I know you can be underwhelmed, and you can be overwhelmed, but can you ever just be, like, whelmed?

(that above title quote came from the ever hysterical movie 10 Things I Hate About You)

Right now I'm feeling somewhere between whelmed and overwhelmed.

So... less than 40 days. I have so much to do before July 1, and I feel like July 1 is soooo far away. But, I know I'm going to wake up one day and think "Crap... I leave on Saturday!" I have to do a lot of stuff before then, though. Richard has to graduate high school, I need to talk to Mauricio and/or Ana, I need to pack, I need to find the folder that has my prescriptions in it for Honduras and then fill them (everything got misplaced in the move to the parentals), I need to move out 100% from my old apartment, Lee and Kathy will come and visit, I have to find the floor of my room (because right now it's buried under dirty laundry and boxes), I need to say goodbye to everyone, and I need to get things in some semblance of order for the Youth Ministry portion of my church's trip to Honduras in August (I think that in itself is overwhelming). Everytime I try and sit down to think of something, the plans change, and I don't know how to plan yet.

oh yeah... I work... and I help at Spanish Health Ministry... and all the YUC/APNC/Deacon stuff, too..... and my social life.

I guess I'm feeling too overwhelmed at all the stuff that is between me and my trip to even begin to feel nervous or excited. Brandon, one of only 3 people that I know in the junior class at PTS next fall with me, was like "are you pumped for Honduras or what?" And, I honestly said "it hasn't hit me yet.... ask me around June 13 or 14, and i think i'll be freaking out."

sorry I just ranted! i love you guys who actually read this.

Action Item: just pray. i'm not sure for what, though.

pictures are worth thousands of words

picture 1: Ana and Mauricio
picture 2: me and Ana
picture 3: Mauricio and me
from fall 2004 at the Sundermeier's.

To put faces with names...

Action Items: preparedness for my trip. it's only 37 days away. I feel like I have so much to do before that time!

I know what I'll be doing!

of course my mom e-mailed Ana!

But, Ana wrote her back with some more elaborate plans of what exactly I'll be doing in Honduras, so that is always good. here's part of that e-mail

"We know Sara is coming and would love to work together in the ministry with Sara. She will be working in whatever she is good at. It could be teaching English, handleling a youth group, Evangelism, or construction as the team from PÄ wil be doing she can be with them that week too if it is her preference. She will only be a month with us which is what she wrote, is that right?. Yes, there are things to do in the ministry the only thing is that she will have to move by bus since we do not have more than a little car that it takes some time to pick our girls in the Unive. and at work so it will be difficult to get around during her moves but everything is close not far though we hope it is OK with her. There is no problem about taking buses in San Pedro Sula. Our house will be finished by then and she will live with us. You must not worry, she will be able to cook in the house in a new kitchen which is that for......"

So, I get to do whatever I want to do! within reason, that is. Now I'm getting more excited. Except for the busses. Busses in Honduras are scary. Not at all like SEPTA. And, if they're anything like the busses in La Entrada (i hope not), then they will be a life threatening gamble when I ride them. Well, maybe I'm overreacting a little, but they randomly break down, are way too overcrowded, hot, smelly, and travel WAY. TOO. FAST. Even for me!

Action Item: Pray for the Erazos as they prepare for me to come down, and as they realize that I'm staying for 7 weeks... not just 1 month. : )

What will I be doing?

good question!

Even I'm not 100% sure!

But, I'll be hanging out with adorable kids like this one who like the Oklahoma Sooners (bottom picture) from 2004, and i'll be hanging out with Mauricio (top picture)





I will be meeting with a small group of youth on Saturday nights, and I'll be taking lots of trips to La Entrada where Rancho Vida is (the Honduras Youth for Christ camp). Youth for Christ in Spanish is Juventud Para Cristo (JPC)... so, JPC is a lot easier to type than the other stuff... so... remember what JPC means.

I will also be leading some Bible Studies, and helping out in the office, I'm sure. First and foremost, I will probably be learning more and more Spanish every day, eating yummy food, feeling WAY outside of my comfort zone, and growing closer to God. Everything else is just details, right?

If you want to learn more about JPC, go to their website, http://www.yfci.org/yfci/ and then in the top right, you can choose Honduras and read about their needs. The only time where I know what I'll definitely be doing is from August 5-13 when a team from my church will be down there. I'm incharge of the educational component of that trip, and have already begun to think of fun things to do with the children in the schools and the barrios (aka neighborhoods) down there. In the morning that week, we will be traveling to different schools around the city and putting together Bible Stories with crafts and singing. This year we've decided to "adopt a barrio." So, our team will be centrally based at Barrio Copante. The men will work on small construction projects like roofing, installing chimneys, and cleaning up the barrio. The women will help the Honduran women complete sewing projects such as clothes and quilts. (I'm sorry those last two sentences were so gender based) There are also about 90(!) kids in the barrio, and only one... ONE!! of them goes to school. So, in the afternoon my school team will come back and teach them basics like matching, senses, numbers, letters, shapes, animals, as well as Bible Stories. I'm relying a lot on my teacher friends to help me with that curriculum.

Action Items: pray for calmness and peace as I prepare to go down to Honduras, even though I don't really know what I will be doing.

denied... denied... denied... approved!

well, I was actually never denied the following, but I love that scene in one of the earlier seasons of Will & Grace... where Jack and Karen are in Grace's office? you know?

anyway, the Endowment Fund at my church (Westminster) seeks to "enlarge and perpetuate Christian mission" so, I decided to apply for a $1,000 grant for my trip. So, after a long and essay filled application, and some debate from the Endowment Fund Board, I received the grant.

$1,000 to Juventud Para Cristo in Honduras!!

This is very good news, because I didn't have much money to give to Ana and Mauricio for my stay down there. Sure, I had the amount for which they asked me... which meant that I can cover my costs down there, but I wanted to go above and beyond that. Like, something more than $10 a day. And, now, thanks to my new best friends on the Endowment Fund board, I am able to give Ana and Mauricio money for their ministry, which is an amazing one.

God is good. Although I'm starting to get nervous. 54 days until I'm in Honduras.

Action Items: praise for the Endowment Fund at Westminster which makes many many ministries both inside and outside of Chester County more able to minister. Pray for me as I start to get nervous... especially because people keep asking what I'm doing, and I'm not really exactly sure.