Julia

This blog post is dedicated to my friend, Julia, who came to do our first camp with us. I've heard different missionaries say that they wish their friends, families and supporters would actually come and experience just a little of what they do in their ministry. But that rarely happens. I have been extremely blessed in my first year of ministry to have my parents, my best friend, Tapley, and my good friend, Julia, all come and see a bit of what I do here. I was so excited to see Julia that one of the guys serving at camp started calling me "Smurf" all the time because I was smiling so much. In one way, that label made me really sad, because it made me realize again what a powerful thing friendship is and how difficult it is to not be with my friends. It made me sad that he noticed such a drastic change in my smile that he would constantly comment on it. It also made me extremely grateful for the close friendships that I have been blessed with back home. So this posting is dedicated to Julia, who came far out of her comfort zone to serve the people here and even more so, to serve me with her friendship. Love you!

She gave me a black eye and I'm still smiling. jk.
I had a "black eye" for our group's skit for Skit Night.

At the Black Sea for a picnic after church

On the "Tour of Odessa"

At the Odessa Opera House

Saying goodbye at the airport