34 days left on the Race, but who's counting..?
Almost everyone is the honest answer. Some are saying only 34 more days as encouragement to savor each moment and live every day to the fullest, while others are dreaming about their first meals back in the States, the chocolate chip cookies that will await them in the JFK airport as well as the friends and family that they will get to hug soon and very soon.
I fit in somewhere in between. I LOVE countdowns, but I don't want to count down my life. I want to cherish my time, this place and these people more because I recognize how fleeting these days truly are. I will see my friends, family and incredibly patient boyfriend soon enough and don't want to look back on this last month with any regrets. I want to take the time that I do have to study the faces of the those I am surrounded by for now and love them well–as I'll never get these days back!–in addition to the people that the Lord has put in my path for a reason, as to not forget how they all reflect Him (please pray for that!).
[Steph and I today in Port Elizabeth]
Here's the skinny on life lately: I have been blessed to see the ocean the past couple of days; I was in a bad mood off and on the past few days as we traveled extensively (We were expecting it to take us 8-10 hours yesterday, but were prepared for 12… It ended up being 18 and that was already travel day two. We spent another 10 hours in the bus the day before and we are still not to our ministry locations yet.); my dear (& hilarious) friend and team leader (Johnny), who I sorely miss, went home with great urgency as his mom's bladder cancer leaves her with a poor prognosis–please fervently pray for her (Tracy) now (read his blogs for more details here & part 2).
I am pumped to be in South Africa doing sports ministry while in the same area as all of my Old Mates!–it was absolutely wonderful to be 6/7 of them along with other sweet friends last month in Swaziland; my current plan is to go on a long run with Nathan (my teammate) tomorrow morning along the ocean, enjoy doing something different for ministry this month in J-Bay (sports ministry in Jeffrey's Bay), see and cherish not having a screen separate me from the people I dearly love and miss, and finally investigate nursing jobs once I'm back to Michigan in August. And that's about all the details I have thus far in regards to my post-race plans. 🙂
ps. Since I'm posting this after midnight, it's technically 33 days, which is crazy!
[Just one of many gorgeous sunrises in Swaziland]
