January 7th, 2016
Coming
back from Haiti this time was different. Everyone handled it differently. My
family had work and school on my first day back so it was just me and my dogs
reconnecting as life went on around me. Even with friends though, at church and
otherwise, I felt like I was getting a glimpse into the future. People said, “Welcome
back to the States” or “Good to see you back church.” No one said, “Welcome home.” In fact, the one person who
started to say that stopped himself and asked me, “Wait, or are you visiting
here and Haiti is home now?” Other comments included, “How long are you here
for?” “When do you go back?” And even “When do you go home?” And “I have a
feeling that pretty soon we won’t be seeing you very often around here.”
As
much as these comments caught me off guard, I wasn’t offended by them. I know
missionaries who have lived internationally for years and their family and
friends refuse to acknowledge their official “home-ness” of their countries. It
just seems to me that everyone around me as just accepted my calling before I
have. I have known this was coming but I think there was always a little part
of me that hoped God would tweak my timing to be more convenient. You know,
like after some teaching experiences or a husband, or paying off student loans…Fortunately,
God’s ways and His timing are not my own and I need to let Him call the shots
on this one. He has proved over and over that this is His voice I’m feeling and
it’s not a call for I’m ready. It’s for now.
I’ve stayed awake until 5am pondering
my future to come to these conclusions…I’m hoping now that I’ve admitted it, I’ll
be able to sleep.
August 17th, 2016
Well….as many of you know, I let God call the
shots and I am headed back to Haiti this Saturday. It is currently 2:52 am on
my birthday and I’m laying downstairs because I am literally hotter than Haiti
and my mind is buzzing with emotions and thoughts that I haven’t gotten on
paper yet. I’ll give you a quick recap of my year since that revelation and
then hopefully update you from my new normal.
January: Start working at TIA as lead
infant teacher
February: Start application process to
get back to Haiti
March: TIA closed so I moved to be the
lead 3 year old teacher at Kiddie Academy
May: get accepted to OMS! (Start
fundraising)
July: resign from K.A. to head to
CROSS training in Indiana
August: two week of VBS and this one
week of prep before heading down!
** I think I fell
asleep because that last sentence wasn’t even finished.
August 21, 2016
It
hasn’t been an easy road, but I’m finally back in Haiti. A quote I kept finding in random places is this:
