New blog

Well my friends, the time has come to transfer over to my new blog at Revolutionary Life.

Though I really despise its format and have no clue what I am doing on wordpress, a blog has been set up through the website for my preparation/journey blogging. Dustan, RLI leader, has promised he will help me design the blog. I need serious help, haha.

Please bookmark The Calverts and don't forget to read and comment regularly! I love receiving comments, and will try my hardest to respond quickly!

Fears

Ok, so I know I promised a post about my struggles with moving from our home. It's a work in progress, and it's harder to write about than I thought. I don't know how to make things like that "short and sweet" and I often wonder if I lose people's attention span when I write more than a couple of paragraphs.

Moving on.

I've heard some people say concerning our trip "oh, I wish I could do that!" "It takes a special person to do that!" "I could never do that..." etc. People seem to think that this trip will be possible upon our own abilities and power. Not so. ANYONE can do this through God's power. It's not a matter of us being a certain type of couple, or me being a certain type of person. Yes, I am adventurous, but I also LOVE my American comfort. Yes, I can do without a comfy bed, but have only done so for a few days. Yes, I am an ethnic eater, but I also love me some Southern cooking.

The point is, as the Bible says, many are called, but few are chosen. In Matthew 22:14, Jesus explains in the parable of the wedding feast that while many were invited into the wedding feast, one person was turned away because they didn't have wedding clothes on. I take this to mean that we must always be PREPARED to listen to the calling of the Lord. If we hear but do not respond correctly, I do believe we miss out on what God has for us. Don't get me wrong; God is sovereign and everything works together for good, but I do believe that there have been some times in my life where I have missed God's calling because I was too worried about myself. I was too worried about comfort to listen to the Comforter.

A wonderful example of this is my relationship with my husband, Wesley. I had dated other guys before, and although they all ended in break-ups, I considered (some of) the relationships fairly successful. And then I met Wesley. I didn't realize that a relationship with the opposite sex could BE like this! He is literally MY BEST FRIEND. He is my favorite person to share anything with. We think so much alike, yet are so vastly different. I sold myself short because I thought "there's no way I can find a guy that loves kids as much as I do." (I was wrong, by the way). WOW! Of course our relationship isn't perfect...but I never thought it could be THIS good, you know? Never did I expect that. Like Eve and the fruit, I felt as if God was withholding something wonderful from me, so I would jump ahead before I could even consult with God concerning the relationship. Likewise, sometimes if we don't walk in the full will of God, we don't understand how our relationship with God COULD be! We have no grasp on the type of relationship God wants us to have with Him. I used to have the boldness to follow Christ's leading. I was almost wreckless with it when I first became saved at age 15. I was on fire and that was a GOOD thing. Too often our Christian culture teaches us to "calm down" and sink into the pews. But I lost that fire. I lost that sensitivity to the Spirit. This came from not entirely following in God's will. There were relationships I shouldn't have pursued. There were things I shouldn't have done. I felt the Spirit telling me this, yet I CHOSE TO IGNORE IT. I do believe I missed out on some blessings from this. I continue to struggle with this. Praise God He is a just God and chooses to love me and bless me through my disobedience!

Coming off my soapbox, I thought I'd educate readers on what fears I am currently experiencing:

1) I fear that people will forget me. I know the majority of us are "out of sight, out of mind" people. I admit that sometimes I can be this way, and I think our culture encourages this mindset. The thing is, if I'm countries away from you, I wonder if you'll really care. I wonder if you'll remember to pray for me, or if I will slowly fade away, blurring into a pool of thousands of other missionaries that are "out there." I don't want it to be an us vs. you thing, which is why I will continue to blog and post videos, involving people as much as possible in our journey. But I still fear that I will be forgotten.

2) I fear getting sick and not being in a comfortable, familiar place. We all do it. When we get sick, we demand to be taken care of in some way. My ritual is to want a fluffy blanket, a comfortable place on the couch, and a perfect "sick movie" on the t.v. (Mary Poppins is one of my personal favorites). Overseas, this is just not going to happen. There's a possibility we will be sick and still have to do things that day. I will have to learn to suck it up, and frankly, this scares me.

