Whenever I visit the US I say that I am going home, and when I leave to return to the DR I also say that I am going home. Both statements are equally true; I do consider both places home. As I’m sure you can imagine, that can be difficult at times to have your head and heart in two places. Whenever I visit my family in Illinois, the first week is always pretty rough. Yes I am back in the place where I grew up and things are familiar, but I am living out of a suitcase and am often surrounded by conversations that remind me just how much I miss out on while living in another country. This is a sacrifice I knew I was making when I followed God’s calling to the DR, but you feel that loss acutely those first couple of days back. Throw in some reverse culture shock and I am sure you can understand how that first week back can be extra challenging!

Several years ago when I first started going on short-term mission trips I read a quote that really rang true for me. I just saw the quote again recently and it hits home even more now:

“You will never be completely at home again, because part of your heart will always be elsewhere. That is the price you pay for the richness of loving and knowing people in more than one place.”

I can say from personal experience that this is so true. While there are times this heartache can be very challenging, I would not change it for the world. I am so thankful for the community I have in both the US and the DR…it is truly a gift from God! So on the days my heart aches for the place/people I am not with, I just have to remind myself what a gift I have been given to love, and be loved, by people in more than one place.

So, what have I been up to since my last update? Well, I was able to spend about 4 weeks in Illinois with my family and friends – my days were full and the time went very quickly! I got to do some fun things like visiting a local apple orchard, an afternoon of sailing with my siblings and grandpa, a hike with friends, relaxing poolside, and being a guest reader in my mom’s kindergarten classroom. I loved being able to go to my home church and meet up with my biblical counseling team as well.

Most importantly, I was able to spend a lot of time with family and friends. We had several family dinners while I was home, and one evening I was able to make a Dominican meal for my family: chenchen, chicken, and tostones (twice fried plantains). I was very fortunate to see some of my dearest friends while I was home, several of whom live out of state but happened to be back in town during the time I was. What a gift! I pushed my trip as far into September as I could in hopes that I would be home when my sweet friend Paige had her baby and my wish came true! It is so special to see my friends as parents.

 Last week Kelsi and I flew back to the DR and Katelyn was kind enough to come and pick us up from the airport. We did the capital grocery run together in preparation for our upcoming teams, and then drove home to San Juan where Kate had a little “welcome home” surprise waiting for us in our apartments. Add in the reunion with my dogs when I picked them up and I can definitely say I felt very loved!

Since being back in San Juan I have hit the ground running. I did as much work as I could from my computer while stateside but there are a lot of things I need to do from the DR. On Friday we had our fall staff meeting / mini staff retreat. We discussed our upcoming teams, had a devotional time led by Pastor Enol, a team building exercise organized by Katelyn, and we had a guest speaker, Laritza, who spent time serving in Africa who shared about serving cross-culturally. We ended our time together praying for the ministry.

This weekend our first team of the fall season arrives. I am definitely ready to get back into the rhythm of life with teams. I am grateful for our summer break, and for the time I had stateside, but I am ready to serve with our teams!

Prayer requests

• For successful weeks of service for our upcoming teams.
• For the clinic as they work through the final steps and insurance negotiations so that the clinic can be fully up and running.
• Health and safety.