I'm a Sailor!

It's official! I'm a United States Sailor. I graduated from Navy boot camp on October 30. Boot camp was a very exciting time and a great experience. I honestly loved it and didn't think that it was very hard. On tv and in movies boot camp is portrayed as nothing but exercise and people yelling at you (which there is quite a bit of) but in reality it is so much more, at least in the Navy. My favourite part is how I was challenged to do better in everything, to do my best or better than my best in running, tests and in personal standards. I was challenged in all aspects of life.
November 1 I turned 22. I am having a hard time believing that I am 22. My family, grandparents and my friend Matt came down for graduation and I was so blessed to share my birthday with them! I was really sick at the time so it was not a whole lot of fun but them just being there was great. We went to the Jelly Belly factory, my dad's old friends house and I even found a Dunn Brothers Coffee (the coffee shop I worked at for a year) and fully enjoyed that. My brother, sister and I swam at the hotel - she's still talking about it. Family is such a blessing. They make my world what it is and knowing that they are there no matter what and fully supporting me means more than anything I could possibly ask for!
As of now I am in Pensacola, Florida waiting to start my school where I learn my job. I have been here since November 4. Florida is great. I love the warmth and do not miss the snow that would be going on right now if I were still in Wisconsin. I am working with a great group of people. We actually are like a disfunctional family with the way we screw around, make fun of each other and look out for one another. I guess you could throw a little love in there as well.
That is an update on the Navy. I am excited to keep you all abreast of what comes next!
P.S. Thank you so much for all your letters during boot camp!

Leaving Soon

This is at my swearing in for the Navy.

I leave for Navy boot camp in two weeks. It’s crazy that the time is sneaking up so fast. With that comes a lot of different emotions that I have been feeling. Excitement is probably top and the grief over the changes that are taking place. My friend Leslie is moving to England for a year for school so we are both going through the same emotions which helps a great deal. She understands it.
Since last writing at the end of July I have run two more races. One was the Gopher to Badger Half Marathon which I finished in 2:45 and a 5K for Pepperfest that I didn’t do well on (38:00). Running has been good. It has given me time to pray and LISTEN to God. Listening has always been the hard part for me so when I run I have time to actually listen to my Father.
Since I’m leaving for boot camp soon I probably wont be able to update this for a really long time. Basically I head to Great Lakes, IL and then Pensacola, Fl for A school (training school) and after that I have no idea where I’ll be living. Please keep me in your prayers as I enter this new phase of my life. Thank you so much! Be blessed.

Montana

I got back on Sunday morning from Montana. It was a lovely time! I went on a mission trip as a leader. Having been on the trip four other times as a student in high school, I enjoyed going back as a leader. We worked on a house building walls and doing some other little odd jobs as well as doing mudding and tapping on a garage then priming and painting it. The students did amazing work. I am proud of how they worked through the heat of a 100* day and then the thunderstorm another day. The students are into their second week of the trip and this time backpacking in Montana. I miss being with them, hearing about their stories as well as sharing a few of my own. The reason I came back was to continue preparing for the Navy and for boot camp. Today I took another step in fulfilling my desire to join the Navy. Myself and my friend Darian, who is also joining the Navy, knocked our physical fitness test out of the way. Push ups, sit ups and a mile and a half run. Needless to say, I was tired when we finished. The whole process has been interesting to see how things work. Please continue to pray for me as I set out to start boot camp at some point soon (hopefully).

Running in Place

On May 30 I ran a 5K (3.1 miles). It was my first race since long ago at Camp Forest Springs about 9 or 10 years ago. I ended up getting done in 33:40 minutes. Not too bad considering I haven't been running for very long.
My next running venture is to run a half - marathon on August 8. I'm running with an amazing group of girls. We gather to pray first and then we run. Tomorrow is four miles. It's going to be a long run.
The thing is... as I'm running and dealing with the after affects of running I am learning a lot about endurance and perseverance. Also, I'm learning about myself and God and our relationship as well as learning about the world through a running viewpoint. It's something I'll have to go into more detail about but I am seeing things through a different perspective these days.
The other thing is the military. Yes, the military! It teaches you to value life and to value relationships and moments. There are songs and poems and sayings about valuing the tiny moments in life but do we ever take the time? I have set this summer apart to value it. Value my relationships and the small quiet moments in life.
More to come on these topics but I need to do some homework - summer Personality class.

