Know that You are Holy: April 2015

It's been nearly three months... How did that happen???

Not too long after I last posted I went home to visit for a couple of weeks. I had mixed feelings about going home. Of course I was excited to see everyone but I had also grown to love my life here. I was nervous that if I went home I wouldn't want to come back here. I was nervous that I wouldn't fit into life there anymore. I was nervous about enjoying the comforts of home too much. But I left the 90 degree sunny days for what ended up being three weeks of endless snow. I think in the few weeks I was home it snowed 7 feet and Boston broke the record for the snowiest winter ever. Guess I didn't miss winter after all!

I had no problems adjusting right back to life in the States although it took a couple days I get used to driving again- especially in the snow! had planned to be home for two weeks but because of all the snow my time was rushed and I ended up staying for an extra week. I was overwhelmed by all the family and friends who wanted to see me. It was great to catch up and share stories and just be loved on by everyone.  By the end of that extra week though I felt ready to back.

Going back was harder than I thought though. I didn't see that coming. It didn't help that my luggage was lost for a few days. I felt out of place and couldn't get back into the groove here. Things I used to love now drove me crazy and I struggled for a couple weeks. I really wasn't sure if my heart was here anymore. How could I go from wanting to live here for multiple years to not being sure if I will even make it to the summer...in just three weeks time?! What happened?   I decided that I would stay till the summer no matter what and we will see what happens from there. There will lots of changes here with people leaving and new ones coming. My funds run out in July also so if I do stay I will need to fundraise again for another year.

Then one weekend I got to visit some of the people from my first two trips at the guesthouse where I first fell in love with this place. It was up there on the roof that night that my heart remembered why I love it here. It was that roof where I first fell in love with the roosters and sunrises and sunsets. It was that roof just a year ago that I prayed about my second trip and then on that second trip, about moving here. All those initial feelings came back and I felt alive again.

God knew this timing because it was the next week that I had to unexpectedly go home for my uncle's funeral. If it had been even a week before I would have packed all my bags and left for good but God had other plans. He allowed me to fall in love with this place again before I had to return home. I went home for a week and spent the much needed time with family during a very difficult time. And when it was time to return to Haiti again, I had no problem going back or jumping right back into life here. I was still in love.

More obstacles have come up that try to make me want to leave but I just see it as all the more reason to stay. Clearly the enemy doesn't want me here which is all the more reason for me to push forward... knowing that God still has work for me to do here.

Here are the last few months in pictures...