Jet Leg With a Dash of “Fishink”

Another year started at Fellowship Afloat and already I’m nursing kayaking wounds with a big smile on my face.  When I returned to the USA a few weeks ago I was excited but anxious about my decision to stay in England for a couple more years. Although I had successfully avoided saying final goodbyes to my UK family, I’d added some even harder goodbyes to family and friends that I’ve known my whole life. The hugs were hard and the plane ride even harder, but needless to say I was relieved to return to the big red ship and have nothing but comfort and a feeling of coming home running through my organs.

I was greeted by the girly gap years as I wheel-barrowed another years worth of belongings down the path (ya..theres girls around now..and it’s awesome). Still struggling with the 7 hour time difference I jumped straight into work right away, with a day sail, a weeks worth of Austrians (mein boat es shnella alz stein boat) and a few days of freakishly small English baby children. Going straight from a gap year volunteer to an almost senior staff member has been quick, terrifying and challenging but I love my new role and am learning even more about all the activities here at Fellowship Afloat. I hope to keep you all as updated as possible and know how much I love and cherish you in my life.

A few quotes from the Austrian group:

(In the middle of a kayaking session)

Hannah: “Ohhh, I am so sick of zis fishink.”

Me: “Sick of the fishing?..Already? Well then you should try kayaking.”

Hannah: ” UGHH zis is what I mean zee kayakink..I’m sick of zee kayakink.”

(during the races, also in the middle of the kayaking session)

Lucca: “Sam! Sam! Sam! Did I go fast?”

Me: “Ya Lucca! You went really fast! Well done man!”

Lucca: “Yes..it is because I did zee powerplay.”

Also, here’s a picture of me and my dog smiling: 

Why I’m Going Back: And Other Reasons Why My Last Few Weeks Have Been Insane

“I advise you to say your dream is possible and then overcome all inconveniences, ignore all the hassles and take a running leap through the hoop, even if it is in flames.” -Les Brown

Have you ever prayed for something to show up and it shows up so quick you almost miss that its happening? I can now join the many to say that it has not only happened to me but it punched me in the face and said “Jump ya Fool.”

A week before I was supposed to fly home I was offered another role at Fellowship Afloat.  It took me by surprise and I wasn’t even remotely prepared for the possibility of staying to arise.  But after a very quick deliberation and interview I decided that this opportunity was the experience I was hoping for.  Now, on Wednesday (yes..this Wednesday) I’ll be flying back to Londontown to start my second year on the ship as an assistant lead instructor.  It’ll will be a different role in that I’ll get some leadership experience and I’ll get to take the Senior Instructor course at the end of the year.

I was praying for some kind of direction, a clear next step for my life, and God provided. It’s going to be hard, challenging, and another year thousands of miles away from my family but I’m incredibly excited for this opportunity. I plan to keep this blog updated EVEN MORE then I did last year (dream big,) and I hope all of you know how much I love you all and am so thankful for how supported I am.

Please keep me in your prayers as I jump.

“All growth is a leap in the dark, a spontaneous unpremeditated act without the benefit of experience.” -Henry Miller

 

An Update On the Last Month..Plus or Minus 4 Months

Since it’s almost impossible to fit all that’s happened into one blog post and even more impossible to fit all of you into my bag so I can literally show you what I’ve been doing (not a fat joke…just an observation), here are some short but sweet highlights:

Let’s start with our last Time for God conference.

We all met up back at Cliff College to talk about our year, the lessons we’d learned, to see those who finished the course on Christian living graduate, and discuss the most terrifying: what to do when we get home. Many had plans, some had hopes, and I just shrugged.  I knew where I wanted to go I just didn’t have a specific next step on how to get there. “God will lead me where He wants” I kept reassuring myself. But the more I kept trying to reassure myself the more I needed to be reassured. What if God wasn’t waiting with the perfect job for me, or worse, what if I didn’t notice it? It’s scary to stand before an ominous question mark and smile, but I did anyway..not because I’m insistently optimistic, but more because I’m a really ugly crier, and a breakdown wasn’t going to help anything.

One of the best parts of these conferences is hearing over and over how not alone you are in this feeling. Millions have stood before that question mark and millions have made their mark on the world around them regardless of where they thought they were going.  Together we worked on a banner to represent our ups, downs, and lessons of the last year which is what were holding above in the photo.

After some dreaded  “maybe I’ll run into you in our giant mega country we call the United States” goodbyes and teary hugs we all parted ways for the next phase of our 10 very different lives. Its very likely I might not see many of them again, but they’ll be in my heart forever…sarcastically commenting on my life choices as they should be.

A few weeks later Luke Stappler made his way to Londontown accompanied by the lovely Amanda Brateng for an awesome day of catching up and taking photos like this:

A few days of Trinity maintenance were already in the works by the time I returned to the ship. Volunteers showed up over night, giving their time to help us paint, varnish, sand, epoxy and anything else that was needed for a few days.

Right. Now for the slightly more hectic stuff. I’m going to call this section: LONGEST BLOG EVER PART 2:  MULTIACTIVITY WEEKS

Multiactivity weeks are 2 weeks during the summer that the ship basically turns into a giant camp on steroids. The two things you need to know about these weeks are 1. There is ALWAYS a theme, and 2. It is ALWAYS over the top. This year was no different.

The theme chosen for this year was 007. In a few days the entire ship had transformed into the remote (not very camouflaged) headquarters of MI6, the purpose being to train upcoming kids to be spies to replace all of us who were retiring. Step one, however, was transforming the ship..a task not to be underestimated.

The aftermath

The creation

Needless to say it was an epic week full of many a random time. Every night there was an evening show where Pete was the weatherman and I was the secretary Ms. Moneypenny..as you do.

 

Before I knew it Multiactivity was over, a week of single parent families had come and gone, and our 3 day sailing cruise up the coast was just an amazing memory. It was time to pack and I was anything but ready for the journey. More to follow.