What a Week

Wow. What a week. Alaska was the most awesome experience of my life.

I’m about to give you a run down of how my week went (from my perspective… if you want to read about each day from everyone’s perspective, go to my Alaska blog). Prepare yourself, because you’re about to be taken on an 8-day rollercoaster condensed into 8 paragraphs. Also, there will be lots of photos. I can’t remember anything if I don’t take a picture, so if I wouldn’t have taken these pictures, I probably wouldn’t even remember going on this trip (just kidding about forgetting the trip… not kidding about having to take photos).

Okay. I woke up at 5:04 a.m. Sunday morning, put my left foot on the ground, then my right. I then walked to the bathroom, looked in the mirror, gasped at my appearance, then brushed my teeth for 1 minute and 34 seconds.

Just kidding, I’m not telling the story like that (you’re welcome).

But there is truth behind the whole 5 a.m. deal! The whole 32-person Alaska team met at the church around 6:00 Sunday morning, prayed, and loaded the buses. My dad told my mom and I right before we got on the bus that he had felt chills during the prayer, and he knew the Holy Spirit was going to do something awesome. MAN, WAS HE RIGHT. I have this weird thing where I’ll get sick if I ride in a car early in the morning, so I’m just going to add that I wasn’t feeling on top of my game on this fine morning. We got to the airport, checked our bags, made it through Atlanta security, and waited at our gate to board! After getting sick a few times, I felt great and I was ready to fly! (My body is so weird, I know.) The first time I had flown was in fourth grade, and I don’t remember it, so this was almost like my first time flying! I. LOVED. IT. It was so beautiful, and it just amazed me that it only took what seemed like ten minutes to fly all the way across Kansas. I just couldn’t believe we were on the opposite side of the United States, in only five hours, when we stepped into the Seattle airport. We grabbed a little snack, hopped on our next plane, and our next stop was Anchorage, Alaska!

We arrived in Anchorage to a BEAUTIFUL airport, BEAUTIFUL scenery, and BEAUTIFUL weather! It was about 65 degrees when we arrived, with no humidity. You could hear all 32 of us say “Ahhhhh...” out of pure happiness when we stepped outside. It was almost harmonic. A few GraceWorks leaders met us with the vans and took us to Calvary Baptist Church, our “home base” for the week. This is where we ate, slept, had chapel, hung out, and did EVERYTHING for the week- other than our park ministry, of course! It’s an older church with only about 20 members, and they have turned part of it into bunk rooms for volunteers to stay in! We got fed some yummy chicken as soon as we arrived, then a few of us went out to explore while the others caught up on their sleep after a long day of traveling!

We walked around the neighborhood, took a look at some scenery, and walked down the road a few blocks, where we found a playground! Little did we know at the time that this was the park we would be ministering at for the next five days… God works in amazing ways! There was a man outside his house cutting up fish, so we walked over to watch him and ask him some questions. We literally stood there and talked for at least 45 minutes, it was so neat! The greatest part was what happened next though. We dared Jared to eat one of the fish’s eyeballs… AND HE DID.

It was insane (and completely disgusting, but I still like him). We walked back to the church to hit the hay around 2:30 a.m., and it was still completely daylight! That was the thing about this week… it never got dark so we never knew what time it was. I loved it personally, because it felt like you had all the time in the world! It was precious on our walk back though, there were some little kids outside playing soccer (remember what time I said it was), and one little guy about five years old yelled, “HEY LOOK! IT’S THE CHURCH PEOPLE! ARE YOU COMING TO PLAY WITH US TOMORROW?!”

I knew it was going to be a fun week.

This is the view at 2:30 in the morning. That's right. 2:30.

