pumpkin spice starts in august

Lydia and I have been talking a lot about seasons of life, about our time at EBI coming to an end, about what we want to take away from this experience. Emmie and I have had similar conversations, about how crazy it is that we have new experiences yet a lot of the things we go through repeat on a circuit.  I mean, really, transition boils down to being a transition with all the typical feelings and decisions, regardless of age and experience. 

Preparing to leave Bible school feels a lot like the months before I arrrived here, even though the events are different.  Instead of leaving the Philippines and helping my grandmother make her doctor appointments, I am learning how to dreadlock hair and craft lattes. My sweet friend, Alisha, and I are trying to meet once a week. Tanner and I talk more and more about what the future looks like. Classes are increasingly missions-focused. 

It’s all good. And it’s also transition.  I’ll let you know how it goes.

summer snapshots

(Lydia and I on our way home from Bek’s wedding at the very beginning of summer. 20 hours one way is a long time.)

(Anna and Wes aren’t together, but that’s the joke 🤷🏼‍♀️)

(Tan and I at yet another wedding, laughing too hard like always)

(Tan and I went to a Brewers game with his family before I went to NY at the end of the summer to see my family.)

(During my visit home, I got to babysit my man Elijah.)

(I think the only thing I went to more than weddings this summer was the beach. Worth every second.)

august means update

Maybe you’ve never missed a job so much you thought about paying to be able to do it again, but let me tell you, friends, I’m there.  This whole summer I have missed early mornings out in the blueberry patch, knowing that I am working hard. So when I headed home for these two weeks, I thought I might pay a small chunk and pick berries for a few hours. But I forgot that my parents have blueberry bushes planted outside their kitchen window waiting to be picked. In fact, I forgot until my little brother suggested I pick the berries Thursday morning. There aren’t words to describe how stupidly happy that made me.

Going home has been an incredible time of rest. From having the sweetest seat-mate on the 22+ hour train ride, to seeing my best friend and two of my brothers within hours of coming home, to backpacking with Grace in the green mountains, to spending an afternoon with my Nan. I get to write and knit and watch Ugly Delicious and Chef’s Table on Netflix. I get to take my mornings for prayer and coffee.

Everyone always says rest is important and I rarely believe them. I’m excited for the upcoming semester and my graduation in December. I’m excited to be back in Waukesha in two weeks. But it’s two weeks away. So I’m also excited to finally rest.