I’m back in the states. I’m a bit overwhelmed, but I can’t tell why. There are a few things that I could be overwhelmed by. Maybe it’s the differentness of American culture from what I got used to being overseas for a year, or maybe it’s the refills, the ice, the air-conditioner, or the way everyone speaks english around me. Could it be the pace of life? Or maybe the fact that my sister gets married on Friday? I don’t know, but it’s a lot. I tried my best to prepare for being here, but in a lot of ways you just can’t. I remember thinking the more and more I got used to being in Slovakia - how hard it would be to transition back, but I didn’t know exactly how.

What’s more is that I feel like I cheated you on a Serbia update, because it was amazing, God really showed up and brought His A-game. I saw Him work in our students lives and change us all towards stepping out in faith and relying on Him to direct our paths. Being in Serbia, was for me, an excellent time so that I could focus on “being fully there” till the very end. Two days after the Serbia experience, I got on a plane and flew all the way home, with a missed flight in Chicago, and a long runway experience. I guess all of that comes with flying internationally.

Now that I’m home I’m working on wedding stuff for my sister, Kirby, who gets married this Friday! I’m real excited for her. I’m glad to be here to help. It’s been really hard to not be a part of helping her plan because I’ve been overseas.

But, jumping back in is hard, especially this fast. I feel like I don’t know really where I fit, or where I belong - or if I belong anywhere. Things that I remember being so good, aren’t really that good to me anymore. For example, I had a chik-fil-a milkshake the other day (with all of its millions of calories) and I didn’t really even like it. It wasn’t that good, it kind of even made me feel sick to my stomach. The things I thought I missed aren’t really as good as I remembered. It’s funny how distance and time can do that to you. How the good sifts to the top, and you don’t really remember the bad things, or the difficult things.

The most difficult thing I think is the lack of time people have to spend time talking and helping me process through life as -is, I think there is a tendency in all of us to say, “it will all just work out.” But, what if it doesn’t. Or, what if it doesn’t at the speed that you think it will. Maybe this is the hardest.

Hard, but good? I guess so.