16 Days and Counting...

Well... I leave for California in 16 days and straight to Australia from there. It's a weird feeling knowing that as soon as I leave, life goes on here and everything will change when I'm gone. Jon will be graduating, Tim and Carlee will be getting married, I'm missing every birthday in my immediate family, all of my roommates are turning 21, etc. Four, almost five months is a long time to be gone. It's 1/3 of a year.

I'm taking this trip to learn more about myself and more about God. Since I've been in college I've spent a lot of time struggling to know myself and to reach out to those around me. Being sent to a foreign country knowing no one is a good way to push me out of my comfort zone and help me learn to be dependent on God and a friend to strangers.

Obviously I'm nervous. I've never been away from Jon for more than a week. I've never been away from my family for more than a month. I've never been to Australia, let alone lived there. Basically, I'm a little freaked out. But I'm trying not to think about it too much. The more I think about what it's going to be like, the more nervous I will be to go. I feel confident that I will be forced to change, grow, and stretch in more ways I knew possible, and I have every intention to make the best of this once in a lifetime chance.

In the meantime, your prayers would mean a lot to me. I just need a little love and encouragement as I embark on this adventure.

Love,
Kristin