I have experienced a lot in the past three months since I have been in the United States. From the first meeting with the unit to visiting the supporting churches, I have met so many nice and friendly people. And I am so thankful for that!
As a Service Adventure participant, I am working with preschoolers at Johnstown Christian School in the morning, and with elementary kids in the afternoon at New Day. Of course, we focus on different aspects with the different aged children, but it all ends up in being thankful to God because he cares for and loves us.
This made me also think about what I am thankful for. I am most thankful for LEARNING.
First of all, I am thankful for my unit leaders. When we arrived after our almost 24-hour-long journey from Germany, the first thing Leah said to us was, "Welcome home!" I hope you understand that it is a little bit strange when a person you have never seen before says this to you. But looking back at it now, it was one of the best things she could have said. They helped me so much in learning to feel at home on the other side of the world. They helped me when I was homesick.
Also, I am thankful for the rest of the unit. They are really great people. I see them as kind of siblings now. I am thankful that I can learn from them more about their faith, because we are all from different backgrounds and have different understandings. But I learned a way to appreciate this, and I am glad that I can learn more about the faith from other backgrounds.
I am thankful for my host family. My host family consists of Lydia and Kirby with their kids, Amelia (10), Eliza (7) and Abram (3). I am always looking forward to Tuesday evenings when we visit them. The more time I spend with them, the more I am thankful for them letting me be a part of their life.
I am also very thankful for my work placements. Every morning when I arrive at JCS, I am looking forward to playing with the kids. Also, the staff at JCS are special. They are kind of a family. And I feel so blessed to be able to be a part of that for one year. I never experienced such an amazing atmosphere in a school before. My teacher, Mrs. Marks, is also a great person. I am learning how to serve the children and how to interact with them. I am learning to appreciate the unique atmosphere in the school and what American school life is like. I hope that I can use in the future what I learn there. Also, New Day is a nice working place. I enjoy teaching a class together with Erin and telling about God´s big love for them. But I also like that I am learning from them more about their lives, their faith, and their world views.
My family is also an aspect for which I am thankful. I miss my family and have been homesick two times so far. But I know that they are supporting me and like what I am doing. I like to get a good amount of contact with them, but not too much because I want to be present here.
I am also thankful for Christliche Dienste, the German organization, because they did a great job in preparing us for our service here. I learned so much about cultures, serving, faith, and living far away from home. And now I am thankful that I can use what they told us and that they are still supporting us. I am also very thankful for my home congregation. I get nice and encouraging messages from them and I learn more and more about how powerful a support in prayer can be. After these months, I know I couldn´t do what I do without their support.
And – of course – I am also very thankful for Mennonite Mission Network. I just feel that this is the perfect spot for me right now. And you put me here
After mentioning my home congregation, I am also going to mention our congregations here. I was a little bit afraid in the beginning how people might be to us since we are only here for less than a year. Those people are so nice and friendly and want to get to know us. Even the "churches of the month" welcome us so nicely and want to get to know us, even though we probably only see them a couple of times in our life. I am very impressed by that and it teaches me a lot of the character of people.
As a German I learned in the past couple months a lot about American culture. Of course, living with Americans taught me a lot about their lifestyle. But it also made me think about my culture. I learned to appreciate different ways of living. I learned simple living. And I hope I can go on with simple living when I get home in June. In addition, I learned to speak the English language better, which I am probably going to need in my life.
Last, the most important part for me is the faith in God. He brought me here. He cares for me and teaches me. He helps me every day. He helps me through my day where I am doing things I have never done before. And he opens my eyes to things I have never seen before. Also, he teaches me to trust. I never had to trust him that much like now. I like to control things. But I feel like the more I am giving control to him the happier I am. I kind of feel that I am closer to him now than I was ever before. I guess I feel this right now because I never focused on God in every part of my life. (I went to a public school and faith was not a big topic.) But I enjoy it so much and it feels so right. I am looking forward to learning more about God through the year. And I am so thankful for being a Christian! It gives me the power, the love, the care, and the support I need.
So, all in all, I learned a lot in the last couple months. I am so thankful for being here. And I am even more thankful to learn all these and many more things. In the end, I enjoy being in that unit a lot and am looking forward to the next months!
THANK YOU!