goings, comings, and . . . . goings. . .
Well my friends. It's been quite the month since I was in New Mexico . . . and lots to tell.
First of all, let me say that my time out in New Mexico with Amanda was beyond amazing. I don't think I've spent a vacation in the US in which I've been exposed to (and overwhelmed by) so much beauty in such a short amount of time. I've seen Albuquerque & Santa Fe before, and the mountains and volcanoes in the area, but it had been a few years. Plus, we took this amazing camping trip where we drove to Mesa Verde in Colorado, camped there, took a tour of ancient Pueblo ruins, and took in the views from the mesa. Then the day after we arrived we took another tour first thing, drove to the Four Corners (& took pictures), then drove to Monument Valley in Utah (and took more pictures), and then made it to the Arches by sunset (and took MORE pictures), then drove back to Mesa Verde at night. By the time we left to go back to Albuquerque (which was another crazy/beautiful drive, we went on this dirt road that was supposedly a marked highway), we ended up driving 1300 miles in 3 1/2 days (good thing we had a rental).
Back at the ranch, I was able to do some other things, such as go back to Santa Fe and see the Loretto Chapel (which has this "miraculous staircase" in it, which gave me goosebumps when I walked into the chapel). I also took the Sandia Peak tram, the longest continuous tram in the world, up into the Sandia mountains in Albuquerque, and took a hike along the top of the mountain -- so beautiful! I checked out the volcanoes, and also looked at some petroglyphs. We did some other things in town, too, but those were the highlights. Other than almost not making it home (my flight got cancelled twice, and I ended up staying an extra three days), it was an amazing trip. I'll post pics soon on here & on Flickr and Facebook.
While I was on this trip, an idea kept tugging at my mind. My friend Rebecca had just taken a job out in Phoenix at a church plant, which just happened to be with the same pastor we'd stayed with back a few years ago on our CAV missions trip to Mexico. When I'd talked to her and she described the church, and that all just sort of started percolating in my head as I would think about plans for the fall (of which I had very few ideas about). So of course when I was on vacation, and in the beautiful Southwest, and just relaxing, I thought, "Sure, that would be awesome to move to Arizona!" But, I also realized it was easy to think that on vacation, so when I got back, I kept praying about it more, talked to Rebecca about the idea of living with her out there, talked with Pastor Glenn, talked with some friends, and it seemed like there was just no major reason I shouldn't go. Most likely, I would be moving somewhere anyway, as I need to find a full time job this fall to save up for seminary. Last week, I made the final decision to go, and now things have been this whirlwind of activity, planning, moving out of my apartment this week (to save on rent, some kind people responded to an email I sent out asking for places to stay until I move out of state), becoming a nomad, trying to spend as much time with the friends I love before I leave. It's also sort of a shock to suddenly actually have plans, a defined direction, and especially when it involves moving away from the place you've lived the longest out of your whole life.
So that's the scoop on where I'm at. I feel at peace, and I believe this is the direction I need to head for this next year. So pray for transition time, and for a job to open up out in Phoenix that will let me start in September when my commitment here at SAFMC is up. And pray for my heart to be prepared and open to God's instruction and comfort during this time.
First of all, let me say that my time out in New Mexico with Amanda was beyond amazing. I don't think I've spent a vacation in the US in which I've been exposed to (and overwhelmed by) so much beauty in such a short amount of time. I've seen Albuquerque & Santa Fe before, and the mountains and volcanoes in the area, but it had been a few years. Plus, we took this amazing camping trip where we drove to Mesa Verde in Colorado, camped there, took a tour of ancient Pueblo ruins, and took in the views from the mesa. Then the day after we arrived we took another tour first thing, drove to the Four Corners (& took pictures), then drove to Monument Valley in Utah (and took more pictures), and then made it to the Arches by sunset (and took MORE pictures), then drove back to Mesa Verde at night. By the time we left to go back to Albuquerque (which was another crazy/beautiful drive, we went on this dirt road that was supposedly a marked highway), we ended up driving 1300 miles in 3 1/2 days (good thing we had a rental).
Back at the ranch, I was able to do some other things, such as go back to Santa Fe and see the Loretto Chapel (which has this "miraculous staircase" in it, which gave me goosebumps when I walked into the chapel). I also took the Sandia Peak tram, the longest continuous tram in the world, up into the Sandia mountains in Albuquerque, and took a hike along the top of the mountain -- so beautiful! I checked out the volcanoes, and also looked at some petroglyphs. We did some other things in town, too, but those were the highlights. Other than almost not making it home (my flight got cancelled twice, and I ended up staying an extra three days), it was an amazing trip. I'll post pics soon on here & on Flickr and Facebook.
While I was on this trip, an idea kept tugging at my mind. My friend Rebecca had just taken a job out in Phoenix at a church plant, which just happened to be with the same pastor we'd stayed with back a few years ago on our CAV missions trip to Mexico. When I'd talked to her and she described the church, and that all just sort of started percolating in my head as I would think about plans for the fall (of which I had very few ideas about). So of course when I was on vacation, and in the beautiful Southwest, and just relaxing, I thought, "Sure, that would be awesome to move to Arizona!" But, I also realized it was easy to think that on vacation, so when I got back, I kept praying about it more, talked to Rebecca about the idea of living with her out there, talked with Pastor Glenn, talked with some friends, and it seemed like there was just no major reason I shouldn't go. Most likely, I would be moving somewhere anyway, as I need to find a full time job this fall to save up for seminary. Last week, I made the final decision to go, and now things have been this whirlwind of activity, planning, moving out of my apartment this week (to save on rent, some kind people responded to an email I sent out asking for places to stay until I move out of state), becoming a nomad, trying to spend as much time with the friends I love before I leave. It's also sort of a shock to suddenly actually have plans, a defined direction, and especially when it involves moving away from the place you've lived the longest out of your whole life.
So that's the scoop on where I'm at. I feel at peace, and I believe this is the direction I need to head for this next year. So pray for transition time, and for a job to open up out in Phoenix that will let me start in September when my commitment here at SAFMC is up. And pray for my heart to be prepared and open to God's instruction and comfort during this time.
posted by laurastardust at 7:43:00 PM
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