A time to rest

I am about halfway through my Christmas break here. Our break is pretty long since it is also the end of the year break. Teachers will start back to work on January 13, so I still have quite a bit of time off. I was really scared of this break for a few reasons. One is that I always slightly panic as the time nears for school to be out because that means no students in class and no boarders at home. Since that is pretty much my whole life, I always wonder what in the world I will do!

During the April break, I was blessed with the opportunity to get to know people on staff here at the mission and was able to build many sweet friendships. During the August break I went home to America, so this is my first real time off since April. I would be extremely excited at the chance to hang out with all of my friends at the mission, except that they are all gone now! It's been a crazy couple of months where a lot of changes have happened and every single one of my close friends have recently moved, adding to the anxiety of this approaching break.

Now that I am halfway into this time off, I've been pleasantly surprised with how the time has gone. I rarely take time out to just rest, something I know is important for all of us. It's just difficult to find that time with 32 teenagers around constantly. So, the first blessing of this break has been just to have the chance to rest. I am staying at a precious house at the mission that belongs to one of the missionaries who is home on furlough right now. I am loving being at her house and hanging out with her cats. I've been reading, watching dvds, listening to Christmas music, catching up on emails, and spending a lot of time talking to my family. It's been a nice change of pace for me. I've also spent some time with my friend, Angela, who is still living in Maun, and a fellow missionary and friend, Sarah.

I think the next couple of weeks will continue to hold days of rest and regrouping in preparation for a busy 2009. On January 17th, I will be meeting the twenty new girls joining us in boarding, bringing the total to 32 girls (along with 34 boys), and on the 19th I will begin teaching two classes in one (standard 5 and 6). So, I definitely see the importance of this time of rest! Even though I was quite nervous about this time, I am beginning to thank the Lord for the blessing of having time to just be still and enjoy an intimate Christmas with Him.

Here is a picture of the house I am staying at:


And the beautiful front lawn:

2 comments:

constance said...

andrea! i hope you got my thank you postcard for your class. i hope you have a merry christmas and enjoy your time of rest.

god bless-
constance

Unknown said...

i am sooo glad i got to talk to you for 3.5 hours on Christmas eve. twas precious time and i would not have rathered spend my time in the car any other way! i like the pics you posted from Christmas day, just wish i could have seen you in one. how was african lasagna? or was it just italian food in africa? well, happy new year soon. it will be for you before it is for me! weird! bye friend...