Cautious adventure?

I am usually a fairly cautious person. I like sitting in coffee shops or bookstores, reading or writing, journaling or doing a devotion. But this trip presents such an opportunity for adventure. And I want to test that! Perhaps it's foolish or naive, but I desire to seek out independence. I want to take the bus downtown, to discover life, observe and accept the challenge of just figuring out how to get through.

Being in a new, foreign country presents it's own opportunities. Some of those are obviously dangerous-being out alone at night, going with someone you don't know, eating uncooked meat from a street vendor, downing a glass of unfiltered tap water.
Some are just dangerous enough to satiate my wanderlust.

But there's an opposition: a need and promise we made to be safe, because others are responsible for this group, and we have to be responsible for ourselves. Nothing foolish, nothing dangerous.
So I am left with this tension between discovering my limits, and remaining well within them..

Thoughts in Russia, thoughts in English

Russian life has been a whirlwind. Our limited downtime is spent doing homework, reading, journaling, church time and sleeping. My heart has been going through so many things this past week, it is difficult to describe in a simple paragraph. I have met a few amazing individuals here in Vladimir, and God has blessed our group with awesome worship time and Bible study. Finding time and motivation for extra devotion time has been tough- I realize that should be my top priority, but time seems to go by quickly here.
Being sick these past two weeks has given me time to sit back and observe. I get to see how people interact; I am able to study people, without understanding their language. Gestures and expressions say so much.
I am caught in between finding contentment here, and having anxiety about life when I get back home. I feel pressure to figure out what I want to do with my life. What do I do after my undergrad at Concordia? I was hoping for a revelation while on this trip-maybe it will come, and I still have time. I'm nervous about resume-building, job hunting, interviewing. And for what? I don't even know that, which is scary. Part of me knows this place of desperation is exactly where God wants me to be-it means I have to rely completely on Him.
This morning Kaydee came to Emmanuel Church in Vladimir. My best friend from high school, we hardly manage to see each other in the states, but we are able to meet halfway around the world! She is here studying Russian at a language school. I am in awe of that direction, of her determination and strength. My heart aches for that. I feel as though God is saying Just wait. Just wait. Just wait. Don't look around at the things you think you want. Just be willing to wait, that's all, or you'll miss what I want to show you.
That should bring me peace, but my mind is anxious. Pray for a calm surrender and patience for God's timing and plan. I know the next steps-to live this trip to the fullest. Meet individuals, pray without ceasing, derive strength from Scripture and community. The same hands that hold the world hold my heart.

Harvesting potatoes! Fun at first...then very tiring!

Russia

Sunday we said goodbye to Buenos Aires. Our longest days of traveling included layovers in Santiago, Chile, New York and Helsinki, Finland. Other than a lack of sleep, a few pieces of missing luggage and a too-close encounter with the Finnish security guard, we made it to Moscow on Tuesday afternoon.

While standing in line for Customs, I met two people who were fluent in several languages. One girl from Armenia could speak six languages! This left me feeling inspired and dejected at the same time. The language barrier for us is much much greater here than it was in Argentina.

I have no background in Russian, and it took time to even learn the new Cyrillic alphabet. It is so frustrating not to be able to communicate a single thing--how grateful we are to be in this beautiful, freezing, rainy country that has amazing food, interesting people and an amazing history.

This got me thinking about my future.

• What do I want to do with my life?
• What is worthy of dedication?
• Should I have studied something else, somewhere else?

I love traveling
This trip has been the most intense, vast, expedited learning experience I have ever had.

I am growing, changing and evaluating life and culture everyday.
I am living culture.
I pray that God would continue to speak to my heart what He has for my life, and specifically my occupation after college.
I desire to find the peace that comes from knowing I am in the perfect place.
I am just where God wants me.
I am in Vladimir, Russia, but I am home with Christ and my new friends that are participating in this University homeschool Around the World..

Journalism article-Concordia Courier

The following is an advanced draft of an article I wrote for the Concordia newspaper. The first two paragraphs introduce the trip, and the rest is a summary of how my heart and mind have changed since arriving in Buenos Aires. Feel free to comment with edits, critiques or advice on what should be included/excluded or changed. Thank you!

A team of 30 students and faculty set out on Concordia’s first Around-the-World Semester, an adventure of a lifetime. We will spend four months traveling abroad to ten countries not only learning of culture, but also experiencing it firsthand. We have already begun to experience, treasure and record every intense and awe-inspiring detail. My hope is to discover a deeper sense of self, others, and my role in this giant world.

We will spend 2-3 weeks each in Argentina, Russia, Turkey, Israel, Jordan, Egypt, Kenya, India, Indonesia and China. During this 18-week program, in addition to our class work, we will take part in many service projects such as teaching English in China, volunteering for an Indian orphanage, and serving in the slums of Kenya.

Our first stop is Argentina. We arrived in Buenos Aires on a foggy Tuesday afternoon, and fought to stay awake as the day dragged on. Each weekday morning, we have group devotions and class-work. The bonding of our group has been expedited because we spend the whole day together studying, reading, praying, volunteering, attempting to order lunch in Spanish, and exploring this beautiful city. Every day is full of new experiences, such as brushing your teeth with Dr. Norton, discussing literature and culture over a cup of Café con leche, and having our “university home-school” during the week. Class discussions are littered with inside jokes about getting lost on the way to the subway, participating in a street drum-show, and our black-wearing, mate-drinking, cat-loving hostel receptionist.

