Something you might know about me is that I LOVE pictures and being able to take a single snapshot of something or someone and have that memory for the rest of your life. So in other words, I will definitely be posting LOTS of pictures because that is my favorite way of remembering.
I felt called to do this mission trip because of the passion God gave me for others. I felt Him calling me to reach out to the unreached, reach out to people in need and love everyone. He put it on my heart to travel the world and work with people in many different countries. I never have felt called to just one country so I chose this trip. When I came across this trip, I knew that this was it. I knew that this was what I was supposed to do. As a Christian, He calls me to reach out to all nations, and that is what I will do.
So here are some pieces from my life that helped get me to where I am today.
First of all, I LOVE smiling (See below picture). Most of you probably already have noticed that my smile is a bit large and the amount I smile is in large quantities. Another plus about smiling is that it is universal. No matter where I am smiling means the same in every language. There are many reasons for my excessive smiling and will explain with the pictures below. 🙂
FAMILY. I have been extremely blessed with having such an amazing family. They have such a huge support system for me throughout my whole life. I love them with all my heart. My family has influenced me so much and have helped me become who I am today. They helped guide me through everything and got me started with my journey with God. I look up to my parents and am so thankful for all that they have done for me. Seeing how they live their lives, they have set such a good example of putting others before themselves and loving others. My family helped give me a gentle push along the way to get me out of my comfort zone. When I was still in high school, I never even really wanted to leave for weekend church retreats. Once I went on my first mission trip (two weeks long), I realized I could handle more…. and now I'm going on an 11 month mission trip around the world!! 🙂
MY LIL SIS. My sister Kaja is the one who gave me the final push to commit to this trip. I was listing off a bunch of concerns and worries to her about going on this journey and she told me that it was still the right decision for me to go and that I would regret it if I didn't go. She made me realize that although there are always reasons that could stop me from going, so I need to trust God more fully and know that His plan is the right plan. Even though Kaja is 8 years younger than me, I look up to her. She is going to do so many amazing things in her life. I am so excited to see what journeys and adventures that God takes her on. She is always there for me and I will always be there for her. It is going to be hard to leave her for 11 months but because of her belief in me, I know that I can do it.
MY FRIENDS. The friends in my life have made such an impact on me. They have supported me SO much along this journey already and I don't know what I would do without them. We have gone on tons of adventures and have grown so much. Some of them have even become like family to me. They are the reason for uncontrollable laughter at 2 in the morning. I love them so much!
ADVENTURES. I have a huge love for crazy adventures. I love being outdoors hiking, rafting, exploring caves, etc. I love the adrenaline rush that sometimes accompanies these experiences and therefore I have become a mild adrenaline junky. 🙂 When I go white water rafting, my cheeks cramp up because I am smiling SO much. 🙂 This love of adventure is what brought me to love traveling and the desire to explore the world.
PEOPLE. I love people. I think that is why I am a psychology major. I have felt extremely loved my entire life and feel like everyone deserves to feel loved too. Because of this great love for people, I have the passion to help others in need. I have volunteered with many organizations throughout my life to work with others in need. Volunteering with the Special Olympics was one of my biggest joys. The people that I got to meet are some of the most loving, caring, and beautiful people I have ever met and some of them became my heroes. This love of people went global and I was able to go to the Dominican Republic in high school and Indonesia July of 2011. Although these places were extremely different from what I am used to, I still felt like it was right where I was supposed to be. These trips sparked my passion to help people around the world, so here I am today going on this 11 month journey around the world. I am SO excited just thinking about all the amazing people I will get to meet. 🙂
I AM NOW READY FOR THIS NEXT ADVENTURE. 🙂
