Adventure...a few things I've learned

I often find myself amazed by the adventures God has invited me on. He could have easily asked someone else but He asked me. Here are a few things I’ve learned along the way….

Saying YES to adventure can be scary but totally worth it. 

-          I realized a while ago that when certain situations present themselves I must say yes no matter                    how uncomfortable it may be or how much it may freak me out. Paragliding? YES! Safari? YES!   Sleeping in the loft of a barn in a village? Um…ok…yes.

Adventure often involves spontaneity

If you keep saying “I wanna do that one day” chances are “one day” will never come. Be prepared to go. This will also keep you from thinking things through too much.

Adventure is even better when you experience it with a friend.

Sometimes I think the main reason for getting married is so that I could have a permanent adventure buddy. For now, I have a few friends that I know, should I ask, they will join me in a heartbeat.

Adventure brings strangers together.

-       I saw this a lot when I trekked through the Himalayas. Strangers staying at the same teahouse often became friends running into one another along the trail. I truly experienced this with the other foreigners that I worked with overseas. The life we lived was far from normal and it created a bond that I can’t explain.

The definition of adventure is in the eye of the beholder.

A lot people think of adventure as bungee bungeejumping, paragliding, zip lining or going on a safari. For some people it’s as simple as spontaneously hopping in the car and driving someplace new. This past mother’s day I realized motherhood may very well be the ultimate adventure.

A lot of my adventures in Nepal involved crazy bus rides, hiking through remote villages and sleeping in the homes of new friends. At the time, I had no desire to take long bus rides or sleep on the hard ground but thankfully I can look back and recognize it was an adventure.

There is one more thing that you should know about adventure, it’s important so pay attention.

Adventure, it’s not going to wait around for you. You’ve got to rise up and meet it.

-I see Americans working so much and packing their schedules full of stuff. Free time is a myth and vacation eludes most. Americans have totally ignored the possibilities of adventure. They miss out  because they are too busy.

I am currently on the cusp of my next adventure. I have absolutely no idea what is next but I want to be ready to go at a moment’s notice….I hope you will be too.

Adjusting to America

Sometimes I feel like a stranger in my own country. I may look and sound like an American but most of the time, I have no idea what’s going on. Not only has my world view been drastically altered but I’ve failed to keep up with what’s been happening in the good ol US of A.

I find myself asking “Really? Is this a thing?”

A few things that continue to elude me ….

Kim Kardashian… Kim who? Why do people care about Kim K? ...and why is the media is talking about her pregnancy weight? Shouldn’t we all be super concerned over the father of her child? Did the media miss the memo that said“Kanye is a big D bag and may very well be creating the spawn of Satan”. I mean, if we are gonna talk, then let's priorities the crazy talk. 

Big eye glasses….been there, did that in the third grade, and made a vow to NEVER do that again.

Gluten Free…was there some sort of epidemic that caused a large majority of Americans to be allergic to gluten while I was gone?

I’m pretty convinced that if the zombie apocalypse happens gluten free will have played a role in it…and that hipsters will be the first ones to go.

…don’t even get me started on my hipster zombie conspiracy theory. …

Pinterest, Instagram, Tweets, texting rather than talking and hashtags…Five years ago, never once did a friend call me up to talk about the delicious meal they were in the process of having. Now, my friends can find a recipe on Pinterest, cook something, take a picture of what the finished project looks like, tweet a clever quip regarding their food with the #amazefood.

I kind of miss the days when I did not know so much about my friends lives. 

Every day there is something that usually throws me off. I try to play it cool but usually fail. Should you see me freak out in public or just look lost feel free to pat me on the shoulder and give me a "knowing look". You know the kind of look that says "bless your heart your going through culture shock". 

Here's the skinny

Leaving the KTM airport

Here's the skinny,

I’m living in America…for now.

I would love to sit down and write a thoughtful and meaningfull post about the process and journey God has taken me on to get me to America but I can’t. To write such a post would require thought, introspection and coming to terms with the fact that I have indeed left Nepal. To be honest with you I’m not ready to do that just yet. Yes, I’m avoiding the floodgate of emotions that will open. Right now, I’m just trying to deal with entering back into America….trust me when I tell you reverse culture shock has me dealing with enough emotion as it is.

So here is the skinny,

I have officially taken a leave of absence with the company that I was working for. Basically what that means is that I have two years to decide to continue working for them. I’ve not been fired nor did I quit. I’m sort of somewhere in-between.

My current plan is to complete my Masters of Theology degree.

Because I only took a leave of absence the company I worked for gave me two months of insurance. The past four weeks have been spent going to the DR, the dentist, the chiropractor, and a few others. Incase you were wondering I am cavity free and when I fell off my table trying to change a light bulb last year I managed to fracture my pelvis. I knew my lower back hurt for a reason!

Although I have some tentative plans I feel like God is currently telling me to wait and be quite. I wish I knew the next move, but I don’t. I wish I could give easy answers to easy questions such as “how long will you be in America?” but I can’t. I’m trying my best to be patient and allow God to show me the next step. 

India...BLECH!!!

India…blech!

I hate to offend anyone from India or those who just really like India but my most recent “trip” to India was BAD.

My trip back to Nepal was supposed to end Wed at 3pm, however I would not arrive in Nepal until Thursday at 3pm.

What happened was, just as our plane was getting ready to land at the Kathmandu airport our captain pulled up and announced that due to poor visualization we were not going to land. The captain announced that we would be going to Veranaci India to refuel and try again.