Reflections on Mexico (When I Fell In Love)

On my journal cover I made there is a sentence that says "When I Fell In Love". Each journal that I have I feel there is a word or sentence that defines the experiences written about in the journal. This sentence, for this time is "When I Fell In Love".
In going to Mexico in March I told God that I wanted to get back on track and grow stronger in my relationship with Him. The last two weeks I was in Mexico were challenging. I got a great group to work with the third week. They were from Canada, so much fun to be with, amazingly musical and ready for just about anything. (Even learning a skit and then performing it for the kids. They didn't speak Spanish and that was what language the skit was in. They did a great job.) I was again the translator for this team. I was tested greatly in translating during my time in Mexico this year and I hope I learned from the experience. With this team I was able to experience a small soup kitchen run by a woman who has a very big heart. The woman runs the kitchen with her own money as well as donations from the local government when the government gets around to giving out food. A frustrating part of Mexican government sometimes. Her family does not have much but God has provided greatly. I was so touched by her heart for the 25 children she feeds daily. She has the heart of God for the poor!
One of my favourite YWAM speakers, Phil Cunningham, spoke week three. He spoke on passion and purpose. The part that grabbed my attention was when Phil said "if you are passionate about Jesus, you need to be reading your Bible and talking to Jesus. It's not enough for you to be around passionate people but you have to act it out as well." I realized I haven't been living out my love/passion for Jesus, the person who I have given my heart to. My marriage to Jesus has been dead and I killed it. Thankfully Jesus is loving and ever willing to give me second chances. I need that! I am falling back in love with Jesus and it is a wonderful feeling.
The fourth week I was not with a team. I spent a lot of time being sick with food poisoning. The week I spent sick was a very hard week. The majority of our staff was sick. I learned the joy and peace of God during that week as I struggled through being sick as well as speaking Spanish and translating in sessions for our Mexican students. God talked to me in the time I was quiet and laying sick in my bed. He told me that I was not the person I was last year at this time. I also learned that I am in Wisconsin for this time and for a purpose.
Coming home mid-April, I felt a strong need to continue to rebuild my relationship with Jesus. I need a stronger, firm foundation for the next step in life. Our theme for this year was RE:ACT. The question posed by our speakers for the students was "how are you going to RE:ACT to what Jesus has done?" This question I posed to myself. There is a call on my life and on yours. One to do ministry (love others) wherever you are at. To love someone and share that love with them. Give them dignity and let them know they are loved. That is the challenge to RE:ACT.

More from Mexico

Last week was a tough week. This team was hard to get the kids motivated and for some parts of our program that was kind of frustrating. They were quiet and reserved and their youth pastor was the same. Sunday we found out that the bus they are using would not make it up the steep hills we need to go up (basically straight up) and so we had to shuttle up the hill with our van every day while going up and down to the church. Sunday it also rained so we were not able to do the ministry with skateboards and that was disappointing. We ended up going downtown Ensenada and were able to walk around. Martine, Amanda and I got coffee at one of the local coffee shops and had a chance to sit down and enjoy life. Monday we went to work on the land of the church in the morning and then in the afternoon we went to do a kids program. First off, there were down power lines and so we had to go down two different streets to get over to the one which we found when again, straight up. We walked up; I had to several times because I needed to get things from the van. Yes, this one the van couldn't even get up. The kids program was a wreck. They had a puppet show to do but the pastors computer had to be restarted and wouldn't work and so we taught the kids the dance to "Every Move I Make" in Spanish and then stalled for a billion seconds. Also, Martine told the girl to read the wrong chapter so she read David and Goliath which is a really long story. (I do however believe that God can use this even though we may not see it) Then they still couldn't get the computer to work and play the puppet show music so the translator from the church and a student who is bilingual translated the words into Spanish as they read. It was crazy! They did a good job however and the people thought it was funny. Then Monday night we went downtown to prayer walk. As we were praying for the Red Light district a car broke down right in front of us. This was the second one, the first one was hanging off a cliff on Sunday and we helped to pull it up off the cliff. As we had been praying, I had been noticing some prostitutes hanging out on the opposite curb. Before we left I had debated bringing a Nature Valley bar with me and giving it to someone if I felt like I should. Well... I didn't bring it. And I felt God telling me to give the prostitute something to eat. I asked the leader of the team if I could walk to the OXXO and buy something for her (which ended up being a transvestite). So I grabbed Amanda and we walked together. As we were there, they were able to get the car started (the guy ended up being a missionary from Oregon who had just been to Sierra Leone). As we walked back, we walked straight through the group. Another girl that was with us, Jacque, asked if we were going to go talk to the prostitute because God had laid on her heart to give him/her money. So we walked down to where we were and gave the food, drink and money to the prostitute, prayed for him/her and then said we wanted this to be a blessing to them and that God loved them and they had worth and value in God's eyes. Pretty powerful! None of us talked as we walked back to the van. As I was walking back, God told me that I need to have respect for his children and show them that respect by the way I treat/talk to them. **In sharing this, I am not giving any glory or praise to us but all to God. He is the one who prompted us and made us act. Tuesday we had a couple kids who had stomach aches, had thrown up and then Neil, who is working with the girls and I, wasn't feeling good either. We walked around in the hills Tuesday and talked to people and told them about the church. I felt like a mountain goat because we were climbing straight up hill and in dirt and all that. Then we went back after lunch and continued our work on the church. They got a lot done and we were proud of them. Wednesday we went to a day care for the kids of the migrant workers and then the Bufadora (a local tourist attraction). Yay for cheap tourist things!
I’ve been translating for the team that I’ve been working with and that has really tested my Spanish skills. Thankfully there have been others who have been with the teams and we have team translated.
This week the team I’m with is from Canada and they have been pretty sweet. They are a very flexible and musical team so that helps out since we are not sure what our schedule is day to day. I stayed back at the base sick today. People have been getting sick the past few weeks and I thought I had made it out safe but I guess not. Tomorrow (Tuesday) I am hoping to go out again with the team. I am going to try and sleep. Thanks for reading. Please comment if you have questions or comments!
***Please pray for health and renewed strength for us as staff.

