Playing a Bit of Catch Up

I has been a long while since I've written, which is a shame because so much has happened! It also frustrates me because I know that the only way to become a better writer is to read and write a lot. I've been failing at that lately, but it's never too late to start!
At the end of June, I had my high school graduation, which was bittersweet. I was so overwhelmingly glad to be finished, but at the same time I didn't want to leave my friends and the only world I had ever known. It was especially hard for me because I knew that I would be leaving for Nicaragua soon after.

My dress was fiery orange and red, just like the girl on fire. Not that the choice was intentional. However, when I made that comparison, I didn't mind one bit! It was fitted to the hips, with zipper for decoration, and it had a full skirt of tulle. Being around all my family and friends that day, all hugging me and congratulating me, was a great reminder of the way God always sees me, an.d the kind of love I should be sharing more throughout my life
After the ceremony and banquet, we went to the grad parties. Now there are two official parties hosted: Safe Grad and Dry Grad. Safe Grad involves the consumption of alcohol, so I naturally try to avoid that scene. The other I helped out with, by designing a logo with my friend, so we decided to go to that one. The thing is, we could only stay for a few hours. Her dad was driving the two of us, at three in the morning, to meet the rest of our mission team going to Chicago. So it was a long day!
The Chicago trip was amazing! There were close to 30 people from our church and youth group going, and there were a lot of people I didn't know very well before the trip. It was really cool to get to know them better and develop those bonds. A few times, we were given alone time for devotionals, and I felt God speak to me so directly. It was an amazing feeling, and God taught me so much! We were doing inner city missions, so we met a lot of homeless people. What a cool experience! I had originally been a little afraid of them, for whatever reason, but after having a few really inspiring conversations, I really came to appreciate them. In many ways, I think they are better off than me. One man, who was battling cancer and had no money to pay for treatment, told me he's glad he's homeless, because it forces him to depend on God more. Every single meal he eats was miraculously given to him by God, and he appreciates it so much. That is one thing that I have lacked in my life: thankfulness. I don't think one can be that grateful without such hardship. I am so thankful that God gave me those experiences, and I shall cherish them forever.
When I got back from the mission trip, I didn't even get home before my family and I were off again on marvelous adventures. We travelled around 8 hours to my aunt and uncle's house to visit them for a few days.
We've lived in Nicaragua for around 3 weeks now. I am really enjoying it! It still feels somewhat like a vacation, but I know eventually that will change. We are learning Spanish, and it is going a lot quicker than I expected. It'll be a while before we are fully conversational, but after 2 weeks of classes, we can have a basic conversation if we're patient.
Another missionary family chose our house for us before we moved here, and it used to belong to another missionary family, who just moved into the capital. The house is a lot bigger than we expected, and it feels so empty with our few possessions. We're hoping to purchase a few more pieces of furniture so the place doesn't echo so much.
Another reason we want a few more things around is so that our friend, Senor Geco (Mister Gecko in Spanish), will have some places to hide. Geckos are very good to have in the house, because they eat the bugs. The other family we are working with in Nicaragua told us that geckos become like family. So of course he needed a name.
We've been having some really good theological conversations with one of our Spanish teachers lately. He seems to be really seeking God, and while we aren't sure exactly where his heart lies (I'm not sure anyone but God can truly know that about a person.), he seems to be looking for something. One day, our homework was to pick a theme and explain it in Spanish. My mom wrote about forgiveness, and I wrote about love. After we finished reading them, he sat there for a while, not saying anything. Then he told us that the night before, he had been struggling and asking God some really tough questions, and that he didn't expect God to use our homework to show him the answers. How cool is that? God is truly working in his life, and it's cool to get to see that. We invited him to come to church with us, and he said he would really like to, so hopefully it works for him to join us sometime.
Anyways, that is a very brief summary of what I've been up to lately, and what God has been doing in my life. I can't wait to see what else He has in store!
~Brie