I'm going to be in Ethiopia with these crazy cats!!

From left to right: Andy Warren, Jason Polk, Bill Yarborough, Jeff Concannon, Emily Treadwell, Bev Warren, me, Cary Sink, Michael Treadwell

Front row: Liz Polk (holding Isaiah), Linda Swallow, Maria Concannon

We took this very fun picture during our American teammate retreat which took place in Athens, GA the weekend of April 15. For one reason or another we were all in the states at the same time, which I think is a miracle if you know anything about how hard is to get missionaries in the same place! So Andy, our team leader, organized this retreat for us. The Warren's, Linda, Cary, and the Treadwell's have all been in Ethiopia for a while (especially the Warren's who have been in Africa total for 25 years) and have been a HUGE help to me as I prepare to serve there. Liz & Jason and their two kids will be arriving in Addis about a month after I get there. They will be starting the new church-plant among the families we serve with. The Treadwell's have two kids and will be arriving back on the field this fall. Jeff & Maria live in Knoxville, TN and help raise money for our project and Bill is the MTW International Director for Africa. Missing from our retreat was all of the Ethiopian staff we normally work with, which I think was especially hard on my teammates who know them well.

Being a part of this retreat got me motivated to write out all of the things I am excited about in regards to moving to Ethiopia. People always are asking me "are you getting excited?!?" I think I am excited, but it's not the same kind of excitement as like going to see a movie that just came out or going on a fun vacation that's finally here or getting a new pet. It's more like a trepidation excitement/borderline terror. So anyway, as I was enjoying a nice walk in Amy Mo's beautiful neighborhood today, I started brainstorming some things I am looking forward to (and yes, sometimes excited about!):

•  Definitely my teammates. Being with them all weekend got me really pumped to get to be with them for two years. It did feel a little surreal- like my mind was catching up to my new identity as someone working and living in Ethiopia, but it was a lot of fun.
• Finally getting to know all the Ethiopian staff which I've heard such amazingly great things about
• All of the randomness that goes into living in East Africa. I have only ever been to Kenya & Ethiopia, but both times I realized some of the best parts is just driving or walking around and watching what's going on. You literally never know what you might see- for better or worse. But a lot of times it can be quite funny (like the bobo train bus in Nairobi with all the strobe lights and TV's).
• Getting to learn another language and actually using it
• Growing spiritually in new ways and being challenged in my faith
• Not having to clean my bathroom
• Having a routine and getting back to work
• Being with the summer interns and working with other interns yet to come
• Getting my new apartment set up and doing things like putting the Christmas card pictures on my refrigerator
• Living a simpler life
• Being able to learn how to really help the poor & do mercy ministry well & how to be an inter-cultural team (we did a lot of discussing this during the weekend and I realized I really have no clue how to do this)
• Getting to meet other missionaries and expatriates from all over the world
• Figuring out how to get around and how to buy groceries and do laundry, etc
• Seeing a new part of the world
• Having family and friends come visit and showing them what I'm doing in Addis Ababa
• Drinking really good coffee and eating spicy food
• Being able to finally experience what full-time ministry life is like