Baaaah! This is real!

Baaaah!  This is real!

Those were my thoughts as I bought a plane ticket earlier this week to fly to Bangkok (my first week in mission is at the annual SE Asia Retreat/Conference for Maryknollers held in Thailand).  This life plan has been in the works for a while.  I have been in orientation for eight weeks.  But, somehow buying that ticket made me realize how many days I have left in the states, start thinking about what needs to be bought/packed, and start reflecting on being away for 3.5 years.  Insert minor panic attack here :)  Next week, we sign contracts and the following we sign covenants and have our sending ceremony. A couple days ago we received word that our apartment has been set up (it will thankfully be furnished and ready for us to just move in, best way to relocate in my opinion).  So many long awaited unknowns are falling into place.  So, as all rational human beings, insert another panic attack here :)

With just over a month to launch, people keep asking me how I am feeling and excited, terrified, enthusiastic, happy, sad, alive - so many emotions - rush up.  I jokingly told one of the nuns that I am going to write on my mirror in Cambodia, "you wanted a challenge."  Since that is what I was looking for, I can't complain when the going gets tough :)  At the end of the day, after all the AHHHH! going on in my head, I am ready for this next step.

As I have mentioned before, broken record time, I so appreciate being able to take so many of you on this journey with me and wanted to make two more offers of ways for you to come along!

Maryknoll Lay Missioners has a bi-annual mailing called Voices of Compassion that they put out, if anyone in interested in learning more about the work of Maryknoll Lay Missioners, in general.  If you are interested in being added to their mailing list - receiving this publication, as well as their various appeals- please email me your mailing address ASAP (bortvedt09@gmail.com).  I believe it is about six mailings per year.

My other pitch is for those who have talked about coming to visit Cambodia.  Maryknoll Lay Missioners runs a program called Friends Across Borders.  It leads multi-week immersion programs to all the countries where MKLM works - including Cambodia!  There is, of course, a fee associated with the trips but that includes all your in-country expenses - only additional cost is international airfare.  So, for those that are thinking of coming, it is an option worth considering.  The 2014 and 2015 dates are already set :)

I hope you all have a marvelous Thanksgiving weekend and know how thankful I am to have you in my life!