3) I fear being tortured or my husband being tortured. Wesley and I agree on this: we are NOT scared of dying. How could you be scared of going to be with your heavenly Father, the very presence we are so desperate for? But I am terrified of being tortured by someone for my beliefs. Worse, I fear watching my husband being tortured, and being put in a situation to either renounce Christ, or let him die. We have already agreed on our decision to never renounce Christ, no matter the cost, but it doesn't make the possibility any easier to even think about. (for you worriers, I do not believe in my spirit that this will happen at all! Just pray for safety!)

4) I fear being a minority in a foreign country. I experienced this in India, and it was difficult at first. Though I LOOKED like an Indian, I was very much an American. It's a surreal feeling. You feel at the mercy of the country. You feel vulnerable, exposed. It is definitely faith-growing, and changes people for the good, but the process can be unnerving.

5)I fear not knowing what to say when it comes time for me to minister. I often fumble over my words in large crowds, and end up rambling on and not making sense. I wish I could be more efficient in my public speaking.

6) I fear I won't be able to master the squatty potty. When I was younger, I tried to squat during a camping trip, and ended up peeing all over myself. Any time I would be put in that situation, I just couldn't do it. What if I am still 8 year old Ashley inside, who can't squat to save her soul? What then? This may be one of my biggest fears.

7) I fear I won't be able to do it. Quite simply, I wonder "have I bitten off more than I can chew? Do I REALLY understand what I'm getting myself into?" The answer is, probably not. But God will bless us for obeying His call. He is always with us, whether we are here or on the other side of the world. Whether we are prepared or not, He will EQUIP us for the task that He has called us to. Praise God.
A. An extension of this fear is I fear I will not be able to do it emotionally. While in India, it took all I had to not bring a child back with me. Oh, how I LOVE children. And we are going to be around lots of them. Lots of them that I will pour all my love into. And then I'll be expected to walk away without being attached. Not happening. It doesn't happen in America, and it certainly will be no different overseas.

***

Through all these fears, I am STILL going. Wesley and I decided that the only reasons for not going on this trip were 1) finances and 2) fear. We decided those two f'in f's weren't good enough excuses!
Whatever God calls you to, no matter how crazy it is, He will give you the grace to do it. I will close with what a friend told me is the definition of grace.

Grace: The divine influence on the heart to give strength to do something you cannot do on your own.

T-49 days and counting...

Progress:
-Buy plane tickets
-Buy plane tickets from Bangkok to Chiang Mai through Air Asia
-Find a family member willing to pay our storage rent every month
- Get shots (Typhoid, Hep A, Tetanis) Waiting on this until we get to Asia, and we're on the fence about whether to get them anyway.
-Buy backpacks
-Buy walking/hiking shoes I'm using my same shoes I've had; Wesley has picked out his and just needs to pick them up.
-Get passports I have mine, still waiting on Wesley's. Pray that we get it SOON.
-Get essentials: travel clothing, travel items ( clothesline, drain stopper, toilet paper, travel towels, earplugs, laptop, bug spray, sunscreen Will get in Asia)
-Get enough money pledged/donated to last the full six months in SE Asia (estimated to be a minimum of about $1,000/month if no major travel in that month... currently need $4,000 $3,??? $2,??? more for the minimum.
-Save enough money for a plane ticket back home, as the plane tickets we bought are one way. (estimated: $1,000-$2,000).
- Find a temporary home for our puggles.
- Get plane tickets from Gulfport to California

***

I love crossing things off my list.

I haven't been blogging here much because we are currently in the stages of transferring my blog to the Revolutionary Life website. But, if that doesn't happen within the next few days, expect a nostalgic, sad, and bittersweet post concerning how I feel about moving out of our first home as a married couple.

Travel clothing

I am a skeptic of travel clothing. A part of me fears it is just another bandwagon that consumers get on in an attempt to be trendy and spend more money.

However, being on the road for the next 6 months with only:

6 t-shirts
1 dress shirt
1 pair of jeans
1 light weight pant
1 cargo pant
1 long skirt
1 undershirt
1 rain jacket
1 hiking shoe and
1 sandal/flip flop with tread

...I can't afford to be cheap in my selection.
Hence my anxiety about shopping for travel clothing.

Thankfully, as you can read in my yard sale post, God provided us with the finances to do some needed shopping today at Gander Mountain. Since some people have requested for pictures, I figured I'd show you what we purchased today.

