Days Go By...

A year ago I was stepping off the plane. I had said goodbye to people that loved me, places that were familiar to me, a language that I could speak. I stepped off into a land that I knew nothing about. It ws then a land that was dark and scary. People looked different, smelled different, ate things that didnt seem edible. They didnt seem to smile, they had no joy, they were just their work, their hardships, their struggle. And I was a bleary-eyed American girl, who had been told forever that she could do anything in the world that she wanted to do.
I was such a little girl then. I didnt have a clue about things like paying bills, handling emergency situations, even simple things like grocery shopping or knowing how to cook baffled me. But I was forced to grow up; and grow up I have, in a way that I never would have imagined.
I've learned volumes about obedience, about the expense of it; about trust, about God's faithfulness always. I've been on two different teams, in two cities, in three apartments. I've endured several floods and a small fire, plus countless cultural mistakes. I've learned to smile through the tears, to laugh at the things that would have previously crippled me, to enjoy the quiet solitude that comes from a peace that really can surpass all understanding. I've honed my cooking skills, my bargaining skills, my hospitality skills, and my people skills. No part of who I am has been untouched; I have been held in the fire past my burning point, but no longer than our precious Father wanted to keep me there.
ALl of that to say, I wouldnt change one second of it... Here's to the year of my life... and the promise of another to come.
Paca