On an average day:

Wake up

Eat breakfast at 8:00

Get everything ready for the park

Chapel at 11:00

Lunch at 12:00

Park Ministry from 1:15-4:00

Dinner at 5:00

Free time

Quiet hours after 10:00

That’s how our schedule played out most days! On Monday, we went to our park, Government Hill, and met our local kids for the first time! We quickly found out that they LOVED four-square, and once we had a long line I played nine-square for the first time! I was a fan, definitely! The kids were absolutely precious, and SO loving in their own ways. Whether it was asking for a piggy back ride, hugs, throwing frisbee with you, offering us one of their crackers, following the leader, or pushing us in the tire swing. We were blessed with awesome kids. We were also blessed with an awesome view from the park!

We did our first round of sightseeing and one of our ministry leaders, Travis, took us through some beautiful mountains! We also went to Earthquake Point to watch the sunset, it was GORGEOUS.

Tuesday morning, we went on a hike on part of the Iditarod Trail! Fun fact: There was a sign at the beginning of this hike that said, “BEAR ALERT!” It was warning us about all of the bears that had been around the trail lately. Three days later, they shut the trail down because there were too many bears!

At the park that day, Jared and I really clicked with this guy named Richard. He is going to sixth grade, and he is so funny! He would walk or ride his bike to the park everyday, then to the church to eat with us at night. Jared and I started walking with him back to the church, and on Wednesday he even came to the church BEFORE he went to Government Hill so we could all walk together He was so sweet, and he also loves frisbee! I took a cool panorama, too (with Richard and Jared playing frisbee on the right, of course)!

Oh, and I also found this atrocious bruise on my leg from who-knows-what on the back of my leg. I’m gonna say I fell too hard in love, since it’s shaped like a heart.

Most kids in the park are eligible for free lunch during the school year, so they don’t have to worry about where their meal is coming from from August-May. But during the summer, some aren’t so lucky. That’s another area where GraceWorks steps in… We get to take coolers filled with sack lunches to give out in the parks. A lot of times we have extras, so they may even end up taking two or three more home! On Wednesday morning, Jared, the Clevelands, and I stayed to pack up the lunches for the kids that day. We packed over three hundred lunches for all of the parks, it was crazy! After we finished, we had a lot of free time because everyone else was off on another hike! Claire wanted to play a trick on Jared, so she was sending him messages from my phone and we played a little game of hide-and-seek with him. She thought it was HILARIOUS, if you can’t tell from this picture!

It was a rainy day at the park, but surprisingly we had a lot more kids than normal! The tire swing was the main event...

We went to Beluga Point that night (it would have been safe to call it “Windy Point,” as well) and found a cute little waterfall on the side of the road!

Thursday was our big day, we had Community Outreach AND our Park Party! For our Community Outreach, we took doughnuts to the Anchorage Fire Department! They were so kind to us, they gave us a tour of the whole place! I also used my puppy dog eyes to slide down the fire pole, and it was the greatest moment of my life.

We went back to the church to get everything ready for the park, and for some of us… take a little rest break.

At the park, we had a TON of kids tell us they were coming to the Park Party that night, which made us 100x more excited than we already were! I also discovered that Divinity, one of my new best friends, knew the Cup Song! We sang it together, and her voice was beautiful! She also gives great hugs!

After supper, it was PARTY TIME! We put air in the bouncy house, got the hot dogs cooked, set up our nail painting/hair spraying/face painting tables, and got our music hooked up! Tons of families came out for this, it was so unexpected!

I painted nails, and all I can say is… I feel sorry for those children who wanted beautifully painted nails. I discovered that nail painting is not my calling. I passed the torch on to Taylor for that job, and I headed to the face painting station (where there were stencils to use). While I was there, one of the regulars at the park, a little girl named Katalina, wanted to paint MY face. I let it happen of course, and BOY, did my face get painted!

  Katalina’s brother, Brandon, even brought his violin to play for everyone. He is so talented, and everyone LOVED it! The party was awesome, and it made me and the rest of our team even more excited to come home and start something here in Georgia.

……...and then there was Friday. Friday was the most fun and the most difficult day, by far. It was our last day with the kids, so we had a water fight for our grand finale! We had buckets of water and sponges to throw, it was so much fun!