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The minute I heard the name of the place we were going to I knew it was not going to be good. You see, India is difficult. Small town India is even more difficult. Small town India that is famous for people going there to die is bad ju ju…but I don’t believe in ju ju so let’s just say that its super difficult.

home for the night

Upon landing 130 people were stuck on an Indian tarmac for 6 hours. Around 11pm we were allowed off the plane into an open terminal where we would all spend the next 15 hours. There was very little food and water and marble floors are not ideal for sleeping. I won't go into all the details of that night but suffice it to say the entire experience was bazaar.

inside

During my time I met;

• Corrupt airline officials who kept asking for bribes.
• A French businessman who would eventually miss the seminar he was supposed to speak at
• A gay couple going to Nepal to trek
• A female Canadian currently living in San Francisco trying to insight revolt against the airlines.

The entire time I kept thinking, “this only happens to people in the movies.”

22 hours later we were able to start the boarding process and head to Nepal. I have since written a strongly worded letters to Singapore Air. I will try to keep you posted on the outcome of said letter and the possible revolt led by the Canadian San Fran girl. 

For the third time...

I’m back in Nepal.

I tried to write a “goodbye America” post…well I did write one and even posted it but after a few hours I re-read it and decided to delete it. When I wrote it I was way too emotional. Note to self, don’t cry and blog at the same time. Nothing good can come of it.

Needless to say, leaving America was not easy. This was the third time in my life where I had to pack up my things and say my goodbyes knowing it would be a while before I returned.

The first time I did this, I was right out of college and had no idea what I was getting into. It was as if I was floating on a cloud of naivety.

The second time I had been in America for three years. It was just long enough to dull the memories of what its like to leave and what it’s like to live in a 3^rd world country. I was tired of the American 9-5 and was running toward the other side of the world.

The third time….ugh.

I basically had a six-month American vacation. My time was full of family, friends, great food, and convenience. You may be thinking “convenience?” What does she mean? Well, in it’s simplest form it is water, electricity, gas, and heat. In it’s more complex forms (if convenience can be complex) it is being able to put in special orders at a restaurant, paying with a debit card, drive through  restaurants, shopping on line, fountain drinks, traffic laws and so much more. America the brave and home of convenience.

My last full day in America happened to be Super Bowl Sunday. While others were eating party food and watching the game with friends I was spending my last moments with my Grandparents, Sister and her family, and my Parents. It was a day full of my favorite foods and hard goodbyes. It was also an evening of trying to figure out where I could stash some Oreos and chocolate chips.

At 3:45 the next morning Dad and I got in the car and slipped through the fog to get to the airport. Dad was strong and kept it together. I was focused on the “next step”

Check in luggage

Pay for extra luggage

Say goodbye to Dad

Get through security

Watch the sun rise at the Seattle airport

Get one last Starbucks fix

Board my flight

Find the right terminal in LA

Call Mom one last time

Send one last text

Leave America…3 days later…Nepal. 

SNOW!

If you watched American news then you may have heard that the Northwest was hit with a winter storm. Where my parents live it started snowing on a Wednesday and did not really stop until Friday. Schools were delayed, people were stuck, danger seemed emanate...and I loved it!

There is something about snow that I adore. It is reminiscent of childhood and adventure. Days of sledding, snowball fights, ending with wet clothes and hot chocolate. Every child should be so lucky as to experience snow. I also love the unknown that snow brings. Will I be able to make it up the driveway? Will school be closed? Will it snow again tomorrow? Every question holds adventure in the answer.

As I’ve gotten older I’ve quickly learned that the latter effects of snow lead to slushy streets, dirty cars, and make up days. Snow may pause life for a few days but reality will eventually set back in.

Some of my favorite things about snow

+ it makes everything look prettier…as if giving the barren trees a winter sweater

+ it causes everyone to stop…no work, no school, no extracuriculars just stay home.

+ I am in awe of the gentle force…is soft and slow, yet in a few hours covers everything

After a few warm sunny days the snow quickly melted away from the streets and life seemed to return back to normal. It however, sure was nice that it came to visit for a few days. 

Christmas

Christmas….what do I say, where do I begin?

It was nice to be able to spend Christmas in America with my family. It had been three years since I was able to spend the entire Christmas season in the states.

To be honest with you I went into it with too high of expectations. Living overseas can do this to you. When you are far away from home you imagine your entire family wearing Christmas sweaters, sitting by the fire, smiling and singing songs. This is not the truth...in fact no one in my family even owns a fireplace.

In America, Christmas starts at midnight of Thanksgiving. People suddenly become busy and the feeling of “cheer” and “good tidings” is quickly followed by stress. Due to extenuating circumstances the week leading up to Christmas was stressful at my parents house.

Looking back over Christmas Eve, Christmas day, and other events, my favorite moments were the quite ones. The ones full of one on one conversations and laughs. The moments spent with family and friends that were sweet and unplanned. During those times I would tell myself “remember this”…because truth be told I won’t have this again for a while.

At times it was difficult to get into the Christmas spirit. As much as I would like to blame Justin Beeber for sucking out all the Christmas joy I think the blame is to be placed on myself. Rather than rejoicing in the birth of my savior I got wrapped up in the stress of life.

So my sweeping declarations will be “next year  I SHALL BE FULL OF CHRISTMAS CHEER!!”