Mexico!

Hola from Mexico! I'm here and it's great so far. I am translating/hosting for a team I've worked with the last two years. I am so thankful for the friendships with the team members from years past and now from this year. We built a house for a family of five (finished today). They have three sons and all the family members were very sweet. I really enjoyed our trip to Wal Mart yesterday with the family. The youngest son loved the experience and the older two had fun as well. I had fun joking and laughing with the older two sons. Today I had a chance to roof half the house with a few others. It was great. We did it really fast so that was pretty sweet. I love to be up on the roof and I wasn't afraid as I thought I would be. I almost slid off a roof on a ladder when I was younger so I am afraid of it now. But I wasn't afraid until I had to get down.
It's been great being back here in Ensenada! I have eaten tacos four times already since Friday. They are so good! Our speaker this week is a friend of Sheril, one of my friends from DTS and he is so good at reaching the middle high ages. I really appreciate his experience and love for the middle high age students. I'm learning from him. One thing that was really cool is that I've been asking God why I'm here in Ensenada for this month and someone gave me a word from God that I am here looking for God and his strength. So that was amazing to have that question answered. I really am looking for renewal in my relationship with God because I feel like I've been slidding lately. So anyways, that is a bit of what I'm up to. I need to run and call my parents then read some Psychology. Adios.

***The top picture is our house and then the one on the right is me, Teresa and Brian on the roof!

I Made It...

I made it to San Diego! It's cloudy right now. I feel like every time I come the city wants to welcome me with clouds. I normally love cloudy weather but today I was in the mood for some sun. I think cloudy is normal for this time of year. I guess I could consult Ron Burgandy (Anchorman) but I probably will leave that for others.
I'm taking a homework break right now. I am waiting for my friend Marla to cross back over the Mexican border so we can go get tacos for supper and then go to the YWAM base to do some work. I really hate waiting. I'm really bad at it, always have been actually. When I was younger I think my dad would make me wait on purpose so I would "learn" patience. Probably not because my dad isn't like that but it felt like it sometimes.
My homework is actually pretty interesting. I'm really liking psychology and I can't wait to get past the basic information (I'm only on chapter two) and get to the other information. Geography is another story! I am avoiding it like the plague. It will get done though. I'm kind of freaking out because I have to have both classes done by May and I'm down here in San Diego/Mexico for a month and I'll be occupied most of the time. Oh well. I guess I'll just be reading text books as bed time stories.
Summer plans have been established! I'm going to nanny over the summer. I'm excited. I let the family know yesterday and then found out last night that I did not get the job I applied for at a ranch in Stillwater, MN. So the peace I felt about telling the family was right on.
So that is a little update on life. I'm going to try and update and put up pictures of what I'm doing in Mexico but I'm not sure how much time I'm going to have.
Peace for now, from a quiet San Diego apartment.

