less than 24 hours

so, here i sit again in starbucks on my last day in the states eating a ham & swiss sandwich that tastes very american. at this point i am mostly excited and a little nervous. im all packed and have said almost all my goodbyes. i just finished having coffee with a group of girls that have been some of my closest friends throughout the majority of my life. nicole, gayle, ariel and julianne if you are reading this I LOVE ALL OF YOU <3 thanks for being there for me this morning. last night i had dinner with my family, including my grandparents, at the great hula hut near downtown austin. i had a great time enjoying their company and talking about what is to come. countless other friends from church and school have made my last few weeks at home unforgettable. each and every one of you is special and i have all of you to thank. oh hey! yesterday, i was in the "the daily sentinel" of nacogdoches, tx where i attend school. thank you kim foli! you are the best and the article is beautiful :) here is a plan/itinerary of the next several months of my life. 

may 29-drive from austin to dallas then fly from dallas, tx to london, england 

may 30-fly from london, england to lusaka, zambia

may 31-june 31-work on summer staff with family legacy missions international at camp LIFE 

july 1-fly from lusaka, zambia back to london, england for a 3 week vacation with my family until school starts (most likely we will be visiting italy and spain while we are at it ;)

july 24-fly from london, england to johannesburg, south africa

july 25-fly from johannesburg, south africa to gaborone, botswana
july 25-november 30-attend the university of botswana! :)

december 1-fly from gaborone, botswana to johannesburg, south africa

december 1-fly from johannesburg, south africa to london, england

december 2-fly from london, england to dallas, tx then drive back to austin, tx!

waving goodbye!!...it looks more like a hi-5 but i'm in public
and i'm to embarrassed to take it again... ;)

6 countries in 6 months. it's absolutely crazy but i can't wait to see what God has planned from may 29-december 2. i'm going on an adventure hopefully filled with service, joy and the love of Christ Jesus poured on those around me. i feel special that i am getting to do this and am still in awe that He has chosen me. i just don't get it. i hope to be His hands and feet to the people. also, i found a church called naledi baptist fellowship in the impoverished area of old naledi that i would really like to get involved with. i can't wait to hug these african children, listen to their laughs and see their smiles. i want to be a part of their lives and be engaged. pray that i don't get to frustrated when i can't provide for all of their needs or fix all of their problems. jesus is the healer, i am not. i need to remind myself of that constantly. just to nail down the point that the Lord provides, HEB (my employer of nearly 4 years) is letting me keep my job. i already go on an "educational leave of absence" during the school year leaving about only 3 months that i work at heb each year with the majority of my hours coming from shifts during the summer. i will be gone all summer to be in africa this year. HEB called me yesterday and my top managers decided that they didn't want to hinder me from such a great opportunity and so when i get back in december  I STILL HAVE A JOB. each employee that goes on leave is required to work a total of 300 hours per year to remain employed. i will have a total of 150. only half, yet by some miracle they are letting that slide so that i can do both. go to africa for 6 months and keep my job. all i have to say is, God is good. what no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived the things God has prepared for those who love Him. 1 corinthians 2:9