Tomorrow, tomorrow...

Well here it is... my first post in my China blog!  This time tomorrow I will be on my way to the airport, take a 12 hour direct flight to Beijing, arrive late Friday night in China, and begin my adventures!  It's crazy to think how long coming this has been.  There are a few questions that everyone asks me- how do you feel?  Everything!  That's how I feel!  One minute I'm so scared I just want to curl up under my covers and stay home the next I'm so excited I don't even know what to do with myself.  I'm nervous that the internet won't work and I'll feel lonely, that I'll develop a lung condition from all the smog, that I won't remember a single word of Chinese that I've learned... mostly silly fears.  Alas, they are my thoughts.  I know that whatever I expect won't actually be what happens, so I'll try my best to have a positive attitude, an open mind, and laughter that comes easily, even at the expense of myself.

I'm excited to eat new foods and go to crazy places that I've heard about my whole life, like the Great Wall and see the terra cotta warriors in Xi'an.  I can't wait to check out the international fellowship that I've heard a lot about, explore BIG cities all lit up at night, and maybe actually make some progress with this Chinese language thing.  I'm sincerely hoping that I will feel comfortable enough in China to travel somewhere new all by myself by the time I leave.  I can't wait for the crazy amazing things that I can't even comprehend yet.  I've wanted to study abroad my whole life.  My mom spent a year in Germany when she was in college so I grew up hearing her stories, and when I understood what study abroad was I knew it was something I was going to do.  That being said, I always imagined myself in England or Spain or Australia or something.  I absolutely fell in love with the Aberdeen, Scotland program, but that's not where God wanted me to be.  In shattering my expectations, I know He's preparing to blow my mind in ways I can't even expect.

So in short, I can barely believe this is happening.  I've wanted to study abroad since who knows when.  I've wanted to adopt from China since I was about 10 and I've felt strongly called there for about 3 years now, not to mention a lifelong love of Asian culture and food.  It's going to be wild, great, and full of Him, and He has a plan! ("Come Away," Jesus Culture).  Since China has restrictions on internet, I'll do my best to post regularly but I don't know what kind of internet access I'll have yet.  Stay tuned!

4.5 months of toiletries!  Note the small pharmacy and adorableness of the hand sanitizers