Only a Month!

As my trip to Africa gets closer (we leave in one month), I realize how much I have yet to do in preparation. I'll be gone for three months, unemployed for four, so I have to admit that I am feeling more stressed with each day. I still need to exchange money, get a meningitis vaccination, teach my mom how to pay my bills online, read two books on Ghana, start packing, and move from North Carolina to Indiana. Then, I realize that I only have two more weeks of work (six scheduled days), and a little panic hits as I wonder if I can really afford this time away after all. I can admit that I won't miss the busy 12-hour shifts, but I am sad to leave Duke, where everyone has made me feel right at home for the past year, and my coworkers have been so encouraging and supportive of my decision to leave. I won't miss the North Carolina humidity that fogs up your sunglasses at 6am, but it will definitely be hard to leave my roommates and my church community. I love living in Raleigh, mostly because of the phenomenal people I've met here, and I am truly sad to say goodbye, but I'll be back in four short months... And in the meantime I will spend a week in the Smokies with my mom, a week at home with my family and friends, and three months in a new place with Anne, my best friend and fellow world traveler. Amid the mixed feelings of anxiety, stress and sadness, I am feeling an exciting anticipation for this experience. I think our time in Ghana will fly by, and by the end of our trip we will be sad to leave. I work with a nurse who is from Ghana, and her eyes light up when she speaks of her country and its people. I am excited to see it all for myself, to live alongside these people and to learn about and experience their daily routine. I am most looking forward to feeling that fire again that I only feel when I am doing mission work. Taking some time away from the distractions of my busy, overindulgant life will help me to regain perspective on what is truly important. I have been given yet another opportunity to experience a world very different from my own, and I am so thankful for that. I pray that our hearts be peaceful, that our faith may lead Anne and I through this month of preparation.