Hello friends and family near and far. Some of you we get the pleasure of talking to
and seeing on a regular basis, while others we unfortunately haven’t seen or talked
to in a long time. Through traveling we
get the awesome opportunity to meet and become friends with so many wonderful
people! The down side to that is we
always have friends that seem so far away.
During this holiday season we have been away from our family
for the first time. Although we have
traveled a lot these last 3 years we have always been able to be back “home” in
America for the holiday season. So this
season I have been doing a lot of thinking about those who we have come to love
from all reaches of this beautiful world.
Although we have not seen some of these people in over 5
years our love and admiration for them still grows stronger with each passing
year. (Disclaimer: these are just a few
of the many people who have affected our lives in a positive way through
knowing them. If you are not on this
list know that I’m grateful for our relationship and that I’m blessed to know
you.)
The Guerra Family, Guatemala:
A more recent group of friends are those that we met in
Guatemala in the summer of 2012. It is
hard to believe that it has already been a year and a half since we were in
Central America for the summer. The
wonderful Guerra family took us in under
their wing and took care of us non-stop for 3 months. They were our personal tour guides, chefs,
and most of all our friends. We love and
miss every one of you.
Asha Orphanage, India:
A group very dear to our hearts are the residents and
orphans in New Deli, India who work and live at Asha Orphanage. We worked at Asha (which means "hope"
in Hindi) for a month while on the world race in 2011. (For more stores from our travel around the
world or our time in India please visit our old blog: world race blog) These vulnerable children and humble servants
that took care of them were some of the most amazing people I have ever
met. Their life, no matter how difficult
it was, was full of love and humility.
We learned so much in that short time in India; how to better love each
other, how to be content and grateful no matter the circumstances, and how to
take joy in the little things. Thank you
Asha for opening our eyes. For more
information about Asha or ways to help please visit their website: Asha Mission.
The Conways, Kenya:
Our first place to visit abroad as a couple was Kenya in the
summer of 2007, and since that very long and eventful summer our love for Kenya
and its people has filled our hearts.
Some very special missionaries have been in our thoughts and hearts
since that summer. Larry and Hollye
Conway have devoted their lives to missions and currently work for Made in the
Streets in Nairobi, Kenya. Their loving
hearts and servant spirits have changed so many lives of people who have passed
through their home or received a big hug from Hollye or a witty joke from
Larry. ("That's right, girlfriend!")
These two are the epitome of love and compassion. Thank you for being that example. For more info or ways to help Made in the
Streets please visit their website: Made in the Streets
Our families back home:
None of our travels would be possible without the love and
continual support from our families back home.
They love us enough to let us pursue our current passion of serving,
traveling and exploring the world! We
miss them so much while we are gone and cherish the memories we have with them
both past and present. Tears fill my
eyes as I think of the love I have for these amazing people. I know they say you can’t pick your
family, so I think we lucked out big
time with this crazy cool bunch!
