A Day Off

Well today has been amazing. Kristin and I both have the day off and so we slept in until about 12:30 today! After weeks of no sleep I finally feel awake and ready to go again. When I woke up I actually had time for a long shower and then kristin and I made ourselves an amazing lunch/breakfast! We made eggs, sausages, and onions all scrambled together and had some amazing iced orange juice to go with it! The first thing I have discovered that actually tastes exactly like home...eggs! It's been so nice to be able to make our own food lately, and its even nicer because with each meal that we eat leftovers or make our own food we save money! I love saving money! haha.

This afternoon we took a nice long walk up into the hills and then sat in a little patch of grass with the most beautiful view of the valley below us and just talked. We talked about God, blessings, life, love, the pursuit of happiness, America, France, roomates, college...basically everything! We really broke down some of the ideas we both had about this year and faced the truth of what we would be doing here. We talked a lot about the future and the work we wanted to do. We also got into a pretty deep discussion about college and returning to life after France. Boy is it weird to think of life after France. For a whole year I have been planning and agonizing over this trip and all the little details. Hard to imagine the eight months will ever end! On that note I love it here. I love the mountains, the people, the culture. I love everything about this place and am soooo glad that this year as the Boston group took off I was one of the ones bidding them a fond farewell!
France has always felt like home, and the more time I spend here the more I know that I will be returning once again. My poor friends and family, I just can't seem to stay close to home. Between college in cali and a love for the missions field of France I hardly have any time for New England anymore!
Either way France is feeling more and more like home to me. With each meal we cook, each person we meet, each day of staring at the mtns I feel more and more like this where I belong. I finally feel like God has me exactly where He wants me exactly at the time I am here. It's going to be an incredible eight months and I can't believe that we've already been here a month! It has gone by soo fast and I just hope the rest of the time goes a little slower. I never want to leave!
During our discussion we also where able to talk a little about the future for us and as many of you know missions has been put on both our hearts. It's been so neat to meet the missionaries coming through Champfleuri--especially lately to talk to Lauren and Andy as they prepare to head off to Africa in three weeks, towing along their two young children. It's a really amazing sight to see this young couple completly depending on the Lord and moving their family and everything to Africa for His work. It gives me hope that in the coming days, weeks, and years that I will be equally as flexible for His plans. It's hard to sometimes understand the full meaning of giving your life up until He is asking you to do something as huge as move your entire family to Africa until who knows when. It really puts things into perspective. It also takes apart some of the saftey net I have always put up around myself. I have always told anyone that would listen I will never move. I want a family and that family to live in the same place forever. It's been hard coming to grips with the idea that this might not happen. As I feel called more and more into the field of missions I recognize that home is going to have to be the people I love, not necessarily the place. A hard lesson, but one that is being taught to me as we speak by the people I am meeting and the examples they provide. On that note I am going to go and cook myself up something yummy for supper and then head outside to continue my book. I am finally going to read the bible one cover to the other. I have for years been attempting this goal and for years have lacked the time, resources and energy to accomplish it. This year I am actually going to do it. I am halfway through Genesis and going strong! God Bless u all! -em