After we were all soaked, Jared, Richard, and I walked to Richard’s house so he could change clothes. As me and Jared were waiting outside, Jared reminded me what time it was, and we realized we had to go straight back to the church and not back to the park. I didn’t even get to say goodbye, I didn’t think about it before we left! Honestly though, I was somewhat thankful. I’m not good with goodbyes, and I don’t know how I could have said goodbye when I’d grown so close to them. I heard it was very, VERY sad. I was thankful for my happy little walk back to the church to eat. We actually had FOURTEEN people from Government Hill come eat dinner with us that night! It was a nice little “last meal” for us all, and we snagged a picture of the crew before they left! It was so sad giving our last hugs, a LOT of tears were shed throughout this day!

Later that night, a group of us walked downtown to visit a few shops, and we got ice cream! It was nice to get a distraction from all of the sadness earlier.

Saturday was a full day of SIGHTSEEING! We woke up a little earlier than usual, got breakfast, then all seven churches there loaded the buses. We first stopped at Bird Creek for some pictures, then we stopped for snacks at a little gas station, where they had a PUPPY in one of the gift shops!

Then, we headed to Portage Glacier! On the way, we stopped at a little oasis on the side of the road where water had flown from a glacier into a little pool-like area. IT WAS BEAUTIFUL (and Tammy cried). We headed to our little glacier cruise after that, where we cruised by Portage Glacier. It was pretty awesome, we even got to see some ice drop off into the water (which we later found out was because there was a small earthquake, which was a crazy discovery). After the cruise, we hiked a short trail to another glacier, and there were also TONS of rocks everywhere! It was pretty cool!

We headed to the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center, where we saw tons of Alaskan animals (including a moose, which I took a selfie with). There was also a bald eagle there, and the most patriotic event in my life took place… I was looking at the eagle, I quietly said “‘Merica,” and it looked me RIGHT IN THE EYE. It was a beautiful moment, right there in the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center.

We went back to Calvary Baptist one more time, grabbed our bags, said goodbye to our leaders and thanked the staff, and loaded the vans to ride to our hotel for the night. It was bittersweet riding in the “Goose” van for the last time, we had really gotten acquainted and learned to love the no-air conditioning! The hotel had a pool, and more importantly: a hot tub. A few of us went down and had some relaxing fellowship putting our legs in the hot tub, while Bonnie Greer, Ella Grace, and Claire all swam in the pool! When Daddy came in and said the word “pizza,” the deal was done. It was now a pizza party. Fifteen minutes, fourteen towels, three two liters, and six pizzas later… It was a party in the dining room! We ate, talked, and laughed until we were all tuckered out, then we all went to bed. We knew we had a big day of traveling the next day!

Sunday was EXHAUSTING. We left the hotel around 11:00 a.m. to go to the airport, and our flight to Seattle departed at 4:05. We arrived in Seattle and had about a two hour layover, so we all headed to the food court to eat! I got Japanese, and oddly enough everyone else at my table had some sort of foreign food… not sure if that’s the best idea before we hop on a five hour flight, but it happened anyway. The flight back to Atlanta was… long. It was very long. There was also a very unhappy baby, who didn’t stop crying unless its mom was STANDING in the aisle. Sleep wasn’t exactly “easy,” so when we landed, I saw a whole lot of 6:00 a.m. smiles!

I, however, was sick again. It must be something about Hartsfield-Jackson, but I haven’t made very good memories there the past two times I’ve been! But oh man, I’ve never been so happy to see two church buses in my life! The ride home flew by for me, because I felt great and I was working on my blog. We arrived at the church to everyone’s family, and Papa Gayle picked us up. We went to get a chicken biscuit from McDonald’s, headed back home, and had a nice day of sleeping.

I still haven’t QUITE gotten back on Georgia time, but it’s getting there! All of the exhaustion was more than worth it though, this was truly a life changing experience. I can’t even begin to describe how much the kids, the staff, and the entire community in Alaska means to me. Thank you to everyone who helped us get there, it really does mean the world. God definitely worked in me and in these kids in the park. It is SO true that He can move mountains, I firmly believe that. It was a wonderful week… I’m blessed.

