It's going to take a lot to drag me away from you . . .

Hello, my friends and family! Welcome to my blog!

As I prepare to embark on my Africa adventure, I thought it might be nice to share how I came to this point. When I was in college, my church small group (or "discipleship team") got really into Africa. I don't quite remember how it all got started, but suddenly Africa was the goal. I was one of the few who did not really get into it. Beyond just a visit, I didn't feel called to go there . . . at the time.

Time passed. I graduated college and taught preschool for a year. While it was a fun job, it was not what I wanted to do as a long term job. The problem was, I had no idea what I would rather be doing. My lovely parents graciously agreed to let me live at home for a time while I worked on discovering God's path for my life. I moved back and started working at Starbucks. I went to therapy, did some career counseling, and prayed for guidance. Though no definitive answers arrived, I did discover that I care deeply about third world countries, and in particular, the people who live in them. I realized that I wanted to devote my life to helping people and affirming the image of God in the lives of those I encounter. Finally, I decided to apply to the occupational therapy graduate school program at Colorado State University.

I don't remember when I first heard of Mercy Ships. I think I read an article about it somewhere. I looked into it during college, but it was never something that I thought I could do. It was something cool that cool people who were braver than me did. In spite of that, Mercy Ships stayed in the back of my mind.

I decided that my ultimate goal with occupational therapy was to join Mercy Ships and use the techniques I learned to help enrich lives. I made that fact the crux of my admissions essay.

I got accepted into the graduate program . . . sort of. I was put on the waiting list. It was rather underwhelming. Time passed, and finally I found out that no one from the waiting list made it off. At a loss for what to do next, I decided to apply to Mercy Ships. I figured why wait? There would probably be some job I would be qualified to do. I've had quite a few jobs, after all. Besides, it is a great time in my life to do this! Less than a week after I sent in my application, I got my initial acceptance. Since then, it's been quite a whirlwind!

I have been amazingly blessed so much during this process. People have been so generous with supporting me financially and with prayer. I want to be able to keep all you wonderful supporters what God is doing in my life and on the Africa Mercy. And that's why I'm blogging.

So thank you, all you supporters! I am so blessed and grateful to God for each and every one of you. I will be in touch!