on turning 30

It was another memorable birthday in Nicaragua, between my roommate's house decorating, pancake breakfast with 2 other dear friends (Beth and Alan, thank you!), a couple of long-distance phone calls, and several adventures (including seeing a new view of the gorgeous crater lake Laguna de Apoyo, visiting an old relic railroad tunnel, and hitting my first pinata--I guess the kid within never really grows up!) in the little community of Diriomito outside of Masaya, the heart of Nicaraguan artesania and folklore, where my Nica friend Johanna's family lives.

Other than the dates on the calendar, however, it's hard to believe that this year marks my entrance into a third decade of life. At one time the college years were supposed to be time when you "found yourself"--though nowadays it seems like it has expanded to include all of the 20-somethings. For better or worse in my case, however, I seem to be no closer to that all-elusive "settling down" than I was 10 years ago. And for all my many adventures following God's call here in Nicaragua, for all of the wonderful friendships I have made and wonders of creation I have seen, all of which have stretched and grown me in ways I can scarcely begin to explain, some of my most personal dreams still seem tantalizingly far from reach.


As 2007 comes to a close (and with it, half of my time in this country), in my heart there is a sense that time is passing---and a burning question arises: what will I do with the time I have left? And another--for what purpose have I truly been brought to this place? And will I fulfill it?