Packing

I can hardly believe this time has come. We've been in various stages of preparation for Ethiopia for many months now. But it finally starts to feel real when you start to think about what to pack. We have our handy rubbermaid "action packers" (thanks to the suggestion from our experienced missionary friends Stu & Lauren) and have started making piles of things that must go and then things that might be able to go with us. Right now it's just a mess really. We're making valiant attempts at trying to keep it organized using a spreadsheet and various sections of the basement floor at the Kipfer parents' home. We also have the airline regulations that will ultimately determine what stays and what goes. We've worked about three hours today on this task and I suspect we'll be working a few hours daily for the next 4 or so days. At least that's my hope. Our goal is to have it done by this time next week. That way, we'll have a few days to just enjoy family before we depart on October 26. Feeling pretty good at this point but we'll see how it is a few days from now!

Back in the States

We made it back from Haiti safe and sound. We had 3 weeks of no air conditioning, cold showers, and living out of a suitcase (because I sure wasn't going to put my clothes in drawers where lizards or bugs could get on them). And yet, our time there was extremely valuable! We’ve actually been back about 3 weeks now. It’s always interesting traveling to and from a developing nation. The contrast in airports and transportation system is vast. It can take a little while to adjust to that change. For our departure, we left Les Cayes airport, taking a very small plane to Port-au-Prince where we were picked up by a friendly Haitian who transported us from the small airport to the International airport. After standing in some long lines with no air conditioning, we boarded our plane to Ft. Lauderdale. From there, we went through customs, then flew to Detroit. It was at the Detroit airport where I knew for sure that I was back in America. I think it hit me as I was walking through a well-air-conditioned tunnel on a moving sidewalk surrounded by waves of iridescent colors synchronized to music holding a café Americano from Starbucks. Welcome to America.

Haiti

Our roomate; our view; our vehicle; our friends:

One crazy trip

June 28-Aug 8
Here’s a condensed summary of the past 6 weeks since we left our home in Morton:
42 days on the road
5600 miles
12 different beds
14 states (IL, IA, NE, CO, NM, TX, LA, MS, AL, FL, GA, TN, KY, IN)


It seems exhausting and in some aspects it was. Thankfully only one of those 12 beds was less than optimal. We got stuck with a smoking room with stained walls, floors, ceilings, at a hotel on our way to Texas. Other than that, we’ve been blessed by the hospitality of many friends and family along the way.

We are in Bluffton now staying with the Kipfers. We had moved all of our belongings to Bluffton before we left so we’ve been able to sort through a few things and even feel a bit more “settled.” We emptied out the Jeep, took off the troublesome used bike rack and boy did that feel good! I’ve never enjoyed using a shop vac in 90 degree heat so much! I think the Jeep even breathed a sigh of relief as it was unloaded.

Now our next stop: Haiti. Sunday, August 16 we leave for Haiti for three weeks. We’ll be spending time with Rich and Amber Pfister and their family who recently moved to Haiti with LSM. We’ll also be getting acquainted with LSM’s Homes of Hope for orphans.

As we continue to travel and prepare for Ethiopia, we very much appreciate the continued prayers and support.

Heritage

Since we've left Texas, we've covered the Southern coast of the country fairly well. We drove east, spent the night in New Orleans, stopped to see a good friend in Gainesville, FL for dinner, and then landed in LaBelle, FL at my grandparents' place, Vic and Dorothy Beer. We enjoyed some quality time with the Beer family, and Kevin also had some time with his side of the family on the east coast of Florida.

I feel very blessed to have been able to spend time with my grandparents. I truly enjoy them so much. I love their sense of humor, their stories from times past(even if a few of the same stories are told multiple times), how they exemplify love, generosity, grace, and their traditions. One of their traditions that I've grown to appreciate more and more is morning devotions spent around the kitchen table. Grandpa and Grandma have their coffee and breakfast and then have morning devotions together and with whoever else is around the house. There's something about the combination of consistency and sincerity of that morning ritual that brings me comfort and joy. I know my grandparents love the Lord and the Word (they live it out every day) and I appreciate their desire to start their day in that way. In addition I appreciate how they gently invite others to participate in this time of devotion. What a heritage! I hope that when Kevin and I are 80 years old, we too can sit around our kitchen table with friends, family, or even strangers and share morning devotions together.

Don't mess with Texas

We thought we'd give a quick update of where we are now. Saturday we arrived in Temple, Texas where Staci (my sister) and her husband Brent just moved. Brent just started his residency at a hospital here in Temple. Staci and Brent have an adorable house decorated beautifully in their modern IKEA-like style with accents from their travels to India earlier this year.

On Sunday after church we drove to an area south of Austin and tubed down a river. Afterwards, we spent a little time in downtown Austin and then went to this great Mexican restaurant for dinner. It was very authentic and delicious! Unlike any other Mexican restaurant I had been to.

We'll be in Temple until Wednesday when we'll be heading East eventually landing in LaBelle, Florida at my grandparents' place.

Stay tuned for more adventures!

MTI Adventures

We've been learning quite a bit here at MTI. Some of the learnings happen in the classroom, while the majority happen outside of that venue through experiences while building community with our fellow MTI-ers or during our free time.

We had one interesting experience just last week. Kevin and I decided to go for a leisurely walk after class one afternoon before dinner. We were walking along and saw a group from MTI heading off on a hike and they invited us to join them. So we did.The hike started out nicely along a clear path. Soon though we were scrambling up rocks and going up some more challenging terrain towards the ridge of a small mountain behind MTI. Part of the group turned around about half-way there, but we continued on with the rest. I was never quite sure of what, if any, path we were on, but hoped our leaders were not leading us astray. Well, we made it to the top and enjoyed some beautiful views.

However, I could not ignore the dark clouds overhead.

We enjoyed the top of the ridge, took some pictures, and then started feeling raindrops. And I started getting a bit fearful. Every afternoon here in Colorado we've had some combination of hail, rain, and lightning so I figured that was coming. Kevin and I decided to go on down the mountain while the other 4 stayed up top. We began our descent. And the rain started coming down harder. And then the lightning and thunder. So we scooted down the steep parts, climbed over rocks, still not exactly sure of the path. Then we came to the wooded area. We could make out a trail maybe half the time. The thunderstorm continued. We just tried to keep descending, hoping to make it to a distinguishable path at some point. I was praying. Hard. Kevin was focused on the task at hand and somewhat oblivious to my concerns.

Finally, my heart racing and my anxiety surging, we made it to the bottom of the mountain, not too far from where we actually began the ascent. We heard some yelling from our fellow hikers who had found shelter at the top to wait out the storm. They had noticed we made it out and were rejoicing with us. We were still about 3/4 mile from our safe haven of the MTI building (where our dinner was awaiting). So we walked for a while, through mud and pouring rain. Then we decided to jog. Still through lots of mud and pouring rain. A bolt of lightning flashed nearby...way too close to my liking. So I just ran harder. Kevin, still not sharing my concerns, jogged along with me.

So, we did make it back safely to our room. Being our introverted selves, no word was spoken about my fear or Kevin's lack of fear during this adventure.

Lessons learned: We both need to communicate more openly. Thunderstorms concern me more than Kevin. Despite these facts, we seem to handle stress alright. Which is a good thing since another thing we've learned at MTI is how much stress missionaries face overseas.