Mission: Alaska

Big news: I’M SWITCHING BLOGS!!!!!!!!!

For a week, that is.

Early Sunday morning, I am traveling with my church on a mission trip to Anchorage, Alaska! I’ve been asked to be the “official blogger/photographer,” and I am OVERJOYED. Oh and by the way, when I say early, I’m talking EARLY. Like, I have to leave my house at 5:30 a.m. EARLY. There are only two reasons I would ever leave my house at 5:30:

1. I’m going to Disney World.

2. I’m doing work for the Lord.

Though I do love Disney World, nothing beats serving the Lord! My church decided to go on this trip a few months ago, and since then, it’s been nothing but excitement! I’m not going to go into a huge amount of detail on what we’re doing in Anchorage on this post, but you can go ahead and check it out on my Alaska blog here!

Basically, we will be working with kids in parks for a few hours, kind of with a Vacation Bible School feel. We will teach them Bible stories and do crafts, games, and songs with them! We just get to love them. We also get to throw Park Parties, where we will get to meet families and fellowship with them, and also go on Prayer Walks, where we pray over streets and houses.

This is my first mission trip, and I think it’s awesome for me because I get to experience it with my parents, my boyfriend, my boyfriend’s mom, and my church family! I get homesick very easily, so being surrounded with people I’m already close to is going to have a HUGE effect in the impact I get from this journey. I can’t wait to share this experience with all 32 members of our Alaska team!

Even though I’m not very good at blogging weekly via Oh My Maddy, I’m going to make it a POINT to blog every night after our days in Alaska! I’m hoping to have a lot of pictures, stories, and maybe even videos to share! If you want to follow our journey, click here and enter your email address in the bar under the “Follow Us By Email” heading. I also try to share my posts on social media, so if you follow me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, etc. I will try to remember to share my posts there, too!

If you don’t want to follow this journey, you just keep on doin’ you.

Please pray for us to have safe travels, to build relationships with these children, to learn a lot, and to grow closer to the Lord! I LOVE YOU ALL! (Sorry, I’m feeling sappy and lovey tonight. I’m too excited for this trip. I’m gonna go pack now.)

In the 32 Hours I Spent With These People

Current situation: It’s 12:32 a.m. and I am in the living room. I’m watching episode 15 of season 6 of Lost, and I’m not going to sleep until I’m finished because Jared watched ahead and I’m catching up so we can finish the show together. I’ve been in Dahlonega for the past two days at Orientation - which consisted of walking around campus is this infamous Georgia heat, sitting through tons of information-filled sessions (like, LOTS of information), tubing, games, new friends… and waking up at 6:00. Now, I’m back at home with new UNG merchandise, a notepad full of important scribble scrabble, a suitcase full of dirty clothes (that may or may not sit in my room for the next week), and the most tired eyes I have ever had. But through all of this exhaustion, the past two days were SO eye opening and exciting!

In the 32 hours I spent with these people, I learned that all the rumors are true - there are groups out there for everyone. I went to a Student Involvement session, and my suitemate and I left asking each other how we were both going to be able to balance ALL of the activities we wanted to be apart of! (Answer: We're going to have to learn to say no to ourselves.)

In the 32 hours I spent with these people, I also met so many people who cared about the same things I did, had similar goals as me, and even had random, itty bitty things in common with me. It made me realize that even though I may not have fit into a lot of groups at school, college is the place where I can be myself and it’s COMPLETELY okay.

In the 32 hours I spent with these people, I learned that I will always have a bathroom buddy. No really… there’s always someone else that has to pee and doesn’t want to go alone. Point blank.

In the 32 hours I spent with these people, I learned that people my age are incredibly friendly. I didn’t meet one person who wasn’t into conversating, laughing, making jokes, or getting to know everyone else. Everyone was SO involved and SO eager to meet people, it reminded me that everybody is in the same boat and everybody wants to have an awesome college experience.