Concentration

Have you ever played the game concentration? Because of all the time I spend at camps and at YWAM, working with kids you get you know these games. Such as "Big Booty", "Concentration" and other ones that don't have names or if they do, they probably have names that are different in different areas. Basically for "concentration" you have to say a number then if you are that number that was said, then you bounce being 'it' to the next number. But for those of you who have been with me in a big group of people, I have a really hard time concentrating on one thing for an extended period of time. (Unless it's really important, then I'm on task.) So the game of Concentration is not an easy one for me. But what got me on that topic is that I'm at Caribou, trying to work on homework, especially one paper I've been working on for a week and a half and I'm still not done and I cannot pay attention to the paper or what I'm trying to write.
I have to write on what it will take to convince the U.S. to change it's attitude about energy resources. I really don't care about this topic but I have to write it for my Intro to Geography course. Basically it sucks to write! I only have another few sentances left.
Last night I went to send off the FCC Mexico Mission Trip team and it was sad. But Sari and I were VERY awake at 3:00am and it was fun. Counselor training in use! Well, maybe life and training myself to snap to alertness. Anyways, which ever works.
Now I'm going to try and finish this paper for the whole 20 points its worth - talk about a stupid project. Thankfully I only have five more lessons in this course then I'm done forever! Praise the Lord!
Peace

Another Old Writing

Wishing too much, hoping to get away
Hurting too much, wishing to leave
I am wishing, wanting to leave
The hurt fills inside of me
I want to run away
Away from it all, I want to leave, run fast
Wishing only makes it worse
When will I be done here
I want out, away from this heartbreak
Away from the longing
Hurting from those around me
I want away
I want a place where there is no pain, no hurting too much
Friends stab knives, daggers, blood gushes from within
Broken I lay, cracked like a porcelain doll
Broken on the street
****This is from January 2006, not present day.

New Stuff - And a little Old

I bought my plane ticket! To Mexico. On March 12. I’m excited! However, the lack of luggage has me stumped. I decided to buy a set the other day and then decided that it would not be big enough because of all the clothes, books and shoes necessary for the trip. Yes, I’m a girl and I did say necessary! So, my search continues tomorrow.
School is kicking my butt right now. I took another test and got a 72%. I hate when I change the right answer to the wrong answer because I doubt myself. It happened four times on this past test. And it was on culture too – one of my favourite things in life. Oh well, better luck next time! I have only five more tests for Geography and then all of the stupid little projects and then I’m done with the class! I’m so glad. I have yet to start my Psychology class but it will get done. It was on my to do list for this past week but I ran out of time since it is now 12:42am on Monday of a new week. Hopefully this week I will not be so lazy as far as homework (and working out) goes.

I went to The Well at my church tonight. Porter talked about how Jesus calls us to give up our desires, hopes, dreams and comfort for him. That is a really hard thing for me. I’m pondering. More later…

I’ve found a few of my really old writings so I’m going to share one with you now. I wrote this in class my senior year of high school. The date on it is November 8, 2005.

My walls could kill a man
Yet they don’t seem to keep you out
If you knew, what would you do
Are you seduced into a trance and think you want to dance
Really, once you see me for who I am
Reaching my inmost being
Seeing and believing
You wont want me
You wont see me
Because of my walls
I may end up moving you away and I’m sure you don’t want me
For who I really am

Swinging Door

It's February. Where did January go?
Caty, (my sister) was home for three weeks and it was lovely! She and I had a bang up good time. There is nothing like a relationship with a sister.
Since I didn't update in January, let me try to fill you in.
I made a trip to Crown College and then the YWAM base in Rockford, MN. The YWAM base is huge! And beautiful! The best part was seeing my friends Tammy and Eddie from Mexico. It was weird seeing them here instead of in Ensenada. But it was great. We had a lot of fun and it was special for my sister to be able to see YWAM life and learn about that part of my life.
My friends Traci and Luke were married on January 2. It was a beautiful wedding and I'm so happy for them! They are now living in Florida so a trip there may be in the future.
I got to spend a measurable amount of time with my friend Leah. I hadn't seen her for a year and it was wonderful to spend time with her! She is full of spunk and zest and we had some fun times together!
My life has kind of become a swinging door of friends going in and out. That has been kind of hard but I'm glad that I've been able to have those times with the special people in my life.
In other news.... I withdrew my application for the Primary Health Care School. The money did not come in and now is not the right time for that. I'm hoping to be able to do that YWAM school at some point but we shall see.
I mentioned above that I had looked at Crown College. I have decided to finish college, or at least make the attempt. I've done online classes and a semester at Univ. of WI - River Falls and I'm ready to just have my college career finished. I have decided to major in Community Health Care with a minor possibly in Spanish or something else. Unfortunately Crown does not have any foreign languages and so I'm looking at Bethel University now.
March brings another change! I'm heading to Mexico once again to work with Mission Adventures in Ensenada! I'm SO excited! The theme this year for the program is Re-Act. Back in November or December I had written a devotional to go along with the theme and it has been printed in the devotional book that the English speaking students will read for both spring and summer. Talk about exciting. I screamed when I read the email telling me that I was published. For a long time it has been a goal to be published.