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thebutterflywarrior
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Name: Gina
Interests: Butterflies. Hugs. Chocolate. Kids. Smiles. People. Night markets. Phone calls. India. Teaching. Cooking. Enjoying the great outdoors. Starbucks. Mountains. Taiwan. Camping. Bible quizzing. Yuli. Sunsets. Mango shaved ice. Water fights. Family. Walks in the moonlight. Peanut butter. Becoming conformed to the image of Christ. And so much more....
Expertise: Still tryin' to figure that out....
Occupation: TESOL
Industry: Education
Message: message me
Member Since:
8/9/2006
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| Happy December!!!!
(I know, I know... but chances are I won't have time/inclination to get back on here in the near future,
so I decided to pounce on the opportunity now)
I love holidays. Thanksgiving is great, and I love Christmas even more because it seems to last all month. The lights, music, well-wishes, happy people, secrets, yummy treats... ahhhhhh. Much as I love Taiwan and India, I'm so happy to be home for the holidays this year.
Life has been *fascinating* since returning home from India. I developed strange symptoms of "something" and scared my eye doctor, who sent me to a brain-eye specialist (whom I also scared), who sent me for an MRI... and we now know: nothing that we didn't know before. Many thanks to the wonderful people who prayed for me; the symptoms almost completely disappeared!
For now, I have a few confused doctors waiting until I call with more sypmtoms - should they appear. It WOULD be nice to know what was up... but I don't... so I'm trusting in the One Who DOES. I'm so glad he know every tiny detail about me -- even what is happening in the deep, dark recesses of my head that even an MRI can't dredge up. He is also the One who can heal me before the doctors even figure out what is wrong... and that is quite possibly exactly what He did.
Daddy is having more tests again. Not really sure what is going on -- his doctors are a bit worried, but they can't find any cold hard evidence of something definitely wrong. I tell you what, he and I were quite a pair with all kinds of doctor appointments last week!
In the midst of all the holiday scramble, don't forget to take time to WORSHIP and ADORE....
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| I'm back.
To God be the glory, great things He hath done!
Here is my 2-month trip to India in a nutshell:
arrived/did PR work/survived a hotel fire/did prayer walks/taught a
week-long teacher conference/taught English in 3 schools/did Bible
quizzing in 2 schools/ate rice/lived life on the edge/met amazing
people/survived living with two of the most insane but most wonderful
people ever (Dave and Shawn rock)/met up with 4 more incredible
teammates including my parents/had the new daughter of one of my heroes
named after me/hung out with 2 of my other heroes (Dr. Ro and Mrs.
Mawii)/returned home different than I was when I left. Whew.
Yep, that's pretty much it. We came, we saw, we conquered in the name of the Lord. All because He lives, and because He loves.
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| Prayers needed!
I've now been home for 8 weeks. Life flies at times, crawls at others, continues always. I still really miss my beloved Taiwan... and now, believe it or not, I'll be taking off in a jet in 48 hours, headed to India! This trip has been a dream in the works for about a year, and has become polished through 2 major deaths-of-a-vision. But God is faithful, and here we are. Almost ready!
What lies ahead? I haven't the faintest clue. Here's what I do know:
I'm going with my brother Dave and friend Shawn
Our departure date is 8/26 and our return date is 10/19
We will be teaching English for about 5 weeks and facilitating Bible quizzing for 2 weeks
My parents and Shawn's dad and sister are joining us for the last two weeks
There. Now you know pretty much everything I do! Not quite, but seriously almost. We are following God to India, and trusting that He will work out the gazillions of details about which we are currently clueless.
There is so much to do, so many needy lives to touch, so much love to give... and I can not WAIT to see what God is gonna do in and through us!
I repeat, prayers needed!
I'm kinda looking forward to it.
I'm pretty happy.
I am excited out of my mind!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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With Hope....
This is not at all
How we thought it was supposed to be
We had so many plans for you
We had so many dreams
And now you've gone away
And left us with the memories of your smile
And nothing we can say
And nothing we can do
Can take away the pain
The pain of losing you.
BUT...
We can cry with hope
We can say goodbye with hope
'Cause we know our goodbye is not the end, oh no
And we can grieve with hope
'Cause we believe with hope
There's a place where we'll see your face again
We'll see your face again!
And never have I known
Anything so hard to understand.
(oh, boy -- so true.)
And never have I questioned more
The wisdom of God's plan.
(uh-HUH!)
But through the cloud of tears
I see the Father smile and say well done
And I imagine you
Where you wanted most to be
Seeing all your dreams come true
'Cause now you're home
And now you're free!
(so happy for you!)
We have this hope as an anchor
'Cause we believe that everything
God promised us is true, so ...
So we can cry with hope
And say goodbye with hope
We wait with hope...
And we ache with hope...
We hold on with hope...
We let go with hope....
- Steven Curtis ChapmanAmen, amen, amen.
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| Dear Jon-Eric....
