Atlanta to Lima

We are boarding in less than an hour! Aiyiyi! I think this will be the longest flight I have ever been on. I have a bit of an upset stomach, sadly, so I hope that goes away. I expect some amount of sickness on this trip, because I don’t have a very strong immune system. Meh.

I can’t wait to meet the children we will be working with! Even sooner, I can’t wait until the plane touches down in Lima and I am in my first foreign country ever! I am sure it will be quite an adventure getting through customs and driving to the hotel, not to mention going around Lima tomorrow. I’ll update ASAP. This is my last ”Pre-Arrival” entry because the update won’t be until after I am in LIMA, PERU!!!!

“For the good hand of my God was upon me” (Neh. 2:8).

“So they strengthened their hands for the good work” (Neh 2:18).

“Once God has spoken; twice have I heard this: that power belongs to God, and that to You, O Lord, belongs steadfast love” (Ps. 62:11-12).

Ciao,
Anna
(they don’t say adios in Peru, they say ciao.)

 

Peru, Here We Come!

It’s amazing how much of a difference one night of sleep makes. I’m sitting in the Dallas airport right now waiting to board the plane for Atlanta. Then we have about a four-hour layover in Atlanta, then a six-hour flight to Peru, where we arrive at 11 pm. Yay!

I can’t wait to get to know our hosts and the orphans and the city. It’s my first foreign country! I’m rambling now… I just wanted to let y’all know that things are much better and that I’m really excited! (Did you notice how I just used y’all? I’ve been in TX for 1 day!)

Time to board soon!
Anna

 

Hard Times

I did not expect this first day to be so difficult. I had to get up at 1:45 a.m. to get to the airport on time. It’s now 10:09 p.m. Ohio time and I’m sharing a hotel room in Dallas with my three teammates. I started crying in front of them because I am so tired and overwhelmed. I don’t know when I’ll get to sleep tonight but I desperately need more sleep. (I’m an insomniac, by the way.)

 I really don’t want to let all this uncertainty and disorientation that I always feel when I’m moving or starting something new distract me from the real focus and purpose of this trip. My problem is when I am feeling this emotionally unbalanced and weepy I don’t want to think about anything spiritually comforting because then I know I will start crying.

Tomorrow is another long day of traveling. We arrive in Peru at 11 p.m. Who knows when I’ll actually get to sleep tonight since I can’t expect the other girls to all want to go to bed early too. And we have two per bed, which always makes it extremely difficult for me to sleep. I better stop now before the tears start again! I need major prayer for this sleep issue. It tends to ruin big parts of my life and is part of the reason why I was always so scared to go on a missions trip. I could hardly function through the last half of today because I was so exhausted. Please pray, both that I will be able to sleep easily when I need to, and also that I will have strength to continue on when I’m low on sleep.

Thanks everyone.

Love,
Anna

 

Pre-Departure Thoughts

I can’t believe all the traveling I’m going to be doing between now and Friday at midnight! I’ll be sleeping in three different places tonight, tomorrow night, and the next night. I’m definitely getting more excited. I will feel better once I am packed. I have everything here right now pretty much; it’s just not in my suitcase. It’s going to be interesting seeing how I’m going to fit all of it in my suitcase.

One thing that is nice about the trip is that in Peru right now, the weather is pretty much in the sixties all the time. Two of the other girls who are going are from Texas and one is from New Mexico. I was talking to the Texas girls about the weather (hi Sarah and Katy) and they think it’s going to be so cold! I guess there are benefits to being used to Michigan weather! The sixties sound perfect to me, because in Michigan it was snowing basically until school ended, and then in Ohio May was nineties, so I feel like I missed spring. Plus, I’m sure we’ll all be dealing with some amount of sickness while we’re there, whether it’s from the altitude or the food or whatnot, and personally I think it’s much easier to deal with sickness when you’re not also dealing with hot weather and humidity at the same time.

My intern leader Sarah called me yesterday and I found out some more information about what we’re going to be doing. Some of the time in Lima we’ll be working in a home for teenage mothers, teaching them how to interact with their babies. We’re not really sure how we’re supposed to do that, but I’m sure God will work it out. I am so excited about that opportunity. I love babies and I definitely have a heart for girls in that situation.

Well, this was a nice break from packing. I need to get back to work now. I wonder where I’ll be next time I write…

Ciao!
Anna

 

One Week from Today!

Hello, friends, family, and supporters! Welcome to my Peru blog. I am so excited about the fact that I leave for Peru in exactly 7 days, 2 hours, and 48 minutes… that’s right, my flight leaves at 6:00 a.m, so we have to leave our house at 3. Not so fun. But regardless of that, I am looking forward to everything!!!

I’ll be updating when I can with pictures and info about how everything is going. Oh yes, check the “About” page (top right-hand corner) for more info about my trip and what I’ll be doing.

Adios for now…
Anna