So, about a year ago I was walking around in Daecheon beach in Korea which is about an hour from Daejeon when my friend Laura and I ran into a group of foreigners. They started talking to us (which in itself is amazing because a lot of westerners in Korea think they're too cool to say hi to other westerners in Korea) and after talking to a girl in their group for a couple of minutes we realized that we basically knew each other because I went to college with her brother, had met two of her sisters in Puyallup through Younglife, and that we pretty much knew all of the same people. Even a year later, the craziness of how small the world is and how God connects people even when it's on the very opposite side of the world still blows my mind. Bethany was visiting Daecheon as well and it turned out that she only lived about 30 minutes outside of my city, so to have her and her boyfriend Jake just 30 minutes away this last year was so stinking amazing. We would take the bus to see each other every month or so and every time we got together we would talk about how nuts it was to meet in Korea of all places. Her sister, Lacey, who I had met in Puyallup before leaving for Korea came out to surprise Bethany for Christmas so the four of us had our first Christmas away from home together.
Well, Jake is still in Korea until September but Bethany's contract ended around the same time that I came back from Thailand so the other day her, Lacey, and I got to hang out in America together for the first time! It's pretty wild when you've only been in a place like Korea together because to be at home all of a sudden is such a surreal thing. The bummer news though is that I wont be seeing either of them for a year (unless I visit them which I'm gonna make happen) because 2 days after hanging out with them they MOVED TO ISTANBUL! So awesome. They'll both be working as an Au Pair, which is pretty much a nanny although I thought it was some sort of fancy pants pastry, for different families in Turkey. Bethany was only in the states for about a month before taking off again so I've just been thinking about them a lot as they head off on this new journey. As I've learned in the past year, leaving everything behind and moving to a random place like Korea or Turkey requires a lot of faith and trust, but to be able to see how God works during those times is a pretty amazing thing. So for Bethany to be able to do that in Korea one year and Turkey the next really blows my mind and makes me so proud of her faith that the Lord is really in control and has some awesome plans for us. If you want to read about their travels you can go to Bethany's blog http://www.travelblog.org/Bloggers/bethany-grace/ or find it on the side of my blog!
ASHLEIGH!!! you are awesome! ha ha and i love how much you use the word "stinkin" or stinking. whatever.
ReplyDeleteThanks for this! It is super encouraging and means a lot. SO cool how and that we met. One of the best stories EVER. Never forget it. AND so great that you're going back to Korea (eat some meat for me) to work a pretty sweet job. I'm so thankful we met. I may not have survived Korea without you, NO JOKE.
LOVE & PEACE. see you in turkey?
I love that story, every time i hear it...so crazy and cool how that worked out! Also, really enjoyed reading your blog because it's exactly like you talk! :) I laughed out loud when you said you thought au pair was some fancy pants pastry, ha!
ReplyDeleteAll of the newness, unknowns, and challenges that come with being overseas for a year (especially at first) definitely require faith and trust. I am really excited to see how God works during this time. Thanks for your encouragement and excitement for us on this adventure! :)