California was amazing in so many ways! Seeing a significant amount of my wonderful family was a blessing like nothing else! Going running in the mornings with my Dad, a pedicure date with my Mom, swinging out over the river bed with my wild nephews and being part of a gorgeous wedding was just the tip of the iceberg! Girl time complete with pink crowns, underwater cameras and fried rice was wonderfully refreshing for this jungle woman!! But, not wanting to turn completely soft, I did spend a decent amount of time with the guys; ultimate frisbee, monkey bars, and slack lining, quite literally, left their mark on me :) I was able to meet up with my sweet, Finnish friend that I bunked with during my time in Australia!! And my last day on the mainland was spent at a water park; the only possible way to deal with 109 degree weather!
Aside from the obvious: standing in the hot shower for as long as I wanted and flushing the toilet over and over, there were a few other civilized 'luxuries' that I took full advantage of in Cali :) Pouring cereal into my bowl and not having to do an ant inspection made honey nut cheerios that much more delicious! Putting on clothes without having to first shake out any visiting spiders or bugs was an enormous relief! And rolling out of bed and being barefoot, feeling the carpet squish between my toes, was absolutely glorious!
As much as I LOVED every minute of my trip, there were a lot of things I missed! Derek is, quite obviously, at the top of that list. Traveling by myself was definitely an experience, but let's be real: layovers, airplane snacks and security confusion is entirely more entertaining with your best friend! Plus, I can't possibly do justice to all that I did and saw, and it would've been that much better with him at my side. BUT, we are reunited now and everything is right in the world :) We got home from the airport and sat at the table just talking and drinking coffee (I was experiencing severe withdrawals!) until we realized it was pitch black and we could hardly see each other!! Suffice it to say, I won't be taking vacations without my other half any time soon!
The other things I missed may seem insignificant but have become an integral part of life as I know it. Waking up to the sound of the jungle. Rain...lots of it! The 'Aloha' on the Island and our incredible church family! 'The pooch', Kai, and his crazy, puppy antics! Swimming in the ocean. Being challenged on a daily basis. Mangos! And the unbelievably, perfect temperature on this island.
People struggle with wrapping their minds around this life that we're living. But it wasn't until I stepped away from it all for two weeks that I could begin to grasp how incredibly, bazar our situation is and how much I truly love it!
Derek held down the fort while I was absent and had some wild, night diving adventures! He said things were pretty quiet around here and is glad to have jungle life resume as normal! Drinking coffee and digging into our Bibles has been especially sweet the last few mornings. Weed wacking is... still weed wacking, BUT we did tear through one field in a record two hours! And we're gearing up for harvest and eagerly anticipating a visit from Derek's parents this week!!
I want to share one last thing that was a bit out of the norm, frustrating and, most definitely, orchestrated by God. There's this ugly, rusted barrel residing at the edge of our neighbors property; it's sagging, jagged smile greet us every single day. Derek asked said neighbor about this significant, chunk of metal and he confessed to hating the sight of it as well and told of his faulty attempt to get rid of it and only making it to the edge of the property. Oh, and we have his blessing to haul it out! Perfect. That was a few weeks ago but on Thursday, out of the blue, Derek decides it's time to take action. It takes us a few tries, but we do manage to roll it up some boards and into the back of the truck. Phase one complete! However, we are quickly informed, upon arrival at the dump, that we've come to the wrong place and our mission just got a bit more complicated. Apparently, we have to go to the location all the way on the other side of town. It's at least another twenty minutes of driving and they close at 6:00.. it's 5:37! Not to be deterred after coming so far, we go for it! The good news is: we arrived with a minute to spare! The bad news is, we were misled and the metal accepting part of the dump closes at 4:30!! Mission.. not accomplished. Gas.. sadly, wasted.
On our way back, trying to think of a way to salvage the trip, we realize it's the right day AND time for worship at the YWAM base!! It was a powerful evening and God definitely meant for us to be there! The message was on waiting and the fact that most of the time it's not about the destination but the journey. What you do/learn during the 'in-between times' can be so much more important than what you're actually waiting for! I definitely needed to hear this and it's no coincidence that God lined everything up so we were able to.
I absolutely LOVE this jungle life and the wild adventure we're on, but I am human and female at that! I do think about the future and I plan, scheme and dream. Nothing is wrong with that, but I can't lose sight of the 'now'! I need to embrace everything that God is teaching me TODAY! Yes, I would love a small glimpse of 'what's next' but God wants me to trust Him with my future! We want to stay here through harvest, Lord willing, but life after that is a big unknown.. and that's okay! God has taught us so much already and blown our minds in countless ways!! He is continually guiding, providing and loving us! Even the fact that we ended up at the base on Thursday night is proof of His hand at work in our lives. The next morning Derek read Psalms 37:23; 'The LORD directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives!'
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