For Ashley:

Kicker bag by Kavu. I need a purse to carry my things in when we are walking around, and this is like a secure, miniature messenger bag. Mine is not quite as cute as this one, but just as efficient.

The North Face Womens Venture Jacket. First of all, I have never until now jumped on The North Face bandwagon. I have problems justifying the ridiculous cost. And yes, it is weird to be taking a jacket overseas where it can average over 100 degrees. However, for downpours you will inevitably be caught in, as well as for comfort on cold bus rides, this jacket was ideal. It comes with "pit zips", which I knew nothing of until my travel clothing endeavors began. It's basically zippers in the armpits that you open for ventilation. Heavenly. Wesley got the men's version in blue. We also figured this would be a good investment, as neither of us have an actual waterproof piece of clothing.

I had a really hard time finding any pants. This is the story of my life, and it is especially the story with travel pants, which are not the most flattering pants in the world. I am still in the process of finding a pair.

Shirts on the other hand, were fairly successful:

If comfort were a shirt, I am pretty positive it would be a Kuhl shirt. My goodness, these shirts are SO soft. Travel clothing is not known for its excessive trendiness or general cuteness, but I think Kuhl has made an honorable attempt.



This one is my absolute favorite. Brown is a good neutral color to have on the road. You don't want too many printed things or, because we are taping for Season 2 of Revolutionary Life, you will look like you're constantly wearing the same thing. The flower print on this is subtle enough that it won't make a difference. The shirts are a blend of polyester and cotton. When you think polyester, you think itchy, awkward disco pants suit, but combined with cotton... *sigh*. These will be super easy to hand wash and dry and will be durable enough to stand the test of wear and tear on the road.

My second Kuhl shirt


I also bought one more light-weight t-shirt with a cotton/modal blend.

Mentionables that I have gotten prior to today:




Pink bandana from Claire's. I could have gotten a neutral color, and may regret this...but I just love the idea of a pink bandana.




Kelty 2500 Redwing Backpack for women. It is designed for women, complete with curved straps. I love this bag. Let's hope it loves me, because it's going to be on my back for 6 months.


IPod touch. I found the 2nd generation on Craigslist for half what it's worth. While I am planning on boycotting Craigslist, I'm glad I didn't before I saw this steal. This really was a need. I dreaded trying to share our ipod back and forth on the trip during long bus rides. Now I can have my own IPod and also skype, blog, check email, download music, etc wherever wifi is...which may not be many places, but it will still be great! There are tons of free applications, including a Bible app with passage look up. Awesome. Of course, I will not use it as a means to ignore anyone.

For Wesley:



He got his own little slice of comfort with the Kuhl Elite Cafe Crew t-shirt. One of the coolest things about this shirt is it is blended with Coffeenna, "fabric made from recycled coffee grounds. The fabric naturally enhances the evaporative cooling to help keep you drive and comfortable with excellent UV protection"- from the tag, haha.


Under Armour zip off pants. Pants and shorts in one.


White Sierra Trail pant. Another zip off.


Wesley got his backpack at a yardsale a few months ago for $12. It is a Jansport backpack.
He has several shirts that fit the cotton blend required.
He bought some Merril laceless shoes, but they didn't fit him right so he is on the hunt for some more shoes.

Currently needed:

Ashley: 3 more t-shirts, 1 long skirt, 1 light weight pant, sandals, hiking shoes, hat, sunglasses, lightweight scarf

Wesley: 3 more t-shirts, hiking shoes, sandals, hat, sunglasses.

Both: Macbook.

As I left the store clutching the receipt, the tangible evidence of what we spent took my breath away. But I have to keep reminding myself that this will be the majority of our wardrobe for 6 months.

Yikes.

Our Yard Sale

Deuteronomy 15:10
Give generously to him and do so without a grudging heart; then because of this the LORD your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you put your hand to.

Deuteronomy 28:12
The LORD will open the heavens, the storehouse of his bounty, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands. You will lend to many nations but will borrow from none.


***

God truly blessed the work of our hands this weekend. We were really dreading having a yard sale, but knew there was a possibility of raising money toward our trip. So, we sucked it up, and got to work at the last minute. We started gathering things together on Tuesday, I put an ad in the paper on Wednesday to be advertised Friday and Saturday, and we made a mess of our tiny duplex. At times I felt like pulling my hair out. We had to move our HUGE wardrobe outside four times. I was weary.