In the 32 hours I spent with these people, I learned that one awkward moment turns into twenty wonderful moments. The most awkward feeling is when you’ve been sitting next to someone for a good 20 minutes talking their head off, then you realize you don’t know their name. Oh, but don’t get me wrong! You know where they’re from, how many siblings they have, their parents’ middle names, the type of fur their dog has, their sleeping position, the way they chew their food, their blood pressure, their social security number… you just forgot to ask them what their name was. That’s when the awkwardness sets in:

“Yeah definitely! That’s so cool how our socials both end with the same three numbers, wow!”

“Agreed, that’s crazy! Well… what’s your name?”

But after the following 6 seconds, the air clears and you’re back in business.

In the 32 hours I spent with these people, I realized that I’m blessed. I was constantly encouraged. I met people who I can laugh with at unnecessary times. I learned about the traditions that my parents have talked about since I grew ears. I have advisors and orientation leaders who have already poured so much care and effort into me. My prayers were constantly being answered whenever I was feeling unsure.

In the past 32 hours I spent with these people, I got ten thousand times more excited and prepared for college than I already was (I didn’t even know that was possible, but hey - HERE I AM). I just pray that I can savor every moment of the next four years, because I know it’ll fly by right before my eyes.

Well, my Lost episode is over and my eyes are taking longer to open when I blink, so I think we all know what that means…

GOODNIGHT!

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction.”

-Proverbs 1:7 (NIV)

Melting Candle

So the other day I saw this thing called a “rekindle candle.” This is what it looks like:

The whole vocation of this candle is that when the candle melts, the wax drips down into the pre-wicked container, and it cools into a brand new candle. It recycles all of the leftover wax! It’s a pretty awesome concept. I can dig it.

Last Wednesday, me and Reagan went to McDonald’s to get ice cream (because who doesn’t love $1 ice cream), and it was $2.14. I was about to break a five, when I realized I had a lot of coins in my cupholder, which included: eight quarters, a dime, and four pennies. Perfect! I didn’t have to break my five dollar bill, I got rid of some of my change, and I got an incredibly delicious ice cream cone (which I downed in literally three minutes).

Oh yeah, another story! A few days ago, I was about to play an app with some of my friends, but I was really tired. Like, REALLY tired. But I love playing games, so I was forcing myself to stay awake (I also hate being left out of games). But, I also hadn’t read my Bible yet, and I knew I needed to do that. So, I turned my phone off, got out my Bible, and read the entire Old Testament with the utmost avidity!

Wrong. I actually decided I would play the game first, THEN read my Bible. That way, I wouldn’t fall asleep on my friends… So, between the candle, the ice cream, and the app/Bible struggle - they all involved leftovers: the extra wax, the change leftover from earlier purchases, and the time left after I play my game. Yet, one of these ideas wasn’t a good one.

That’s right. I should’ve broken that five.

Definitely kidding. I’m talking about putting my earthly desires over my spiritual needs when I chose not to read my Bible, which I NEEDED to do. I ended up falling asleep on something that draws me closer to the Spirit. Reading my Bible gives me a connection to God that I don’t feel as easily with other “spiritual activities,” so how could I have chosen a stupid app over my God?

I guess it’s because I am more drawn to people and events I can see rather than the ones I can’t see… but that’s the point of faith. I guess it could be because I’m young and want to use my small attention span as an excuse… but that’s what prayer is for. I guess it may also be because our generation is too dependent on technology and (like my preacher said) being instantly connected… but that’s what the power button is for.

Thankfully, no matter how many times I give God my “leftovers,” He never gives up on me and He always gives me second chances. He is a forgiving, beautiful God. I just pray that I can learn how to give God as much time as He wants from me, then use THOSE leftovers to serve Him here on earth. I am STILL amazed by God everyday (I am also amazed by the melting candles, but nothing compares to God, of course).

“But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”

-Matthew 6:33 (NIV)