On a journey...

I was thinking about how to describe how I’m doing here. I think dazed peace is a good expression (although I am not quite sure if it’ll mean the same to everyone, but it’s a good state). It feels like I’ve already been here for ages, yet it’s been less than a week. It’s funny how that happens, full days kind of make you feel like a day is more than one day. When you look back on the time that has passed, because so much has happened, your mind assumes that more time has passed then actually has. I am staying in a flat in the cellar of a big house. Upstairs the couple that manages the house lives. I share the flat with two lovely women. One of them is a teacher and teaches 2-year olds (the other day we watched this really cute film about Samuel she was going to show her little pupils, and it was very funny, yet brought out the Bible in a simple way). The other one is a student at the FSM Bible School here at IHOP-KC. We get on so well. They are gifts from God, and I am so grateful that...

Well, after 20+ hours of travelling I have finally arrived. And it’s still today, although I left yesterday and technically arrived tomorrow. Confused? 7 hours time difference does that to you! It’s good to be there. I was picked up at the airport by the lovely couple who are in charge of the house I’m staying in, and after a lovely meal at something I think was called “Rudy’s”, I got some groceries at “Price Chopper” before heading here, home- for the next 3 months. I feel very dazed…not much sleep gives you this feeling, but I am sure after a good night’s sleep I will be able to reflect some more. So until then, good night.

My bags are packed, and I should be getting to bed to catch at least a few hours sleep before we head off to the airport at 5.15 am tomorrow morning. I feel butterflies in my stomach, but I feel very peaceful. It is strange to be going somewhere so far away and not know anyone. I mean, I feel like I know the people I’ll be staying with a wee bit, but I don’t know them at all. Many thoughts go through my head. I go between being really excited to finally be going and being quite nervous about how it’ll all be. Change was never my strong side, but it feels like this journey is the most peaceful one so far. So there you go. Tomorrow I’ll set foot on American soil again, and walk into this next season wondering what on earth God has for me, and knowing that it’s good, coz it’s God.

Not long till I head off back to Kansas City now. It is starting to sink in. I’ve had friends visiting till yesterday, and so it’s seemed quite far off. But now I realize that it is less than a week till I again bring my packed bags to the airport and yet again relocate for a time. Don’t get me wrong, I am very excited about all that this new chapter entails, it’s just the process of change I find a bit unsettling, which isn’t really surprising seeing as I am un-settling from here and settling in a new place. I was writing a list of the things I need to get done. The problem with my lists is that although they are good to have, having written something down doesn’t mean I get round to doing it quicker. It’s there, and it will get done, but I tend to get distracted by other things that pop up along the way which probably didn’t need doing at all, but which I end up doing first (I was going to write instead, but that wouldn’t be accurate). So the list is written, or at least started. I w...

Hm…I wanted to write more frequently, but suddenly I looked at the newspaper this morning and realized it’s already the 12th of January. I suppose “Happy New Year” is in order, eh. It’s been a good year (it might seem optimistic to call 2008 a good year not even 2 weeks into it, but I think it is going to be a good one!). Let me see… The second day of the year I hopped on a plane yet again (I have flown so much this past year I almost feel like a commuter, but not really) and went back up to Grimerud. It was great to participate in the national staff conference for YWAM, and even greater to meet up with the people I’d spent the latter part of 2007 with (although it was only 2 weeks since I’d said goodbye to them in December). My friend Elisabeth, who I worked together with in Fortaleza for about 6 years, also came which was really lovely. The conference started (I must admit 350 people is a bit too many people for me, so it was good to be staying in a house of “only” 16 for the confere...