But in those two days, we raised enough money to put toward our travel clothing as well as a laptop. We are currently waiting on purchasing the laptop, as we are believing for a Macbook, which is what Wesley really needs. When we have down time on the trip, he will need to contribute toward the editing of video footage, and will be unable to do so without a Macbook.

I practiced what the Bible talks about; speaking what you believe to be true. I started speaking that we would sell all of our big furniture for what we were asking. That would round out to be about $500. I knew we desperately needed that money, and didn't expect to gain very much money from the other little things in the yard sale. $500 was my goal. My expectation.

The first piece sold for $25 more than we had asked, because a dear friend of mine contributed extra toward our trip.

But then the buying was at a standstill. I got nervous. I was claiming this, why wasn't God blessing that?

(side note: We humans are so silly sometimes, you know? If things don't go exactly how we think they're going to go, we automatically assume God must be playing a cruel trick on us. If we could only understand God's infinite Love for us!)

A man came by that owns a furniture store, and was wanting to give us $150 for all of the rest of the furniture. This was ridiculously low, but tempting. It was our second day of the yard sale, and we were exhausted from moving things back and forth. Yet we both didn't have a peace about giving this man our furniture for that price, despite the fact that no one else had come by to buy it up. We had only sold the table and chairs that day, but no other furniture. Praise God we listened to His voice, or else we wouldn't have been blessed with what was to come.

We left the furniture out even after the yard sale was over because we didn't want to haul it back inside. And of course, that was in God's plan. One woman came by and immediately put a down payment to hold one of our pieces. Granted, it was $120 less than what we had originally asked, but we had a sale! Then, we had three inquiries within minutes after I prayed that the wardrobe would be sold. We just said goodbye to it a little while ago, and it sold for only $50 less than the asking price.

The amazing thing about this is that the support from the yard sale was almost double what I had for a goal in my mind. We sell God short so often. He desires to bless us, but we don't BELIEVE for it! I am so very guilty of this.

At one point, a lady came inside as I was packing something up for her. She started looking around at our stuff and asked Wesley if we were selling our t.v. He immediately stated that we were, and before we knew it, our t.v. was sold right out from under us, haha! Wesley joked that he is like his grandfather, who once sold his kitchen table right out of his house!

***

God has always blessed my hard work. But I truly cannot do anything apart from Him.

I am a HUGE believer in tithing. I began seriously tithing in high school, but not with the faithfulness Wesley and I have today. My motives to begin with were mostly because I felt it was something I had to do, and I also realized that when I did so, God would always bless my finances. Granted, I might not be filthy rich, but He always supplied my needs and then some. So, I gave to receive a blessing. But this experience has really helped me to realize and understand that it is all HIS. None of it is ours, no matter how much we work for it. And just like Abraham with Isaac, once we give things to God, He will bless our sacrifice and will often give that thing back to us in much better shape than when we gave it to God. I wonder how much that experience with Abraham and Isaac strengthened their relationship that day. I'm sure it made it a million times better, because the father and son left the experience with a greater respect and understanding for each other. Isaac respected and knew his father as someone who would give up his own son to follow God, and Abraham respected and knew Isaac in that he honored both God and his father so much that he would lay down his life.


God has never let me down. How often I let Him down. It's heartbreaking to think about it.

I LIVE for these experiences.

Blessings

James 1:6
But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.

Progress:
Buy plane tickets
-Buy plane tickets from Bangkok to Chiang Mai through Air Asia
- Find a family member willing to pay our storage rent every month
-Get shots (Typhoid, make sure we have had Hep A,B,C shots, Tetanis)
- Buy backpacks
-Buy walking/hiking shoes
-Get passports (in process)
-Get essentials: travel clothing, travel items (clothesline, drain stopper, toilet paper, travel towels (1), earplugs, laptop, bug spray, sunscreen)
-Get enough money pledged/donated to last the full six months in SE Asia (estimated to be a minimum of about $1,000/month if no major travel in that month... currently need $4,000 $3,??? more for the minimum.
-Save enough money for a plane ticket back home, as the plane tickets we bought are one way. (estimated: $1,000-$2,000).
-Find a temporary home for our puggles.

