“Are you excited to go home?” This is the question I have been getting asked more and more lately as I gear up to head back to the states for a bit at the end of this month. How can I answer this question when there’s so much more to it than just being excited? Of course. Of course I’m excited to go home, to spend lots of time relishing in the presence of my family, church family, and friends, to taste nostalgic flavors of home, to get a Sonic slushie with my friends Savannah and Rebecca, to have a variety of food options, to relax, to play lots of pickleball with my dad, and I could list a million other things I’m excited about. 

But excitement is not the only emotion I feel as I approach my trip home. Nervousness is a pretty big portion of what I’m feeling towards going home. When I head back, it will be almost exactly a year since I’ve been home. I’m nervous to see how my grandparents have aged. I’m nervous to see the changes I will see as a result of hurricane Helene and also just the changes of my hometown in general because it has been so long. I’m nervous about conversations with family and friends and realizing just how disconnected I am from not physically doing life with them. I’m nervous to leave my little bubble of comfort that San Juan has become for me. I’m nervous to not be able to relate to people back home very well because of how different my lifestyle is. 

I think trust is the big thing the Lord is working on in me in this season. Trust that He has already made a way, that He already has it all worked out. Trust that He has gone before me and that He will never leave me no matter my location, circumstances, or emotions. Trust that where He has led me is exactly where He wants me. Trust that He is God and I am not and His way is perfect. And I’m so thankful to worship a God who is trustworthy beyond measure. 

July Highlights – this month has been so fun! 

• I started off the month going to San Juan’s brand new coffee shop that only uses coffee that is grown and harvested in Ocoa with Lizzie and my friend, Kailey! I loved the vibe and will definitely be going back! 

• I have ABSOLUTELY LOVED the VBS teams. I just love seeing how the Lord is moving in the teenagers’ hearts and how their eyes and minds are being opened by their experiences here. Each team has had their own distinct personalities, but each of them have been so fun to get to know! I hate that there’s only this week’s team and next week’s team left of VBS. 
• Of course I’m continuing on my cake-making journey! Here’s the cakes I made for some of the Spartanburg team members’ birthdays! I ordered a new cake decorating kit from Amazon and it has made cake decorating even more fun. I also feel like I’m very close to perfecting an icing recipe that resists the heat and humidity, so stay tuned! 

• My favorite part about this month was our 4th of July celebration. We hosted a party at Kelsi’s apartment and almost 30 people came! For dinner I made hotdogs and hamburgers, Brayden made some cowboy baked beans in the crockpot, and Lizzie made cole slaw and apple pie! I think everyone really enjoyed the food! Brayden made a playlist for us to listen to and I painted a banner for decoration. I really enjoyed taking some time to be creative. We sang a little karaoke, taught our friends the Cotton Eye Joe, and did some Just Dance on YouTube! At the end of the night, we had sparklers on Kelsi’s rooftop, then we went to the dam in Sabaneta to light up some more sparklers and stargaze! It was a lot of fun to show our friends how we celebrate independence day back home and share a piece of what we love about our own country with them. 

• We attended Lucille Rupp’s graduation and then I attended CCED’s graduation. CCED invited me to sit at the table of honor at their graduation to represent the partnership between them and Solid Rock and help hand out different awards which was also really special to me to get to have an active part in their special day! Both were beautiful ceremonies and it was so special to see some students graduate that I’ve built relationships with in the last year or so.

• Kelsi, Lizzie, Bianca, Hilda, and I went on a mini vacation in Juan Dolio for Hilda’s birthday! We got to celebrate our sweet friend and have some relaxing time at the pool and at the beach! I’m very thankful for that little getaway and hope that there’s a lot more of those in the future! 

• Nick arrived last week and is very excited to learn. I’m sure he’ll be an asset to keeping things running smoothly around the guest house! 

Prayer requests: 

• Peace as I prepare to go home 
• Relaxing time at home spent with loved ones