The News

Sometimes it seems I have to work hard to come up with things to write on this blog. Life can get in a rut and not change for awhile, which makes coming up with new blog material a challenge. This, however, is not one of those times. I actually have had so much change happening in the last few weeks, that I’m not sure where to start. So, I’ll start with the part that all of you know already. I have been planning on leaving Seguin and moving to Christianville, Haiti for the past several months, and two weeks ago I made that transition final. I had family and friends here to help me move out of Seguin, which made the move easier. It was still a heart-breaking thing for me. It’s weird that a heart can hurt, and yet be at peace at the same time. But that is what I felt. Extreme sadness, and extreme peace. I know leaving was the right thing to do, and that now was the right time to do it. My neighbors cried and we hugged and had our moments of sharing tears and old memories. Even now as I type, I don’t like to think about the look on their faces as we said goodbye, because it makes me so sad. But I know it was the correct thing to do, and that God’s direction and guidance was in it. I know, too, that there must have been a lot of people praying for me during those last few days, because I could feel the powerful peace that only God can give. Thank you to all of you who remembered me and the people of Seguin this past month, and prayed for us as we separated. I know I won’t ever forget them, and still plan on helping them whenever and however I can.

So, now for the other change in my life. This change also had an effect on my heart, but it was a little different than the leaving-Seguin-effect. I say a little different, because instead of breaking my heart, it filled it to overflowing with joy. And underneath that, I could feel the same peace that I felt as I left Seguin. The peace that only comes from being in the will of God. Last Saturday, under a waterfall in Jacmel, I got engaged to a man named Ryan Price. I have known him since October of 2007, when I first visited Christianville. He is an optometrist from Alabama who moved here right after he graduated and has been living and working full-time here in Christianville since September. He heard God call him, and he followed. And I’m so glad he did. We have been dating since March, and plan on getting married in October of this year. The details of the actual wedding day are still fuzzy, but as soon as we know more, we’ll let you all know! When Ryan asked me to marry him, we were at a place called Basin Bleu with a bunch of our friends. So there was an audience there to witness the engagement and take pictures of it. Here are some of the photos from that day.