I Hate This Part

It’s happened seven times already.  It’s about to be eight.
At the end of each month, we have to say goodbye.
 
We spend time with people, get to know them, share life with them, open up and talk about our faith(s), our fears, and our hopes for the future.  And then it seems, just as I’m really getting close to a new friend or group of people, the end of the month sneaks up.

So now it’s that time again to pack up and head off to a new country.  Goodbye to our friends, goodbye to our neighborhood and routines, goodbye to all that has just become familiar to us.
 
I hate this part of the World Race. 
 
This month has been all about relationships.  Building trust and friendships with university students while talking over coffee, sharing sushi, discussing movies, and delving into the deeper questions of life takes time. We've spent hours in classrooms and at English clubs.  Many afternoons and evenings were spent exploring Kiev.

 
It’s hard.  I don’t like it. 

Sometimes tears are shed.  There are certain people I meet each month that I wish I could continue to be in my life day to day.  There are certain people I want to know more.  And there are certain people that I wish would have let us into their life.
 
Matt Mitchell, my friend and teammate Amy's boyfriend, wished her a World Race “filled with eleven hard goodbyes” when she left on this adventure in September.  Amy shared those words with me last week and they really struck me. 
 

 
So as much as I hate this part, I’m glad that it’s not easy.  It means I have made new friends, discovered exciting places, and made unforgettable memories.
 
Seven down, one tomorrow, and three more to go.
And for that, I am truly thankful.