Tomorrow's the Big Day!

This week has honestly not gone the way any of us thought it would. First of all, remember that snowstorm everyone was freaking out about? Yeah, it wasn't really a big deal. I mean yes it did snow but even being from Florida I could recognize that it was a let down compared to all the talk there was about it. I do think that taking the precaution of shutting things down was not a bad idea because you literally have no idea what to expect. But the night before we had watched "The Day After Tomorrow" and trust me, it was nothing like that.

Even though the snow didn't get us, the stomach flu did... The Salvation Army Core we are staying in was shut down on Tuesday which meant there were no other people in the building besides us and that turned out to be a very good thing. During the night, we had a few people that got very sick and it was convenient that there was no one here so we could quarantine them in the bathroom. I do like helping people feel better when they are sick so I was on nurse duty making sure they were comfortable and had water or anything else they needed. Ever since Monday though it's like a game of who is going to get sick next. And when you are planning to leave the country in a few days, that is really not a good thing. Plus, when everyone around you is getting sick, your body likes messing with you by telling you that you are going to get it too. I am hoping we have finally reached the end of people actually being sick and now we are just helping people get their rest, strength, and energy back.

Those of us that were not sick did get to go back to the Common Pantry again which was a good way to get us out and doing something. This time I was out front going from person to person asking them to choose which items they would like from the pantry. A lot of the people I talked to could not speak English so that was challenging but they had pictures which made it a lot easier to communicate. It was a reminder that I am about to enter a place where I am the outsider no one can communicate with. And although I am sure it will be challenging at some points, it is kind of entertaining as well.

But tomorrow is the big day! We have to leave to get on the subway at like 3am (Ew, gross!) and then we are flying straight from JFK to Haiti! It's still hard to wrap my head around it all. This week has kind of run together with all the sickness and stuff floating around so it just feels like this is surprising me how fast this is all happening. It can become easy when preparing for something crazy like going to a different country for several weeks to feel like you are not ready or able to do it. I definitely don't sleep on the ground in a bug net on a regular basis. But I know that God is pushing me outside of my comfort zone to learn more about myself and Him. I have been able to talk to people that have gone on these trips before and I am fully aware that the change is not going to be easy or pleasant at some times. God has been faithful in showing me over and over again that this trip is exactly where He wants me. So I'm just going to go for it and trust Him all the way because really it's my only option!