Even though I won’t be actually arriving at home for another 2 weeks, things are very quickly coming to an end here and I find myself thinking about all the things I will be happy to be home for.
Even more than that, I'm thinking about the things I‘m going to miss terribly when I leave this place that I've come to love with my whole heart.
Although it may seem a little premature to make a post about those things, next Sunday we will be on a train headed for Hyderabad and the next time we have internet may not be till we are in Dubai next Thursday and even then it may not happen, so I’m going to post this now as it is on my mind anyway!
I can’t even begin to express how torn I am between being so excited to see all of my family and friends back home again, yet having to leave all of these people here, and the thought of saying goodbye to all of my teammates. I don’t even want to think about it all, so I’m not going to any more – you get the idea!
I’m going to be happy for a great big salad, a good cup of real coffee, one of my dad’s cheeseburgers, chicken salad & iced mochas (with Delaney of course! <3), and a donut (thanks to Kady bringing them up just now)! I am really going to miss the street food here, though… The egg fried rice and noodles, the samosas, roti, ice cream cones, chai, and most of all the banana smoothies!
I can’t wait to be back at Living Truth and Sunday and Tuesday night Bible studies, but I will miss our team devotions and early mornings (when I get out of bed!) at the kitchen table with Hannah, Jesus, and a cup of instant coffee.
I can’t wait to brush my teeth in the sink and not out of a water bottle, not have to fill a bucket to flush the toilet, be able to leave my room without putting a skirt on over my shorts, and go to bed without everyone needing to be checked for lice first, but part of me will kind of miss those things as well…
I will miss eating with my hands and other uniquely Indian things, like going to preach at a church service and getting left sitting in chairs outside the church, alone, in complete darkness during a power outage while the pastor/translator drives away with the driver and van for an hour… Great opportunity to just sit and worship!
But more than any of these things, the one I’m going to miss the most is this little girl – the one who has stolen my heart and who will keep it long after I’m gone. I don’t know how I’m going to say goodbye to her. I know it will hurt, but I wouldn’t trade my time here with her for anything.
In short, the title of this post sums it up – I have mixed emotions when it comes to leaving this beautiful place and going home to the people I love so much, but that's okay. God has planned everything so perfectly and made it this way for a reason. I have learned so much in this time and can't wait to bring it home and share it with those that I love.
I am grateful for all of the things I have seen and all of the experiences that I have had and I am also grateful for the wonderful things and people that await me at home.
My heart is torn, but that's just because I now have 2 places that I love instead of 1 and who can complain of loving too much?!
