As I think over my life the past year to year-and-a-half, one thing has stayed consistent.....change. I graduated from UGA in May 2011 and started teaching in a position that I never would have chosen had I had my own way. But of course, the Lord had better plans for my life than I could have ever thought up myself. And while I was teaching, I was presented with the opportunity to go to India for two years. So I left my sweet two-year-old class and shifted my life back home for a few months before leaving for India.
It has almost been exactly one year since I made my final decision to move to this side of the world. A year. It seems like just yesterday in some ways, and then on the other hand, so much has happened that it almost feels like an eternity ago. In this past year, I have visited three countries outside of the US, my best friend had a baby, my other best friend got engaged, I have lived in two cities in India and have become engrossed in a culture completely different than my own. I have seen and experienced the Father in more ways than I could have ever imagined.
Overall, I feel abundantly thankful. Every morning when I wake up and spend time with the Father, my heart is overwhelmed with gratitude for being here. I love my city. I love the people in this country. I love the sarees and burkas I see outside in my neighborhood every day. I get excited to go and buy groceries down the street and to be able to practice my Hindi with the auto drivers. The taste of good Indian food and chai make my stomach do a happy dance, and the way the women here squeeze my hand to let me know they care about me bless me more than they could ever know.
There are times of homesickness, yes. When I skype with my sister and her kids, and I hear Tucker say "I yuv you Aunt Maddie" it is everything in me to not burst into tears. I hate that I am missing out on two years of their little lives. I hate that I don't even know Whitney's baby, Hudson. It kills me that I am missing Gretchen's wedding. But through the pain of life moving on without me, the Father is ever faithful. He has promised to never leave me and forsake me, and He has promised to use trials to make my faith steadfast. When I am faithless, He remains faithful because He cannot deny Himself. He is good.
And you know what? I really love my life. It is frustrating beyond belief at times. But it's a full life.....a good life.
It has almost been exactly one year since I made my final decision to move to this side of the world. A year. It seems like just yesterday in some ways, and then on the other hand, so much has happened that it almost feels like an eternity ago. In this past year, I have visited three countries outside of the US, my best friend had a baby, my other best friend got engaged, I have lived in two cities in India and have become engrossed in a culture completely different than my own. I have seen and experienced the Father in more ways than I could have ever imagined.
Overall, I feel abundantly thankful. Every morning when I wake up and spend time with the Father, my heart is overwhelmed with gratitude for being here. I love my city. I love the people in this country. I love the sarees and burkas I see outside in my neighborhood every day. I get excited to go and buy groceries down the street and to be able to practice my Hindi with the auto drivers. The taste of good Indian food and chai make my stomach do a happy dance, and the way the women here squeeze my hand to let me know they care about me bless me more than they could ever know.
There are times of homesickness, yes. When I skype with my sister and her kids, and I hear Tucker say "I yuv you Aunt Maddie" it is everything in me to not burst into tears. I hate that I am missing out on two years of their little lives. I hate that I don't even know Whitney's baby, Hudson. It kills me that I am missing Gretchen's wedding. But through the pain of life moving on without me, the Father is ever faithful. He has promised to never leave me and forsake me, and He has promised to use trials to make my faith steadfast. When I am faithless, He remains faithful because He cannot deny Himself. He is good.
And you know what? I really love my life. It is frustrating beyond belief at times. But it's a full life.....a good life.