The second day we arrived, we started volunteering with LIFE Argentina, a non-government organization that helps support youth and kids from the slums of Buenos Aires. I started this service project without realizing the intense poverty that can exist so close to a city like Buenos Aires. Within a ten minute bus ride, we went from high-rise buildings, fancy clothing stores and cafés, to brightly painted shack-like buildings. These villas form an underprivileged community of children, trapped in poor circumstances. Our group has been able to form relationships with the kids, while serving them food, playing jump rope and soccer, coloring, reading and teaching English. Our limited Spanish has not hindered our new friends from trying to communicate with us, and even their smiles say more than enough.

Cultural differences become apparent every single day. Our hearts and minds are being stretched to encompass a larger world. Part of me misses the accessibility of California: the overabundance of a Starbucks Iced coffee, unlimited texting, and English speakers. That part of me is lessening with each day we spend away from home, away from normal life, friends and cable TV. That part of me is experiencing a new concept of freedom I had yet to learn.

The first two weeks of this trip have been the most expedited learning experience I have ever participated in. My mind is open to learn more about life, individuals, language, and God’s heart for His people.

The broken jar filled to the brim

Someone once told me that if you are discontent with life, it is a misplaced desire for God. That your heart and mind are in the wrong place. When our eyes and hearts wander away from the truth, we become dissatisfied, because Christ is the only source of true joy, peace and contentment.

Life is so fast paced here in the city. We are busy taking classes, studying, reading, volunteering with LIFE Argentina, eating, making friends and taking photos. I feel a need to empty myself. To spend a day in silence, in observation. God desires our best, our whole hearts, every part of our self.

When life fills up, I trust God wants to take back what is His. I believe He delights that our lives are full of love, adventure, seeking friendships and trying to advance the Kingdom. But I feel now that all of this stuff is just that- stuff. So I will make time for Jesus. Empty myself so He can fill me back up so I will be even more equipped to do the work He has called me towards.

City life and Slum living

Buenos Aires:
These past two days have been a blur of city streets, empanadas, Spanish phrases, a few classes and meeting many new faces. Wait, 3 days, 2 full days. Yesterday we volunteered with a non-government organization (LIFE); we helped host a birthday party for the kids living in the slum of Ciudad Oculta, in Southern Buenos Aires. A ten minute car ride took us from socialite downtown to some of the poorest neighborhoods I have ever seen. Our group of 30 was split into 2, and we joined four other volunteers (two from Britain, one from Denmark, and one from Paris).

Earlier that morning I was journaling about how my heart seemed hardened to the service projects we would be doing on this trip. I wanted to be excited, but I had my own selfish traveling agenda in mind. Thankfully God did a work in my heart on the van ride over, and the selfishness I had been wrestling with was calmed. The birthday party was a success! There were dirt floors, our decorations were falling off the walls, candles slipped off the homemade cakes, games of soccer and jump rope were constantly interrupted by cars driving down the narrow, one-lane street..

But kids smiled and laughed. We attempted to speak Spanish as we painted faces, wrapped presents, and sang Happy Birthday twice, in each language. My heart was moved to greater compassion, and the kids were shown Christ's love.

We have had a few classes: Spanish, Cold War, Argentinian history. Tomorrow is World Religions (Islam) and World Literature (The Tango Singer). Today a few of us wandered the city streets and found a few cafes where we read for our classes. We visited Plaza de Mayo, the Congress building, and navigated the subway system (1 peso/25 cents each way).





I am trying to take in every sight and sound, and record it all in my big black journal so I don't forget these incredible moments. Thanks for reading, I'll update with the stories for my Travel Writing class soon,

Please pray for unity among the team and time management to do our service projects, read and study for class, alone time, time with God for devotions and worship, and time with locals in this beautiful city.

International mishap

3 hours or so of intermittent sleep and even in my groggy mind I can tell this isn't the right destination.

Sure, as we descended, there is most of what you would expect from Argentina. The ocean, the red-roofed houses, the clusters of mopeds on hard-packed dirt roads and the early morning traffic. Just as I expected. But I have already learned this trip is full of missed expectations, with a wavering vein of continuity, at best.

Months of preparation and packing lists haven't helped make sleeping on an airplane any easier. For the second leg from Lima, Peru to Buenos Aires, I am scrunched in between an arm rest and a window.

Wrong city. Wrong country. Right continent, however, and that leaves a glimmer of hope. Welcome to Uruguay everyone. But now we wait. Eyes half-opened against the Southern hemisphere's rising sun. Is the sun closer here? The philosophical wonderings of a sleep-deprived college student. Yes, I conclude, to myself. I am fairly sure it is closer, because sleep is fleeting more and more quickly.

Elevator music, with an uncharacteristically strong beat, pounds as I contemplate the day of traveling. Two long days, divided by an ocean, yet haphazardly stitched together in a jagged line of the airplane's route map.

What else will hold these days together? Nothing can prevent them from being pulled apart, defined by new stories, new faces and eventually, the correct airport.