So Hard to say Goodbye

Why is it so hard to say goodbye... I always find it hard to say goodbye to my college friends at the end of the school year, but then I know when fall comes I'll be seeing them again. 

However, this is different, tomorrow, I'm saying goodbye to some kids that I have grown SO close to while I have been in Thailand these last two weeks. Kids that have finally learned my name, always want to say Hi and jump rope with me, and kids that have just touched my heart. I don't know when I'll ever see them again and it's so hard to say goodbye to them. 

Sure, I'll have millions of memories, lots of great pictures of all the kids, but it will never be the same as seeing their smiling faces, cute little dimples, and beautiful dark brown eyes everyday when they arrive at school and greet you with a happy "Good morning teacher" and running up with a jumprope so that you will twirl the rope while they jump. 

I've gotten used to getting up at 6 in the morning to get to a school that is so Christ-centered in the middle of a Buddhist nation, just to see those kids smile at you, pray to God and sing about how big, strong, and mighty our God is. It has been so much fun to be able to communicate with these kids that hardly know any English except a few words... and really just a few words, a smile, and laughter is all you need to be able to reach out to these kids. 

Overall.. tomorrow is going to be a hard, sad day, I don't think any of the kids fully understand that it is my last day there. We'll say goodbye at the end of the day and that will be it, our final goodbye with a hope to see each other again sometime... 

It's been such a blessing to be here, and while it doesn't look like much has changed on the outside, I know that my heart is forever changed on the inside through what God has taught me while here, how the kids and teachers have reached out to me, and just how special this area of Thailand really is. Sunday night, I'm getting back on a plane and flying back to the States. I'm happy to be going home and excited to get ready for another great year at Dordt, but I know that from now on, a piece of my heart will always be in Thailand and that someday, I need to find a way back. 

Flying through God's Creation

Yesterday, Kayla and I, along with one of the English teachers, Rebekah, from The School of Promise, where we are volunteering (check out the link to the right!), went zip-lining through the jungle of Thailand!

The principle of the school picked the three of us up from the teacher's house and drove us into downtown Chiang Mai to the office. We paid for our trip and followed a driver to a van. The van took us on an hour's drive up the mountain and into the jungle. It was a beautiful road, but very bumpy and curvy... all to say it's a good thing I don't get motion sick! 

When we reached the top, we got out of the van and were ushered inside of the office for Jungle Flight. We filled out release forms (basically with just our name and age, they don't really care about how old you are or anything here!), used the bathrooms, then got our harnesses and helmets on, and handed a stick of bamboo... which is used as a brake! 

We walked a little ways down to a platform where the first zipline started. Our guide was named Mr. Boston... he was very crazy but definitely made things fun! He kind of read us safety rules and then basically hooked us up to the cord and let us fly! 

Our course was the longest one, it consisted of about 33 platforms, 22 ziplines, sky bridges, and 4 repels. Our longest zipline was 300 meters long and looking below on that flight was breathtaking! 

The jungle was beautiful! There was rushing water, gorgeous plants and birds, and plus it was raining so everything so much more beautiful! It's too bad the pictures we took can't capture what the jungle really looks like because its just so hard to put it into words, and pictures don't do the jungle any justice. It's a good thing God blessed us with great memories because I definitely used my mental camera a lot yesterday! 

Have you ever stopped to wonder about all the different things God created? I don't think I ever really thought about it before, but spending yesterday flying through God's creation made me realize just how amazing God really is! I encourage you all to stop sometime and marvel at all God created for us, The world is His and everything in it belongs to Him, we just get the privilege of living in it and enjoying it! So take out a mental camera (because real cameras don't do God's creation a lot of justice) and snap some mental pictures of amazing memories and things you encounter because who knows when you'll ever get the chance to "fly through God's creation" again! 

One Beautiful Place

I have officially been in Thailand for 3 days now and it has been some of the best days ever! 


The flight over to Thailand was long... we spent 12.5 hours on a flight from Chicago to Korea, then spent 4.5 hours from Korea to Thailand. They were long flights, but we were occupied with lots of movies and trying to sleep! Our cousin, Marvel, met us at the airport and brought us back to their house. She showed us our room and then showed us the rest of the house. Kayla and I are in a room at the front of the house which has two beds in it! We unpacked some and then decided to go right to bed! 


