Month 11?? Vietnam?? In a few weeks I will be landing on American soil… What??
Yes, it has almost been 11 months since I last stood in line at an American airport waiting to get on my first big international flight to India. And in a few weeks I will be travelling to my fifth, and likely last, continent this year (America – Asia – Africa – Europe – Asia – back to America!). While I am excited to see my loved ones, lie in my comfy bed, and enjoy the joyous holiday cheer, this will possibly be the hardest transition I go through this year.
The Andrea many of you knew before will not be the same person who returns. I will be returning home with scars from cuts and bug bites, a sore body from the lack of physical comforts, and a completely new world view. It will be a renewed Andrea. A woman who knows she is loved, is wonderfully made, and wants to share this Truth with those around her. Someone who cries hard, laughs harder, and loves others’ the hardest. But the things I have gone through have changed many of my old perspectives.
Things that I might not have noticed before are now huge passions in my life. A few of those being missions, volunteering, photography, and spending time with those closest in my life. My dreams have changed. Before I was dreaming about what I wanted, but now I am dreaming about what God has planned for my life. I am trying to no longer live life just for me, but instead for the purpose of spreading love everywhere I am called to.
So to my family and friends who will be seeing me in a few weeks:
I am excited to “meet” you again. I am excited to tell you all about what God has done in my life and in the lives’ of those around me. I am excited to “meet” you, too! I am excited to hear about your year; the good and the bad. I am excited to find my new place in this familiar yet unfamiliar setting. It will be hard, but I believe it will be so good! All I ask is that you give me grace while I try to figure this out. I will be without the close, 24/7 community that I have grown to love over the last year. It will be taking my walk with Jesus to a whole ‘nother level! I am stepping out into the unknown, but for some reason it feels very different than this year has. But I am excited at what the future holds.
In a few weeks this will all be over. I will be back to “real life”. I will be potentially jobless, without a vehicle, and entering a “new” culture. I have no set plan for what I will be doing next in my life exactly. But, even with all of these things working “against” me, I could not be happier. I wouldn’t trade this past year for anything of this world. I am returning with a full heart from all the love I’ve seen and experienced this year. And I am excited to see how I can take everything I have learned this year and apply it to life back in the States. I’ll be writing another blog soon about what God has in the future for me to come!
So, I am excited to see you all in December! I love you all, and cannot wait to do life with you again <3
