I've started typing numerous posts over the past month and for some reason I just haven't been able to finish them. I can't seem to find the words to express some of our experiences here and unfortunately that has left me silent for a while.
But - just to clarify - we are doing great! We've been building relationships and improving in the language and making lots of memories along the way.
For the sake of not knowing where to start, I should have at least been posting pictures of what we've been up to! Thankfully there is Facebook for that and I've been trying to add some photos here and there. :)
Sadly, the Aberle family left Haiti on April 8th. We are all so excited for them to be back in the states with family and friends but sad to see them go. Ryan and I had only been here for just over a month before they left, but it already feels weird for us that they aren't here. Just yesterday I was positive that I heard Biga and Azi playing outside! My imagination must be a sign of missing those little cuties. :)
We can't wait to hear what God has planned for this sweet family next! They are easily the most easy-going, go-with-the-flow, follow-wherever-God-leads-them family I've met. It was a real blessing to get to know them and be a part of their lives, even for such a short amount of time. Whether they know it or not, they taught me many lessons about truly putting my trust in the Lord and just being okay with not knowing what's going to happen next. And Cammie - bless her heart - opened my eyes to the realization that we might never feel ready to do certain things. But most of the time you just have to take that big leap of faith and lean on the Lord to provide you with what you need - whether that be knowledge, wisdom, or confidence in Him and in yourself!
Now that it's officially getting HOT here in Haiti
Can I just say that, aside from the heat, living in the tropics is about as amazing as you can imagine? Minus the obvious downsides to living in a 5th world country, it is still so easy for me to see all of God's absolutely beautiful creation that surrounds us. I am so thankful that God gives me this beautiful vision of Haiti and its people - because to many this is a country they could never imagine living in.... yet I feel so blessed to be here!
Aside from feeling blessed by the the scenery and tropical weather each time I look outside, I'm also continually being blessed by the people of Emmaus Biblical Seminary. That includes the students, staff and of course the other missionary families!
EBS had a weeklong break leading up to Easter Sunday. The Ayars took advantage of the break by flying to Florida for the week and us and the Heckman family spent a few days soaking up some sun and feeling sand beneath our toes. :)
The Ayars returned on Saturday and we spent Easter Sunday together as an EBS family. I'm so thankful to have Matt, Stacey, Phil, Emily, and the kids as our family here when we have left so much family back in the states. It's especially hard to be away for the holidays, but having each other makes things much easier.
This was the first Easter away from the states for both us and the Heckmans and its safe to say that we ended up spending it much differently than we would have back with our families. One thing did remain the same, though -
we made sure that we dyed Easter eggs!
We started off Easter morning by going to Granny's church, which was special because that was the first church Ryan and I went to when we arrived in February!
Then we headed straight to the pool for hamburgers and swimming. Yum!
And we ended the day by praising the Lord in song and spending time in devotion before eating a DELICIOUS dinner made up of salad, scalloped potatoes, green bean casserole (yum!), rolls, cheesecake and tropical fruit pizza - not to mention the very special Easter ham that Matt managed smuggled to Haiti in his suitcase. :) My stomach is growling just thinking about how delicious that dinner was.
Yep! We've been busy and I've been blog-silent for quite a while - but we have adapted really well and are loving it here. We've got an even crazier month coming up with end of the semester, visitors, board meetings and graduation. I must say that I'm really looking forward to being involved in the crazy this year! I'm also really looking forward to the familiar Kansas faces that I'll see in May for graduation. Can't wait to see you all!
Lastly... we recently found out exciting news that my big brother (Correy) is getting married! Him and his fiancé have set the date for August 2 - which means we have a very unexpected trip back to Kansas/Nebraska at the end of the summer!
It wasn't in our plans to come home until possibly December, however, due to the wedding we are going to come home for a few weeks. This is an exciting (yet sad) reminder that life definitely goes on with everyone we know and love whether we are in the same country as them or not. I guess this adds to the learning curve of being flexible and deciding which of the many family events we unfortunately have to miss and deciding which events we just wouldn't feel right if we weren't there. Including the unity of marriage for my big brother!
So, while the unexpected trip put a pretty expensive loophole in our plans, we are really excited to go back and visit our family and friends for a few weeks before starting the new year at Emmaus.
Thank you all so much for your support. Hearing from our loved ones makes it easier in the moments when we look around and realize that we are thousands of miles from our normal. Don't hesitate to drop an email or Facebook message letting us know what you are up to, or maybe just a note of encouragement every once and a while! We aren't ever too busy to communicate with you and would love hearing from you more than you know! A little normal and familiar does us good every once in a while in a whole new world of different. So really - feel free to email either of us. Even if its just a line or two just to let us know you're thinking of us. :) Our contact info is under Contact Us on our blog!
Sending lots of love your way from Haiti!
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