Unemployment... And Beyond!

I am unemployed.  And I have been reminded of this today by pretty much everyone I have run into!  In my case, this really is a good thing, as it is an indicator of our progress toward Bolivia.  However, I find myself struggling with a variety of insecurities, and trying to project a confidence and excitement about everything in our lives. 

The image I'm afraid others have in mind.

So yes, I’m excited about being able to focus on fundraising, packing our house up, getting it rented out, connecting with friends and family, and generally getting ready for our move to Bolivia.  But being the fiscally conservative person I am (read tight-wad), I can’t say that I am truly “excited” about living on savings for a couple of months.  At the same time, I am proud of the fact that we have been disciplined enough to set aside money that can be used during this time.  I’m excited about actually moving forward, but I’m also a little overwhelmed by the thought of packing up for three years, with a two suitcase per person limit.  And while you would think we would be used to it by now, and I am truly looking forward to seeing more of our friends and meeting new ones, I’m nervous about getting up in front of three more churches in the coming month, not to mention still scheduling 1-on-1 appointments, etc. 

One area that Dana & I have been 100% in agreement upon is our general excitement for our kids in getting to be a part of another culture, learn the language, and grow up knowing the world is large, but they still have an important part to play in that world.  But that doesn’t mean we don’t have some stresses around all of that too.  Kellton started Kindergarten this fall, and while he seems to be doing well, he struggles with change and adapting to new situations…  Not that he’ll have to deal with any of that in the coming year.  Stori is such a fun little girl, but she has a stubborn streak and a wild side that we know are going to challenge us at times.  But we love them both so much, and can’t help but be excited about this as a family.

Overall, I would describe our attitude as “tempered excitement” right now.  We are absolutely looking forward to this challenge.  Yet, I’m pretty sure there will be days we feel we made the worst decision ever.  The good news is, we are very confident that three years from now, we will be very glad we stepped out in faith.