Arrived and in Australia

G’day mate!

Many thanks to my supporters who sent me to Australia! I arrived a few days ago and am thankful to the Lord for His provision of safe travels. My flights were quite long, but I made all of my connections (with only a little running).

Upon arrival, I was greeted by Deb and her two wonderful kids, whom I already think of as my Aussie brother and sister. They made me signs (see below) and International Teams got me a welcome bag with sunscreen (50 spf) and some fun Aussie food.

So far, I’ve been addressed as “my love” and “darling” more in my 5 days here than my 22 years in America. I love the funny and endearing Australian greetings!

I’ve been quite homesick the first week but I know as time passes, I’ll continue meeting great people who will make goodbyes at the end of my stay very difficult.

The first few days have been a whirlwind of Aussie culture, between learning the public transportation system, meeting the family I am staying with and a LOT of sleeping. I accidentally took a nap the first day that lasted 7 hours. Thankfully my host family stayed up and let me have dinner at 10pm Aussie time. They are very sweet and have a wonderful home.

I started work at the International Teams office on Monday, now that I’m a bit more adjusted to the time difference!

Monday was mostly meetings. I will be working on developing a member care plan for volunteers with International Teams Australia. To do this, I will be working with the different “pockets” within International Teams, including the Sydney Refugee Team (food bank and refugee visits) and the Streetlight program. I’ll post a blog in about a month with more details on each aspect of my job and hopefully a few stories!

Praises

• Safe travels here
• A wonderful family to board with
• Learning the new culture

Prayer Requests

• Adjusting to the time and weather change (it was a crazy 107 F last Friday, which is hot even for Australians)
• That I will continue to integrate and feel less homesick

If you’d like to stay in contact, please message me on Facebook, email me or get WhatsApp or Skype! I do not have international data for regular texts and calls and have somewhat limited wifi. I also would really appreciate letters! Message me if you want my address.

Thank you again to all of you and to God Almighty for supporting me!