On Monday, we slept in and then got to say HI to Kirsten and Hezekiah, our little cousins! After playing with them, Marvel brought us over to The School of Promise where Kayla and I would be volunteering. We went on a tour of the school and got to eat lunch there with the kids and all the teachers. We were introduced to all the classes and got to do some work in the library. We then left and went to a grocery store which is kind of like a Sam's Club or Costco. We got some groceries and then spent some time back at the house baking a cake and playing with the kids. For supper that night all the English teachers came over. It was really fun to meet them more and learn more about the work they are doing and how on fire they are for God and teaching these kids who live in a very Buddhist population about Christ! During dinner that night we also got to hear about the weekend plans since this coming weekend is a 4 day weekend because of a Buddhist holiday. We were so tired after dinner because of jet lag, so we went through the swimsuits that we brought out with us and then headed to bed. 


Tuesday was our first day working at the school. We rode with our cousin Joel and got to hear about Thai culture until we reached the school. When we got there, we were able to sing some songs with all the teachers -- Thai and English -- It was so cool to sing songs together with everyone because all the Americans sang in English and the Thai teachers sang in Thai. To hear the same songs sung in two different languages at the same time was so cool! We prayed together and then all the teachers left and Joel gave us a little orientation about what the school's mission is. Then it was time to interact with the kids! Our first activity was working with Miss Brittany's class (one of the English teacher's). We got to do science flash cards with the kids and then watch them as they played a game. After that, Kayla and I each taught 3 PE classes. We taught the students how to jump rope and say the rhyme "Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear." We had so much fun jumping rope with the kids, or twirling the rope for them. It was fun to hear them laugh! After the day at school, was swim club. I got to work with one of the classes and swim with them and play with the students during free time! 


Wednesday, we spent the day at the school again. All the teachers sang together again before class started, and then Kayla and I moved to the library and started to sweep and mop it, then we washed down all the mats and chairs with Brittany and Joel before rearranging shelves and cataloging new books! During the breaks for kids, Kayla and I found a new little buddy, named Mai. She is a 1st grader and is super cute! She doesn't speak much English, but the fact that we can still communicate to her is amazing. During lunch, she pulled Kayla and I over to a table and set up a checkers game to play with her. It was so much fun and we had another little girl come and join us too! After lunch, we finished the library then spent some time in the music room talking with Brittany, Emily, and Rebecca, the other English teachers. When school finished, we waited for some of the students to leave; while waiting we jumped rope together out in the rain. Once again, it was so much fun to play with these kids and be able to communicate through smiles, laughs, and simple English words! 


So there is an update for you all! It has been such an experience out here so far. The country is beautiful, very hot and humid, but beautiful. These students and teachers at the school are such beautiful children of the wonderful God we serve! My time here has been such a blessing to me so far and I can't wait to see what else God has in store for the time I have left here! 

The truth is...

...I'm getting a tad scared :) 
So, it's only like 3 days till I get all packed up and drive with my family to Chicago. 
We are spending Friday night in Chicago because Kayla's and my flight leaves at 10am Chicago time on Saturday and we have to be there around 2 hours early because it is an international flight. 
I am so excited for this next adventure in my life, but I have to say, I'm also a tad scared. I spent all last night worrying about the plane flight and all the things that could go wrong—engine failing, bad weather, and so many more—then I would go through the whole list of people who have done long flights before and were made it safely there and back. And after reassuring myself, I would go back to worrying. It was such a long night of so many switchbacks going on in my mind. Finally I calmed down and prayed myself to sleep hoping that my fears would be relieved in the morning. 
I woke up this morning and right away started worrying again. I had to run a bunch of errands today—going to appointments, picking up different jobs from work, etc. I was driving around listening to the local MI Christian radio station when the song "Lift Me Up" by the Afters came on. It came at just the perfect time, and I listened to the chorus and realized that God is lifting me up and is carrying me on this journey. 
I want to copy down the lyrics so you all can read them and continue to pray for me and my sister:
You lift me up when I am weak.
Your arms wrap around me.
Your love catches me so I'm letting go.
You lift me up when I can't see.
Your heart's all that I need.
Your love carries me so I'm letting go. 
It's so true, isn't it? God is surrounding us with his love and that's all we need. We don't have to worry, he's catching us and carrying us wherever he is leading us. I'm so beyond blessed to have God guiding me on this journey and to have so many family and friends praying me out to Thailand and back! 
I couldn't do it without the love of God, and the prayers of everyone. How else am I going to stop worrying if I don't let go and rely on God?
Well, like I said earlier, this journey that once seemed like forever ago is finally beginning to creep up on me, and to state it plainly: I'm scared and excited. Scared about 22 hours of air time and being in a foreign country, but most of all, excited to see what God has in store to teach me during this journey! 


And just a fair warning.. I won't be posting again until I'm either in Korea waiting for my next flight or in Thailand! 
Keep the prayers coming my friends, and remember God's carrying us all with his love, we can let go and let God!