Slovakia and Slovenia 2016: Update, Team Day and Take Off

Okay. So it's been awhile.

Our team is ready to fly!

When we last left off, I was instructing young children in the art of wielding hatchets, matches and flaming torches. Two years of west coast post-secondary and one very full summer have passed since then, filled with everything from acquiring a professional ventriloquist dummy and road tripping by midnight bus to handling what turned out to be the most poisonous amphibian on the west coast. Between these highlights, the days have been filled with such activities as studying textbooks, writing exams and working overtime seasonally. Spare moments have involved hiking on the beach, researching apologetics topics and furiously sewing to make the daypack that is now sitting on the airport Tim Horton's bench beside me. (I'm intrigued to see if this DIY pack which I broke seven sewing machines needles trying to assemble will actually hold up during our month-long expedition overseas... Only one way to find out.)

Oh yeah.

And in one hour we board the plane.

Then in a few days, God willing, we will be commencing a week of leading an English Camp for Kids in Slovakia, followed by a couple of weeks of volunteering at various places in Slovenia with our team of 8 Canadians. Afterwards, Jonathan and I plan to take on the UK for a week and do some exploring. If we can navigate the transit systems...

But one crisis at a time.

Like navigating river canoes.

That's right--when we gathered for our Team Building day yesterday, I was thrilled to discover a trailer of sleek, scarlet canoes waiting for us. Within an hour we were cruising past the city skyline on the broad, shining river, watching spray from our paddles--and waterguns--catching in the sunlight. Yes, we definitely had a mid-river water fight!







Later, I found myself in the backseat of a car headed deep into the country bound for an unidentified destination. The adventure turned out to be riflery, meaning that I soon had my hands on a fine-looking 22. I had shot a gun like that before, so wasn't too far out of my comfort zone. But the military rifle and the shot guns--those have kickback, right?

This concerned me a smidgen, but over the past three years I've gotten into the habit of doing scary stuff when given the opportunity, lest I regret it if I don't. This philosophy has landed me in some strange places, such as sitting on bovine's heads surrounded by lasso-wielding horsemen, leaping off high dives, and jumping into vertical caves to see caribou bones. And it's always been worth it, so pick up the larger rifle I did. The kickback was actually rather pleasant, feeling something like a friendly punch in the shoulder by an old pal. And while I'm no Annie Oakley, I did manage to shatter one airborne skeet and nick several others.

But this, I am certain, is only the beginning of regaining an elastic sort of comfort zone. Just when you get comfortable with one degree of stretchiness, God opens the way for you to stretch just a little bit further. Or a lot further. I couldn't be more excited to see what God has in store for our team on this adventure--just how far He'll take us.
And seeing as how we're sitting on the plane now, preparing for take off, it won't be long until we find out!