So...I'm back from my summer working at Urban Impact. Wow....is it really over? I have such a mix of emotions. The people, the surroundings, the kids that have been my life for the last 8 weeks are suddenly...gone. It felt so abrupt. Now all of a sudden I'm sitting here at home in an empty house, missing everyone like crazy.  Thank God for things like cell phones and instant messenger...plus an hour drive to get to Pitt is so not bad. You guys can count on my visiting.

On the other hand, it is def good to be home. I can't wait to see the crew from home...and I had almost forgotten how much I adore my bed. hehe. My parents will get home this evening from moving Liz down to VA the last couple days. Talk about craaazy. It's definitely hard coming to grips with the fact that I'm not going to see her very often at all anymore (after being used to seeing her at least several times a week). At first I really wished I could have gone with them to move her down...but then I realized it was probably better this way, since it would have been harder for both of us. Sigh...I'll miss my lizard-breath.

Anywho...wow. This summer. I don't even know where to begin. I can definitely say it was the most exhausting and the most frustrating experience of my life...as well as the most incredible. I had 4th and 5th grade girls, and having the same group of them for the whole summer definitely had its ups and downs. For one thing, they began to get comfortable with us, which meant heightened defiance and lack of respect.  We definitely had a tough group...which actually was really good experience for me to learn how to implement discipline (I'm not used to having to do that). There were many times I thought the girls just downright hated me, which was really hard...especially since I'm used to younger kids who just love on you. But then...it wasn't all bad having this group of girls. Having them all summer also allowed for hardcore bonding to happen, which was definitely beneficial. Being able to show these kids day after day for 7 weeks straight that I care about them, that I'm there for them, that God loves them so much...it was awesome. I'm afraid it also made for some really hard goodbyes at the end, though. There were many tears and hugs...with promises of continued correspondence over the school year.  I actually already got a phone call today from one of the girls (who wasn't even in my class, actually). That was definitely sweet.

I've been asked several times already whether I plan to come back next summer to work again, and I can honestly say...I have no idea. There were times this summer that I decided I never wanted to go back...but then there were other times that I found myself wanting to work for this ministry for the rest of my life. But obviously my decision won't be made by my emotions...it's definitely going to be a God-guided thing. I just have to pray a lot about it and see if that's where He wants me for another summer. So..we'll see.

Gah, there's so much more to share about this summer...it'll probably trickle out for weeks and months to come. I wish I had more time and mental capacity to write more about it right now, but alas. So...patience, grasshopper. All in good time. Or you can just ask me about it.