The 15 month summer

Yes it’s true, we’ve been chasing summer around the globe for a year now. I’ve sweat more in the past twelve months than I ever have before. Humidity made my hair curly in a way that was completely new to me. 60 degree nights in Guatemala had me shivering. And I have gained an even greater appreciation for air conditioning. Im gonna need lots of prayers as I go back to New Hampshire and then to Michigan to college.

But the similarities to summer don’t end with the heat. I think back to summers as a child and the giddy feeling anticipating reuniting with friends and teachers. And that’s the closest feeling I can relate to what my squad is feeling now. The excitement to see our normal friends and our family after a short break while we took our own adventures.

I remember checking my family’s mailbox everyday in August in anticipation of the letter that would tell me who my teacher would be. As soon as the letter came out everyone was on the phone trying to figure out who is in their class. Opening my acceptance letter (okay it was an email) to be a camp counselor and waiting to see who my roommate is in the fall mirror that same feeling of anticipation of what’s next.

Everyday on the race was something new. Gone was the guarantee of structure. Yes there was some repetition and we had a general understanding of what to expect by the end of our time in a country. But each place had its own surprises, unique areas to explore, relationships to build, and new opportunities. Some days we took it easy and others we had so much we wanted to do that we couldn’t fit it all in. Sounds a lot like summer doesn’t it?

Back in September during I training camp I kept thinking about how much time we were going to have, and all the things we would experience together. The possibilities were endless because we had all the time in the world. But somehow I’m on a plane back to the States and all of this feels like only yesterday. Funny how the end of times like this leave us wondering where all the time went.

When I finally got back to school in the fall and the new wore off I would find myself looking out the window at the green grass turning brown and the leaves starting to fall and wish for the time that I was out there when the grass was green and I went swimming everyday rather than doing assignment.

I would look forward to the hot chocolate and Christmas that winter would soon bring. But winter would bring icy windshields and slushy sidewalks that would cause me to retreat inside my head dreaming where the flowers and chirping birds of spring were waiting for me. But when spring actually arrived so did spring allergies and bugs. And let’s be real, spring really just means that summer is near. And when summer does finally roll around mosquitos become vicious and you begin to miss your friends from school. So companies start advertising pumpkin spice lattes and we all love making a back to school list and getting sharp new pencils. But school comes and the cycle repeats.

We get caught up romanticizing the next season of life when things get uncomfortable that we miss the gifts of the present. And that’s not to say don’t be excited about what’s next, that’s not wrong at all! As a kid when people would ask me if I was excited or not to go back to school I never really knew how to answer, because it doesn’t have to be one of the other. Be excited but don’t miss the opportunities and the blessings the Lord has for you right now.

I know when I finally get my hands on that chipotle bowl I’ve been craving Im going to miss Necrus food that she cooked for us in Cambodia. There were days when sharing a room with eight girls was hard I’ll admit it. And there were times when I wished for my own room with my own bed. But I know when I get back to that, I’m going to miss sleepovers every night with my friends who feel like sisters even if it was on the floor.

In two weeks I’ll be back to “normal life”. Back to America to my family and my normal clothes and my regular group of friends. And I’m so thankful but I have to be careful to not let the closeness of “back to school” let me miss the last little bit of my “summer”.

And I think that if I’m being honest there’s a little bit of apprehension going home. I’m scared my brothers will be a little taller, my high school friends might just be an awkward wave in the grocery store. I’m a little scared it will never be same again as when I left. But as fun as third grade was it would be silly to repeat it. We grow and we move forward. And I’m thankful for all that I’ve learned and all the ways I’ve changed. There’s something sweet in reuniting with old friends and seeing how far we’ve come.