Transitions

Every Ellerslie student, whether basic or advanced, is familiar with the transitions to and from Ellerslie. The first are the most difficult, however good they are--discovering life with hardly any advertisements, no texting, television, little internet and phone calls. The world's suddenly silent and you're confronted with everything you thought you were great at avoiding. And then there's the post-Ellerslie transitions, when you walk back into the real world and suddenly there's so much noise and distractions and you sometimes think you know everything. I've had a lot of the transitions, and each time got a little better... Ellerslie feels like a different country sometimes, and when I leave I find that, well... I have to transition. So now it's transitioning for good. It doesn't feel that way. I've left and come back so many times that now it just seems that I'm going to come back in a few weeks and stay. Transitioning has been bittersweet.

This afternoon we had our annual Memorial Day Picnic at church. Unfortunately, our classic New Mexico wind drove us inside, so I didn't really get the pictures I wanted, but here's a gem of a picture of Pastor Dave and baby Wesley. Love this little guy.

He was flying, and having a blast.

I've also been working on unpacking, and maybe taking frequent and long breaks in-between. It's a more daunting task than I expected since I'm going through all of my stuff and deciding what I'm going to sell in my upcoming garage sale. Getting rid of things is therapeutic. And I never realized how much junk I have. I'm now determined not to be so sentimental about everything. Hoarding scares me.

My poor, poor car's been taking a beating lately. The headlights weren't looking too good, so Dad replaced those. It was a bigger job than he anticipated.

Poor car :(

Before

After

Oh so shiny. I like shiny. 

Even though the headlights are looking much better, we still haven't figured out the mystery puddle. But I'm in New Mexico now, and rain is few and far between here. The puddle problem isn't as urgent anymore. 

And preparation for France commences. Did I mention my garage sale? If you live nearby and you want to donate things for me to sell, I accept. I'll be posting soon with fundraising ideas too, that way you all can help me brainstorm. It's pretty exciting if you ask me.

And the Rosetta Stone box that Amy used to use as a foot prop during some classes has been staring at me for a couple days now too. French intimidates me, so I pretend it's not there. I'll start tomorrow. Really. 

September's looming ever nearer, and there's lots for me to do before then. I'm takin' it one day at a time. 

And on another note, one a little more bittersweet.... His Little Feet Haitian Edition left for Haiti today. They're spending the night in Florida, Haiti tomorrow I believe. It seems so surreal, and when I said goodbye to them on Friday it was all I could do not to cry as I walked away, thinking about how it was probably the last time I'd ever see them. I never wanted to be called to Haiti so bad as right then. And with how much my heart was hurting to say goodbye, and still is, I can't imagine how all the His Little Feet staff must be feeling. They've spent almost every day with them since November.

Pray for them. Right now, as you read this. Pray for the goodbyes. But especially, pray for the children. Pray that God would constantly remind them of everything the learned on tour. Pray that they would not give into the pressure of all their peers. Pray that their hearts would forever be changed and softened for Jesus Christ. Pray that they would rise up and make a difference- not because Haiti needs it and the people are sad and in poverty, but because Jesus paid the price and isn't He worthy? 

I miss their little accents, the way they would always steal my shoes and throw stuff at me, and the sweet little voices that would sometimes say stuff like, "Auntie Kelsey, I will miss you." Or the not so sweet stuff like, "Who are you?" even though they knew exactly who I was and they just wanted to give me a hard time.... or somethin'. I miss them, but I'm glad I had the times with them that I did. God used it in big ways in my heart. I want to adopt kids so bad. If I knew how many days it would be until I can, I'd be counting them down. But I don't know and God has a plan, so I'll let Him lead me step by step.

What's one way that God's used His Little Feet in your life? Whether little or big? If you can't comment on my blog, comment on my facebook. I'd love to hear, and I'm sure HLF staff would too when they get back from Haiti. 

Love,

Kelsey

Gone

Yesterday, after much packing and squeezing and puzzling on how to get everything into my car, I left Ellerslie. I was really looking forward to it for a while, because the itch for adventure was taking over. I was ready to experience new things, to see what was going to come next, to hit the road and just see what happened. Leaving sounded good. But then, when it actually came time to leave, and I realized I'd never live on the Ellerslie campus with all of those people again.... Well it was hard. 

There are a thousand things I'm going to miss....