***

Praise GOD that we have found someone willing to keep our puggles! I am, however, still being the apprehensive mommy. Please, pray that our "children" will be safe while we're gone :)

I have been in awe of God's provision. He continues to amaze me. I was feeling discouraged a couple weeks ago. My dear friend Becky encouraged me by telling me stories of how God provided for her mother in times of financial stress. I was encouraged by the stories and began believing for the money.

The very next day, someone handed us a check for $320! Yesterday, $150 came in! This morning at Wesley's work, there was a drawing and guess who won a $100 Visa gift card? Wesley, of course!

I am waiting for a recent updated report of the money we have received, but we are definitely under $4,000 needed for the trip! Yay!

Our second biggest need right now besides the money for the trip is a laptop. Mine died about a year ago and we never had the extra money to get another one. But guess what? I KNOW we're going to have enough money to purchase the laptop we need. Dusty with Revolutionary Life encouraged me to begin speaking the things that I believe. That's difficult for me, I'm not going to lie. It's not that I don't believe in my heart that God will provide (although my faith does waiver sometimes), but speaking it out loud is foreign and awkward for me. Dusty gave me some great verses that support speaking our needs into existance. Unfortunately, I didn't write them down =( But it is Biblical to verbally state your needs and state that you BELIEVE you will RECEIVE.

So, the next step in our fundraising is to have a yard sale this Saturday and Sunday! I am believing for a good turn out to raise funds as well as raise awareness for Revolutionary Life!

Blogs with a purpose.

Since preparing to leave, I have tried to link up with as many organizations/people as possible and promote them.

This week, I'm specifically going to promote blogs that are connected to organizations.

-Katie Davis with Amazima Ministries in Uganda. This one started it all for me.

Katie's blog is amazing. I rarely make it through a post without crying. She is simply a girl who felt called to Africa, and listened to the call. She started an organization and has currently adopted 14 (and counting, it seems!) children to mother and care for...all before the age of 22. I mean, if that isn't a testament to God's grace and a picture of Jesus, I don't know what is.


-Renee Bach with Serving His Children in Uganda.
Serving His Children has a Feeding Program, Medical Program, and Malnutrition Rehabilitation Program. Again, Renee saw a need in Uganda, and decided to use the love of Christ to fulfill that need.

-Gwen Oatsvall and Suzanne Miller Mayernick with 147 Million Orphans. These two mothers, while going through their first adoptions, decided to start an organization to aid children in Uganda Haiti, and Ethiopia. In addition, they offer adopting families the opportunity to sell their products so that they may earn money for their own adoptions! 147 Million is the estimated amount of orphans currently living in the world. Their products are SUPER cute (the necklaces are gorgeous) and a great way to promote awareness of the orphan crisis as well as support families and children.

-Blogs for a Cause is a great blog in which the owner, Nikki, makes blog templates for people for a small fee which goes to help different international organizations. Not only are there links to hundreds of different "blogs with a cause", but she also helps support organizations with her talents. Brilliant!

-Orphaned No More A blog that sells bracelets to help a family bring their child, Isabella, home from China. The bracelets are super cute, and what better way to get accessories then to know that you're helping bring a child home so she will be orphaned no more!

-Women Doing More A wonderful blog by a woman that gives opportunities that others can participate in. I LOVE how each post has a "What you can do" section to show the reader how they can get involved!

If you're in a position to have a blog, I hope that you'll take the time to promote some very worthy causes. We have been given the gift of networking. Let's use it!

Progress.

-Buy plane tickets
-Buy plane tickets from Bangkok to Chiang Mai through Air Asia
- Find a family member willing to pay our storage rent every month
-Get shots (Typhoid, make sure we have had Hep A,B,C shots, Malaria pills)
-Buy backpacks
-Buy walking/hiking shoes
-Get passports (in process)
-Get essentials: travel clothing, travel items (clothesline, drain stopper, toilet paper, travel towels (2), earplugs, laptop, bug spray, sunscreen)
-Get enough money pledged/donated to last the full six months in SE Asia (estimated to be a minimum of about $1,000/month if no major travel in that month... currently need $4,000 more for the minimum.
-Save enough money for a plane ticket back home, as the plane tickets we bought are one way. (estimated: $1,000-$2,000).

-Find a temporary home for our puggles.

Wesley, Rollie, and Rush in Gatlinburg, TN.

