never could have imagined myself living through a global pandemic, quarantining, or wearing a mask everywhere I went. If you had painted me a picture of what this year was going to look like last year, I never would have believed it.
For me, this year has been so many unexpected things; things that I always thought I would do that I didn’t get to, & immeasurably more things that I never thought I would do that I did.
My entire life, 2020 was looked forward to as my graduation year. I thought I would be going off to college, decorating a dorm room & beginning classes in the fall.
But boy, did i have it all wrong. What I have experienced this year was beyond my wildest expectations.
This year, I made last minute plans that turned out to be some of the best memories. I have seen what it looks like the press into where the Lord was calling me, rather than doing what I thought wanted to do. I learned that flipping all of my plans upside down was part of the plan all along.
The World Race is the last place I would have imagined myself being in 2020 — but I know it is exactly where I am supposed to be.
I also learned, though, that it’s not all just about the big picture.
I watched clouds float across the sky & heard my name whispered in the wind. I cut my own hair more times than I can count. I started hanging out of car windows & letting the wind hit my face. I lived in a tent. I went on long road trips by myself. I discovered new music. I learned how to two-step. I played in mud puddles. I found about a million new reasons to smile everyday.
2020 was completely unexpected — but it is perfect proof that our God can take all that the enemy has meant for evil, & He can make it so beautiful & good. Looking back, even with everything that has been thrown at us these past twelve months, I can say that I wouldn’t trade the world for this place, this time.
