El Fin (The End)

So we just finished our 6th flight of the trip and have 2 more to go. Luckily the Starbucks in Lima has free internet to entertain us during our 17 hour layover. bleh.
Our last 10 days of the trip was spent in Itu, Brazil and I was lucky enough to be picked to stay at Ali and Mark Kaiser's house, who were our missionary contacts for Itu. I say lucky because while staying there I was able to meet so many different people, each with a unique story. The Kaiser's house seems a bit chaotic at first, perhaps because every night there is a different combination of people staying the night, or because there are beautiful sharpie and crayola artworks all over the walls, or because they are preparing for a huge camp coming up and all of the stuff is everywhere. To some this makes their house beautiful. The amount of love and acceptance and dedication to their goals is encouraging to say the least.

I think the most interesting part of this trip for me was getting to see a peek of 3 different styles of missionary work all in one trip. Previous to this trip, I had no idea of what missionaries actually DID. What their lives were like. Now I feel like I have a much better idea of what kind of lifestyle and dedication it takes. It's possible that the main factor that developed the teams into varying styles in the stage in which their family is in. I would say that is one thing that is most welcoming to the becoming a missionary, it shows that no matter where you I am in life I don't need to make excuses about waiting to dedicate my time. I can serve like many of the singles I have met, or with my wife like Mark and Ali Kaiser, or with 2 kids who are both in elementary school like most of the Lima families, or with kids in college like the Blumes

family. I think the main thing I got from this trip is encouragement. For school, life, my faith, and most things in between.


The Few

Here are some of my favorite pictures for your enjoyment: