Colorado. It has begun!

I am now in Colorado. And it's AMAZING! But let me back up a little...

Since my last post I have been packing, spending quality time with friends, losing my mind and traveling across the country. And it has all been very good. As I look back over the past few weeks I am blown away (and many times left in stunned silence) by the support and encouragement of both friends and family. I would not be here without them and I'm confident that their support will help carry me through this summer. 

I arrived in the Denver area on Saturday, May 15th. The time since then has been filled with playing with kids, designing curriculum templates, hanging out with families, eating ice cream, spending a weekend in the mountains, meeting new people, living with a family of 8, planning activities, and the list goes on. It's been nonstop, but not draining. 

To be honest, I arrived with some apprehension and uncertainty about what this summer will hold. Over the past week, God has been slowing removing those pieces and replacing them with a deep peace and growing excitement for what is to come. I'm even to the point where even though I don't have all the details, I'm not going crazy - which is huge. 

A quick snap shot of the next month or so...

May 27-28 - Training

May 28-June 6 - Students will be arriving for a 60 day program

June 7-24 - Dominican Republic & Hati 

June 24-July 2 - Bethel College in Indiana for a High School summer camp

The goal is to update fairly often and hopefully they will be a little deeper then, "Hey - here's the facts of what's been going on." But at least this is a starting point. 

Calm? Not really.

Maybe one day I will be able to be as calm and collected as I wish I could be. But that day is most definitely not today. If I said everything that actually went on in my head when I am feeling overwhelmed and stressed....well we just won't really think about it. 

I leave Atlanta in 4 days and begin the journey to Colorado. It's amazing at how established a person can get in a a short time. And to be honest, I'm not a  huge fan of change. I mean I get bored with monotony and like to mix things up every once in awhile, but this whole being uprooted and moving into completely unknown and unfamiliar territory - not exactly my strength. So my mind races and my body strains to keep up with the thoughts. I keep randomly getting up to go write something down so I don't forget it. Or go do something so that it's not left undone. Rest is almost impossible at this point - just ask my roommate. Today I actually got a little sad when I realized that it wasn't the best decision for me to engage in an activity that can be very calming for me - cleaning. I didn't have time to vacuum. It's a little pathetic. 

In all of the insanity, the lists, the errands, the searching for lost shot records, and the jobs, there is people. Ah...can't forget the people. And with people comes an intense struggle to be present. To be able to lay aside "everything that needs to be done" and share space and time with the people around me I love. The stress is so intense right now that conversation is actually physically difficult. I'm not joking. My heart rate increases when I think about having to talk. Absurd, right? 

But in the moments when I let my heart speak, I am reminded that this path has been set before me. It is right. God continues to make that abundantly clear. And there are glimmers of peace. Now if I can just keep my head attached to my heart...

Hopefully over these next few days I will choose to not the stress have the last word. Hopefully there will be good conversation, laughter shared, and maybe a few tears shed. Hopefully there will be life lived.