I pulled out of the Ellerslie parking lot and I cried and cried. And cried. Which surprised me, because I really didn't think I would. Just like I didn't think I'd cry on stage in front of lots of people while talking about our very first Revival Week. Ha. 

I cried all the way to Longmont, while blasting the His Little Feet cd in my car. And it felt good, because I wanted to know that it was real and that I was really leaving and that things wouldn't be the same. I wanted to feel the sting of missing them, and the pain of knowing that it was the last time I would ever see those precious, lovable Haitian children who will forever have a special place in my heart. They go back to Haiti next week, and I never thought I'd love them as much as I do. 

Things won't ever be the same again. Ever. 

But then as I said goodbye to one chapter and prepared for the next, there was peace. Peace because I have Jesus, and that's one thing that will never change. He's my rock, and with Him I can handle any goodbye, because I'll never say goodbye to Him. 

 As I was driving back to New Mexico, I decided to enjoy it and savor it. This is His plan, and His story He's unfolding for me, and I'm just along for the ride. It's glorious and beautiful. I made a couple detours, like through Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs, and He showed me some cool things He can do with rocks and stuff. He makes everything better.

I could write so many words about how much these people mean to me, how much I love them and how they've become a much more special part of my life than I could ever express.... But I can't express it so I don't think I'm going to try right now. Maybe another day, maybe not.

Life is good, and I'm ready for the next adventure. 

Leaving

So it's happened. I've graduated from Ellerslie Advanced Leadership Training, and I'm leaving in just a couple days. I have so many words I could use to describe the last year, but it would never be enough. I've loved more deeply, hurt more fully, laughed more truly, and smiled more often than I could have possibly expected. I love my Ellerslie family to death, so much so that I cried on stage in front of a bunch of people just thinking about it (so unlike me, really). But mostly, I love my Jesus, because He's made Ellerslie what it is. Of course, that's not the only reason I love Him. There's no way to count them all. But all the praise goes to Him, He's the only good in my life.

It still doesn't seem real that i'm leaving come Friday. And I'm kind of glad that it doesn't. Ellerslie is genuinely home to me, and it has been since the beginning.

If I realized that I were leaving I'd probably be a big blubbering mess. Instead, I'm cherishing every moment, and wondering why I don't always cherish every moment, because life is so much sweeter that way and I think God meant for us to appreciate His gifts. 

He's good to me, and I'm so excited because while I know that leaving will be hard, what's coming up will be perfect also. Not because I'll be with friends and family and then Paris, but because He's planned it and He plans good things. 

I know this isn't the end of me and Ellerslie, and that helps a lot. Probably I'll come back for a visit at the very least. And I can't imagine not keeping in contact with my "Ellerslie family." 

If you're my Ellerslie family, promise me you'll stay in touch. I want to know what Jesus is doing in your lives too. And I want to know that the unity we had was built on Him. We're from so many different places, with so many different personalities and backgrounds, but somehow it works.... because it's not about us.

So before I get any more sentimental and reminiscent, I'll say goodnight with just one more comment. I'm ready. I'm ready to leave not because I'm "there," because we all know I'm anything but. I'm ready because at Ellerslie I discovered my Jesus, that He's the only answer and He's always there. I discovered He's worthy of the glory and my worship and praise. I still don't have a perfectly pure heart when I come to Him, but He's still working on me. Regardless, I'm ready for the world cause I gots my Jesus and I always will. 

(All photos on this post are by Lauren. She's awesome).

Replacing Loodle's

While Loodle's seemed to be a permanent, always there, never-could-close-in-a-million-years type of place in the minds of the Ellerslie student's.... well, it did close. Several months ago. For all you Ellerslie Alumni out there who were looking forward to coming back for a visit and stopping by your favorite coffee shop: Sorry, it's gone. Forever.

Now we have Coolberry, a pretty neat Spooner's wanna-be. One of my favorite parts about going to get frozen yogurt is seeing how other people decide to create their delectable treats. I thought you might enjoy seeing as well. Thus the pictures....

Fruity goodness

Mmmmm....

More fruity goodness

This person chose green slimey syrup stuff. I'm not sure why

Perhaps a bit overwhelming for my taste buds, but I'm sure it was delicious

This one looks like chocolatey goodness.

