First off- THANK YOU to everyone who has donated or prayed!
I am over halfway there and it means the WORLD to have all the support you guys have given me-I appreciate the prayers and encouragement so so so much.
here’s one more reason to love winter (and I could be making this up but i think it’s a pretty sound observation) WINTER HAS THE BEST SUNSETS. or at least they’re made more beautiful by the dark leafless trees. 
I’m not really sure how to prepare for this trip. Not emotionally, not physically, not spiritually. There are a million books I wanted to read that I thought might have vital information that I’ll need to be more equipped-I can only read so fast. I’ve thought about what I’m taking but I learned in college that I work best when I’m working within the last 48 hours of a deadline. SO getting my things together has been sloooooow. here’s what most of my stuff looks like when i throw it all on the floor (most meaning i left out the majority of my clothes)
One thing I’ve learned is to keep the bigger picture at the front of everything. No matter what the bigger picture is when you’re exhausted and need encouragement just ask the Lord to remind you how important it is that you’re changing the lives of children just by teaching them basic math, being a positive attitude in a place that needs some light, or offering to take on more at work so someone else has a lighter load. The Lord loves to give us peace!
this is the perfect time of year to remember the bigger picture, yea?
