Noe!

Today, the Turner family was changed forever. For the first time, the boys outnumber the girls (at least of the Turners living at home). Timmy finally has that older brother he's wanted his whole life! Noe is from Belgium, but is Italian. He has great English and is already learning a lot. He says that it is not much different than his home in Belgium, but I think he'll find more differences in the next few days, and months. He likes the Invisible Children camera gun T that I gave him, I also took my map of Africa and showed him Uganda. He gets it, but he'll learn much more about the war and IC before I leave to go to his side of the pond. 

One Month Til Germany!

I leave for Germany in exactly one month. At this time I'll be on a plane over the atlantic ocean for the first time with Maddie and Jordan, my midwestern friends that I haven't met yet. I'm pretty calm about my life changing today- I'm just listening to Bethany Dillon (one of my favorite artists) and looking at rain jackets to buy for our hiking adventures in the Alps! My room is a mess as I try to get my mind into the packing mode- deciding between which sweat shirts to bring is going to be the hardest thing... One month. Whoa. 

Circles Never End

While I was in Mexico, there was a girl sitting my the side of the empty pool. After a few years of training myself and being coached by others to seek out the lonely, God had changed my heart and mind... So I walked right up to her and said Hola. It was scary to start up a conversation with someone who I knew probably wouldn't speak any English, and I probably couldn't understand with only 3 years of high school spanish. None the less, I talked to her, and I'll never regret it. Her name is Julieta and is 17 years old. I could only understand about half of what she said, but I caught a glimpse of her soul. She seemed to me a flower that is too scared to open. She is beautiful, but almost painfully shy... until you start to talk to her. She is mostly scared of boys I think. When we started talking about another guy on the trip, Drew, I called him over to us and she hid her face and giggled. It was the sweetest thing. She isn't outgoing, but her smile tells you she has a lot of love to share. 

In the blue bracelet video from Invisible Children, Amy bonds with a beautiful and resilient girl, Roseline. As Amy is leaving, she gives Roseline one of her rings, so I did the same. I had her aunt translate for me, "You are Jesus's princess". She replied you too. She told me not to cry because it would make her cry- so I held it in... until I turned to walk away. The flood gates opened and I sobbed for about 10 minutes. She was the culmination of God's beauty. He created such a deep loving relationship between two girls who could barely understand each other. 

Tecate, Mexico

While I was in Tecate, Mexico, I learned that "Home is where the heart is" SERVING. I am only truly joyful when I am working hard to make things right in the world. One of our pastors, Brandon, asked us the question "Where are the workers?" or in spanish, "Donde estan los trabajadores?". We are all created to have a purpose that will have an impact on the world. We are uniquely created with gifts that we are called to use to help others. So if we are all supposed to help others, "Where are the workers?" Lots of people say, "There are 3 billion poor people in the world today, and before you went to Mexico, there were 3 billion poor people. So what difference did it make?" It made a difference to my friend Jackie that we built a house with and for. It made a difference to my friend Julietta who is a very shy and very beautiful girl. It made a difference to me. I learned that I didn't need a trip to Africa to have the best experience of my life. I just need to go where God leads me and to make the most of it by putting others before myself. And that will be what changes my life and the world.