A couple weeks ago I left Kentucky after 6 years of living here. I’ve felt so many emotions leading up to and through these past weeks; excitement, sadness, fear and joy. I’ve been reminiscing about this past year and my season of waiting, of inbetweens, alreadys and not yets. So in the spirit of celebration and remembrance I thought I’d run through some of my favorite moments from these past 8 months. So here we go! Here are some of my favorite “Days in Waiting”
• Accepted onto the world race. The moment that started it all so of course I had to mention it first. It both ended and started a season of waiting for me. I got the phone call as I was just arriving to work at CSF one day and started jumping up and down in the parking lot for joy. Some part of me had known from the moment I stumbled upon The World Race that my life would never be the same again. Crazy to think that was almost 8 months ago!
• Backpacking through the Appalachian trail. Gods girls. 3 days through the crazy steep hills of Tennessee/North Carolina. My first experience hiking 12 miles a day and camping in the mountains with the best group of adventurers, making fast friends with thruhikers and pulling from a physical strength I didn’t know I had to get up those hills.
• Late nights running and watching the sunsets with Hannah Day. Running miles on miles with Hannah putting up with me talking to her the entire time haha and post run life chats followed by cotton candy sunsets and blizzards.
• First time in Colorado. Seeing the mountains in the distant for the first time. Driving through Rocky Mountain National Park with my parents, hiking up to 12,000 feet above sea level and of course getting to see my beautiful big sister get married. (You’re beautiful too Jacob don’t worry I didn’t forget you ;))
• Birthday celebration with my Chick-Fil-A friends. Celebrating my birthday with some of the best coworkers and friends I could have asked for. Chicken Tikka Masala, brownies with a chocolate ganache and so much laughter and joy piled into one room.
• Late night shenanigans with my roomie Hannah. So many to choose from here but I always end up laughing the hardest laughs, dancing with the most joy, seeking growth in deep pursuit and finding more than I ever could have expected. Thanks for letting me be a windstorm of a person, for telling me the things I need to hear (even when I don’t want to) and for always being up to adventure with me!
• Cincinnati trip to visit Lauren. Semi-spontaneous trips to Cincy to see this sweet girl, painting pumpkins in the park, eating tons of sushi, and going to the aquarium to see mermaids makes for a beautiful day and definitely one of my favorites.
• TRAINING CAMP! It was 11 of my favorite days and definitely too much to fit into one paragraph but I’ll sure try! 5 hours in the airport with Kristen and Connor, meeting my squad for the first time, surviving freezing cold nights, scorpions, ant infestations, bucket showers, flooded tents, camp scenarios and laughing and learning together through it all. Deep honest conversation, heart-wrenching worship, inspirational teachings and vision casting. I could not have asked for better people to learn, struggle, grow and share the gospel with next year!
• Hiking the Gorge for Bethany’s birthday. Worshiping off the side of a mountain was my favorite. Such a pure example of Christ’s love in this trip and how true community should feel.
• Reuniting with the old crew. Bonfires, s’mores, and scooters. Causing the usual trouble.
• Trips to Tennessee to see the rents. Road trips to the south on holidays, days off and in betweens. Exploring Paris (TN), Nashville and everywhere in between. Going to coffee shops and going on walks through the woods.
• My going away/send off party from Lexington. A blissfully happy day that went by way too quickly. I could love and talk to you all for days and I’m so thankful to have you.
There were so many to choose from and for that I’m so thankful. This past year has been one of the hardest and most rewarding ones yet. I’ve grown so much closer to Jesus in the midst of my uncomfort. And in a way, I believe that was Jesus preparing me for this next year. Here’s to more beautifully hard, desperately hopeful, unsecured and out of my comfort zone moments. I can’t wait to see what God has for me in 2020.
