I am a writer…and a perfectionist so, when my sister shoved the computer in my face tonight and said she was making me blog I cringed. My cringe was not because of the act of writing or because I have nothing to say but because I have been trying to figure out exactly what to write and how to write since I got back to the States. SO, I suppose I will start by playing catch up since my last blog was so long ago.
We spent our last few weeks of ministry in San Pedro, Guatemala with Pastor Antonio and his family. They were absolutely fantastic, a real joy. If you haven’t watched Sean’s video about the ministry there you should really check it out. I was actually looking forward to our last ministry being manual labor, not anything I had to think about, just stuff that I could bang out while zoning with my ipod. Well, a couple of days into our manual labor fest, after leveling the front yard of the church and moving rocks to help in the building process I found myself sick with the flu and bed ridden for about 7 days. I was so sick the first day it didn’t bother me to stay in the bed, but by day 3 I was going stir crazy. Thanks to the pesky flu I missed all the final fun team things like the horse back riding and the afternoon at the beach. Needless to say, I didn’t exactly enjoy that time, but God chose to use it to slow me down a little. The flu finally went away and we attended our final debrief as a squad. It was so nice to have all of us together for one more week of fun, focus, intercession, encouragement…you name it, we did it. Seth & Andrew came down, along with their wives, and Jimmy McCarty from the January race, now AIM staff led our sessions. These guys were fantastic and I really enjoyed hearing their hearts for us as we prepared for reentry.
The whole team flew from Guatemala City to Ft. Lauderdale where some of us got hotel rooms for one more night together. It was wonderful to go out together in America; even though we drove the waitstaff crazy asking for our free refills constantly! Cristie Reiter and I ended up on the same flight from Ft. Lauderdale to Charlotte the next day. When we got off the plane I was greeted by my dad who had flown in from Augusta, GA that morning and waited in the secure area to be the first person to greet me when I got home. We walked to baggage claim where I assumed I would find my mom waiting. This assumption proved to be correct in that my mom was there but incorrect in that my brother and family, sister and family, both grandmothers, and my uncle and his wife were all there to greet me. It was so nice to see them all. My family is very close and I was dreading having to wait to see them all until later in the weekend so it was awesome to have them all there. They greeted me with a big sign, balloons, and flowers; a little of the bouquet was given to me by each of my nieces. Everybody then went out for a late lunch and then back to my grandmother’s house to see even more family.
My family also decided to host a surprise party for me where we celebrated every holiday I missed while being gone on the race. For everyone who attended the ticket in was to bring an outfit for the Charlotte Rescue Mission. It was such a nice gesture by everyone. We sent over 70 articles to the Mission.
I really enjoyed my weekend with my family but it flew by and by that Sunday I had to get back on the road so that I could be at my home in Great Falls when Beth, my fellow racer, and her family arrived. We enjoyed a week with a packed house, and I mean packed, there are 7 who live here and then Beth’s crew totaled 9. It was an adventure, but a fun one. I also got to see Jane and Gabrielle this past weekend. Those two came to town from their opposite directions and we met up for brunch and good hang out time in DC.
As you can see it has been a whirlwind since I have gotten back to the States. I am working part time already so I can put some money back in the bank but it is a bit overwhelming to be honest, at least right now. Please pray that I will force myself and God will use others to force me into reflection and quiet time to process. There is a lot that has to be sorted from this year, I just have to sit down and do it. Thanks to all of you who supported me all year by financial means, reading my blogs, and prayer support. Each of you has made an impact that will not be soon forgotten. I am carving out a few days coming up soon to sit down and have some quiet time so look for more blogs to come. I will try to do better in the future!
