Oh What a Year

As I conclude my time here in Kenya I am trying to prepare myself for the transition back into American culture. I am beyond excited to see everyone back at home but I am nervous to return to a place so different than what I am accustomed to. I know that I have lived the third world for a substantial amount of time when I refuse to pay more than $3 for a meal at a restaurant, I’d rather walk 6 miles than pay $1.50 for a taxi, I get mad when I am overcharged 10 cents on a loaf of bread. Please bear with me and my stinginess!
How was Kenya? It was a rollercoaster. I had some really great days and some really horrible days. Days I wanted to live here forever, and days I didn’t want to return to work after my lunch break. Days I questioned my faith in God with all the suffering , and days I thought to myself, “Wow, good job God, you’re amazing. Days when I laughed, days when I cried, and days I just wanted to scream in frustration. I doubted my survival in Karungu for the year but looking back I am so grateful for this experience. After spending the majority of the last two years of my life in Africa, it will always be a part of me. I love the hospitable people, and the beautiful scenery. And as they say in Wicked, “Because I knew I have been changed for good.”
Thanks to my family and friends who followed the blog. It turned out to be much more popular than I imagined. Thanks for all your love and support. (Sorry if this is turning into a cheesy Oscar’s acceptance speech.) You have no idea what every letter, package, email, and text message has meant to me. Thanks for all your prayers- they work! I stayed healthy and safe despite a bout of malaria and a car accident (Mom, I’m fine!). And lastly thanks to my mom for being my rock of support. Thanks for being okay (well, as ‘okay’ as a mom can be) with letting her daughter live on the other side of the world. I’ll be home soon!
And as for what is next in my life....“I don’t know what the future holds, but I know who holds my future.”