You could never imagine how much you have blessed my life. Your adventuresome spirit, your love of singing and music, your interest in every person who crossed paths with you, your love for Jesus. I am incredibly blessed to call you my friend!
I MISS YOU SO MUCH. I can see your smile, your limber eyebrows (grin), your sparkling eyes. I can see you riding your beloved "Cadillac bike". I can see you in your ninja get-up at the go kart place. I can see you surrounded with kids, teasing them and making them laugh.
I remember the day you came to Yuli. I already knew you, but it was different welcoming you to the house knowing that we were "stuck" on the same team for a whole year. I was worried. As the team leader of our new team, I knew you had one monstrous job! I hadn't even made up my mind whether or not you were a nice guy. Well, you breezed in, and from that moment on I knew it was gonna be a wild, wacky and wonderful year! Boy, was I right. Know what? You were handpicked by God for that job, and nobody else in this whole wide world could have done it. You had just the right mixture of goofiness and seriousness that was needed to lead our crazy crew. Always responsible, always considerate, always fun.
I love how you love people. Even after a long day or a hard trial, you were ALWAYS ready for people. Most people never knew when you had a bad day or didn't feel well. You were such a good sport with kids -- like Nicole and Jamie. When they came to see you and me, I tried so hard to come up with something out-of-the-ordinary to do with them; something besides baking projects and playing Uno. But they always wanted to play their version of Uno, otherwise known as everybody-pick-on-Jon-Eric. I know you got so tired of it, but you never told them no.
I often wondered if you ever got tired of being the entertainer! Always available to play your musical saw, tell a funny story, or do tricks with your Chinese yo-yo. I know you loved having company. You were often helping to set up chairs or giving suggestions for the menu. When someone had guests from the states staying with us, you never tired of playing tour guide and coming up with cool things to do. Whether it was navigating from Yuli to Taroko when the my friends the Kings were here, or discovering undiscovered islands with my cousin Becky, or finding the ocean with my parents, it was always a joy and a privilege to have you along!
So many late night talks... maybe I was going back downstairs to check my laundry, or maybe I was making something for breakfast the next morning, or maybe I was sorting through the first aid drawer for something to help my ridiculous bug bites. It seemed you were always awake, and when you heard me stirring you'd come out and chat. Sometimes just a few minutes, but sometimes for hours (then I'd pay for it the next day at school!). I loved the times you kept me company while I was working late in the kitchen ("What are you making NOW?")... and the time you stayed up with me when I was making Christmas cookies until the wee hours of the morning... and the times we just talked 'cause neither of us could sleep.
Then there was the night of Daddy's surgery. I hid out in the kitchen with my Bible, journal, and pack of tissues -- 'cause I didn't want people to sit up with me unless they really wanted to (not just because I needed them). I wasn't there long before you came looking for me, and asked if I needed to be alone or could you join me. You stayed up with me until the next morning, when I got the report that Daddy was going to be ok! You had to go to school the next day just like the rest of us, and had every reason to go to sleep like the others, but you were willing to loose all the sleep just so I didn't have to wait by myself.
You let me vent about frustrating circumstances in Taiwan, Dad's sickness, issues in the states.... and rejoiced with me about whatever made me happy. You fixed my computer (hehee... many times....), and gave me RAM to make it faster. You talked with me about our mutual (and rare) interest in Southern Gospel music, and Mark Lowry.
You always took care of others before yourself... whether it was going with me to the hospital (x2), or waiting to take a late train with me so I wouldn't be by myself, or making a special trip somewhere to look out for me, you took your role seriously as a brother in Christ.
You were my team leader, my "brother", my friend.
You often talked about plans for the future. You knew your time was up in Taiwan. You told me so many times that you knew when you came to Taiwan in the first place that you were here for two years. When the time came to renew your contract the first year, you knew the answer was yes, and when that time came the second year, you knew the answer was no. But how were we to know that this year was not only your final year in Taiwan, but also your final year on earth? How were we to know that on June 30, 2007, Jesus would carry you to heaven in His arms?
At almost-but-not-quite 22, you lived a full life. I know you lived every moment to the fullest, followed God's leading in everything, and loved Jesus with all your heart. You held nothing back! Your life is an incredible example of a life lived with "No Reserves. No Retreats. No Regrets."
Ya know your crazy cell phone ring? "Mr. Jon-E, Mr. Jon-E, please answer your phone. Mr. Jon-E, Mr. Jon-E..." (in Chinese!). Boy do I ever wish that I could dial Mr. Jon-E's number, and that he would answer his phone. Some day, I'm comin' to see you in heaven -- get ready, 'cause I'm gonna bowl you over with a great big hug... and then I wanna sit with you and listen to some stories!
I know you are exstatically happy with Jesus... and I'm happy for you. We wouldn't wish you back, but everybody here misses you like crazy! We love you lots, and can't wait to see ya.
CONGRATULATIONS, JON-ERIC!
G'night, ;)
Gina >/<
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