Colorful

Peanut-buttery :-)

Amazing 

I really love chocolate

There's that green slimy stuff again

Colorful, no?

I'll bet you could never guess which one's mine. 

This reminds me of the, "One of these does not belong" thing they do with kids. 

Alright, probably if you know me at all you can guess which delicious treat is mine. I know that there's all sorts of sugary goodness in the frozen yogurt, but it was raining outside, and I had been cold all day, and nothing beats a good latte. Some of us are really excited about having Coolberry in Windsor. While I'd rather have my Loodle's, I can appreciate the fact that everyone else loooooves their frozen yogurt... And I can still drink coffee. :-) And I'm leaving. 

Today's Friday. 

Graduation is Sunday.

Next Friday I'm headed to New Mexico. 

Thought you might want to know. 

Christ Is

This morning in our Greatest Sermons class we listened to a challenging message. It’s difficult to listen to this sermon and not be moved to evaluate what it is your life revolves around. I’ll share a couple of my favorite quotes. :)

“Oh how jealous Jesus is tonight that you do not waste your lives. You have a gift and it is called life and it’s not about accumulating things. This night, your soul may be required of you and then whose will all those toys be?”

“How does Paul make Christ look great? Answer: by experiencing Christ as such a treasure that everything else in his life is as nothing by comparison. I count everything: money as loss, food as loss, looks as loss, friends as loss, family as loss, job and success as loss, graduation as loss-- in comparison with the treasure that Christ has become for me....

....How do you make Christ look great in your life and thus, not waste it? Money is given to you so that you might use money in a way that shows money is not your treasure -- Christ is. Food is given to you so that you might eat it in such a way that it will be plain food is not your treasure -- Christ is. Friends, family are given to you so that you might live with them in such a way that it will be plain to the world they are not your treasure -- Christ is.”

-John Piper, ‘Don’t Waste Your Life’

Beginning of the End

It is now the beginning of the end. I sit here thinking of all the things I’ll never experience as an Ellerslie student again, trying to make my brain realize that it’s really real. Last night we had my last Monday night Musician’s Fellowship.

Tonight will be my last Kiddo Nite. Tomorrow will be the last time I listen to a sermon in the Ellerslie chapel. I have 13 meals left on the meal plan.... Yes, it's the beginning of the end.

And it still doesn't seem real.

But that's okay, because sometime soon it will hit me. And right now I'm just so excited about the adventures He's going to take me on next. I never could have dreamed up Ellerslie, or guessed that it would be as wonderful as it was. That means that whatever comes up next will be bigger than what I can dream up, and more wonderful than I can picture. How exciting is that? 

Niecey Lovin'

My beautiful, hysterical, fun, adorable, lovely niece. Isn't she great? 

Dr. Dave

That's my brother. He's a doctor now. Yes, I'm boasting. 

I'm still significantly shorter even while on my tippy toes

I'm not really sure how this is supposed to be a hood, but that's what Allison said they call it so I'll go with it.

We're so proud of our graduate

In case you're wondering... Yes, I did make him do this. No, he didn't actually lift off the ground and fly. It was a close call though. I was wondering too. 

The current nickname is still Dr. Dave, but I'm thinking the whole dr. thing will give me a whoooole lot of nickname ammo. For instance, Dr. Nano has a nice ring to it.... :-)

Lilacs

This is the view I woke up to this morning, and it is lovely. One of my first thoughts was, "I'm back in England!" In fact, I am even wearing my Capernwray hoodie for memory's sake. We don't have days like this in the desert-like climate of New Mexico very often, so I enjoy every minute of clouds and drizzle that I can get. 

In typical Colorado style, today's weather is complete opposite of the weather we had yesterday. Here's just a glimpse of the bright sunshineyness. And those flowers, by the way, made my day. 

Yesterday I walked into my room and noticed a fabulously fantastic floral fragrance. I pondered that for a moment, wondering who had snuck into my room and rubbed flowers all over the wall. Then I remembered that Amelia had oh so kindly cut lilacs off of our beautiful, blooming lilac bush/tree/things, arranged them into charming vases, and then kindly distributed them to most of the girls on campus.

Do you ever wish you could somehow capture smell? Someone really needs to invent a scent-capturing mechanism. I have no idea what it would be called, but we need one. 

If we DID have a scent-capturing mechanism, I’d share the lovely lilac smell with you. But what would we call it?