AW80 part one.

Well well well.... here i am. I am no longer on familiar soil. I have taken a giant faith leap and landed somewhere in the pacific on a beautiful island off of australia called NEW ZEALAND. The most challenging part thus far was the grueling 11 hour flight from LA. And.... the countless hours spent lollygagging in the airports during layovers. Fortunately... to counter the jetlag and the endless bordem i met some fellow ywamers on the journey. Together, my new compadres and i made great memories... drank small cups of overpriced coffee, waiting for a curly headed short girl named racheal that ended up being a tall boy named rapheal, witnessed signs bewaring us of giant snails, slept on many floors, became friends of many strangers- including miss florida 2002, harry from fiji... many more, ok, let's see... then we landed on middle earth. Took me a few days to sort through all of the feelings... but today, well, today is good. At first I felt a bit awkward... frustrating. I just wanted to sleep and keep to myself, which is next to impossible in this environment. After the restless dust finally settled, i found a bunch of very friendly people in the same boat i was in. We've become a family in this short time, and that is comforting. Although they will never take the place of those i left behind, these men and women- who come from all ends of the earth- hold a special place in my heart.