I am moving to Germany in three months.
That's important information to know before you read this blog. I am going to teach at a fantastic school called Black Forest Academy tucked in a tiny village in southwest Germany. I am incredibly excited to begin this journey, but I am also terrified. I've never gone overseas, and I've never even lived outside of the state of Oregon. My world is pretty small right now, but I'm excited to see it grow.
While my world might be small, I have certainly been blessed by countless amazing people who care about what I'm doing with my life. As I've shared that I'm moving overseas, I've heard over and over that people would like to know what I'm doing. This blog is one attempt to keep people informed. I'll still send out less frequent newsletters, but I want this to be a place for people who are interested in the little things to read what I'm doing on a more regular basis. My plan is to update this more frequently though on a more informal basis. Here I'll tell you what's going through my head as it's happening, and hopefully my newsletter will be a little more refined.
Right now, here's my update: My life is out of my control.
That's not really a surprise since the whole reason I decided to move overseas was to learn to be less of a control freak. I'm not supposed to be in control. I have a mark on my foot that tells me that I've given my life to someone else. That tattoo tells me that I have a Master who has a better plan for my life than I do. I'm so thankful for that.
My thankfulness doesn't completely eliminate my fear, however. At the back of my mind is the very scary reality that I am moving away from everything and everyone I've ever known and living off the generosity of people who love me and believe in what I'm going to do. From the start, the money has not been a paralyzing fear, but I will admit as the days go by and my account stays dry, I'm increasingly scared that I can't control where my money comes from.
I am also quite the planner, and not to know what classes I'll be teaching in the fall is a little - how should I say this - unnerving? I know I have a job, but I may not know what classes I'll be teaching until I arrive. All of the possibilities are exciting classes, but, as a planner, I'd just like to know so I can bring the best resources with me (maybe even plan a unit or two over the summer).
While these two big things and a lot of other little things are out of my control in my life, I have a peace that surpasses understanding. I have control of my response to the situation that I'm in, and I'm choosing joy. I just finished my student teaching experience this week, and joy has come even more easily to recognize the stress of student teaching is over. It's also easy to choose joy when I realize that I have built lasting friendships with the amazing staff at Gaston, I have the freedom to spend time with my FUEL kiddos over the next few weeks, I can devote more time to reading, and every day takes me closer to the One who is in control.
