I mentioned in one of my earlier blogs that I'm living out (or close to) living out my childhood dream of being a missionary. In 16 days (that will be here before I know it), I'll be leaving my hometown of Weedville, PA to fly thousands of miles to my new home for the next year, Costa Rica. When I tell people the next year of my life will be spent in Costa Rica (C.R.), they usually say "poor you". I'm excited about going there, but my life in C.R. will not be an extended vacation. No doubt, I will be living up every moment, but it'll all be invested in learning Spanish and the culture of Latin America. Learning a new language will have it's challenges and there will be days I'll probably want to curl up in a corner and cry my eyes out, but overall I'm believing that it'll be good and I know learning Spanish is quite necessary. After my year in C.R., I will head to Ecuador to make it my home and share my life, my Jesus with the people there. And I need/want to be able to do it all in their language. This past February, I went to Ecuador for one week and I vividly remember the frustration that I felt not being able to communicate with them. I could recognize just words and certain phrases, but not enough to understand what was being communicated. I made up my mind then, I would do whatever it takes to learn Spanish. And so, in 16 days that'll be my life. I will be living with a host (Tica) family for the next year (that's the goal at this point). My Tica mom does not know any English. I know very, very, very little Spanish. I'm sure we'll become quite the pair as I struggle to communicate with her. The good news is she's been hosting students from the language school for 28 years, so she will understand the frustrations that I'll face. She'll understand if I ending up crying because I'm not sure what she's saying. She'll be patient with me and help me as I learn. For that, I'm thankful and I'm looking forward to this experience.
There's much to be done in the next 16 days, while I'm still at home. But I don't feel frazzled, at least not at this moment. I'm trying to get my things packed up for C.R. and get a jump start in packing for Ecuador. (I'll come back "home" after C.R. to get my visa for Ecuador, then head off.) I'm savoring my moments with my family and friends. I'm so thankful for their support and excitement as I'm starting a new chapter in my life, but I know many of them are dreading saying "goodbye". I'm sure many tears will be shead over the upcoming days. Perhaps I should keep tissues handy wherever I go. :)
I've been waiting for so long for this and I almost can't believe the time is near. Sixteen days. Wow! Soon, very soon.
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