The last need is so heart-wrenching for me. They're our babies. We celebrate their birthdays for crying out loud, haha. They are inside dogs who don't mind being outside, but don't want to sleep outside. I realize this may have to be adjusted if they live with a family that can only have outside dogs. They MUST be cared for together, as separating them might cause even more stress on them. As it is, I am afraid they might have problems adjusting because we take such good care of them. They are our little cuddle bunnies, as we affectionately call them. They love to play outside, but once inside, they will immediately cuddle up next to you and go to sleep. I have a recent picture of Rollie cuddling with me. I was laying on the bed, and he literally came up and plopped down, settling right into the crook of my neck, and went to sleep. They are some of the most loving dogs I've ever owned. I hate to have to leave them. I think that will be one of the hardest things for me.

Would you like two puggles for 6 months to 1 year? ;) Whoever accepts the "boys" (as we also call them) will be given a medium monetary amount to take care of them while we're gone. They need lots of love and caring. They are excellent watch dogs, whether the object of menace is a cat, a garbage man, or someone actually threatening.

God is continuing to answer all of our prayers. I know He will provide a good home for our babies. I start to worry about it, but then I remember that God sees the bigger picture, and I KNOW He will provide for all of our needs.

Philipians 4:19
And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.

La Musica

When I can't travel, I like to listen to songs that help me take flight. I believe everyone who enjoys to travel should have a travel playlist for those agonizing 9 to 5ers (or 8 to 4:30ers, as the case may be) where you are inside all day and can't enjoy the outside world.

In my humble opinion, there are five requirements for songs in order for them to make it to the final travel playlist. Most songs on my playlist will fill all five requirements, but sometimes less. There are songs that may have a few test runs, until I decide that they really aren't travel playlist material. But the following criteria are to be met in order for me to include the song on my personal playlist:

a) As listed, first it must make you want to travel. You have not made a successful travel playlist until you absolutely feel that longing to get in a car and drive away-- blasting the song through your speakers, rolling the windows down, and taking off.

b) At least some songs must be linked to previous trips you have taken. I am a collector of songs that remind me of different memories, and feel that a successful playlist is not complete without these. Whether it be a random song you heard on the radio and loved, or a song playing at a gas station when you picked up some gummi worms for the ride back...the possibilities are endless. Whatever brings you back to that time.

c) It must give you the travel tingles. If you love to travel, you know what this feels like.

d) It must put images in your head of travel. Whether it be scenes from a particular movie that involve travel, or your own personal experiences, or places you hope to one day see.

e) It can always be listened to with the windows rolled down.

---

All this to say, here is the current travel playlist I am working with. It's rather short, because it takes quite a bit for a song to STAY on my travel list without me kicking it off.

*Disclaimer: this is my own personal playlist. If you like the songs, great! Add them to your playlist. However, if you don't agree, don't judge me. Just don't do it! LOL.

1) Ventura Highway- America It takes me back to visits to California. Even though I haven't lived there in over 22 years, it's still in my blood. Oh, how I love California.

2) Hard Sun-Eddie Vedder This reminds me of the first few minutes of the movie "Into the Wild". I didn't finish it due to content in the movie, but one day I'd love to see the edited version of it. The link provided shows pretty much the gist of the story. Chris McCandless's story is one of the most fascinating stories I've ever heard. I encourage you to read 'Into the Wild'.

3) Wagon Wheel-Old Crow Medicine Show Just a good song to listen to on a nice, open road.

4)Penny and Me-Hanson No playlist is complete without Hanson ;) And this song truly has a great sound.

5) Boston-Augustana I love the beautiful piano music. This is one of my favorite "windows rolled down" songs.

6) Pretty much the ENTIRE 'Elizabethtown' soundtrack. It is one of my favorite movies, and captured the essence and feel of a road trip in a movie like no other movies have. I dream of the day I can make a scrapbook map for someone! But particularly, the ones that really get my heart racing are:

My Father's Gun-Elton John
Free Bird-Lynyrd Skynyrd
Don't I Hold You-Wheat
Square One- Tom Petty

7) Cruisin'- Huey Lewis and Gwyneth Paltrow Hello? Cruisin is the title of the song. 'Nough said. ;)

8)Dancin' in the Moonlight- Toploader I can't help but dance around in my car when I hear this.

9) Brick House-The Commodores Speaking of dancing around, especially if I'm driving alone, at some point in my road trip, I have to dance around for a period of time. One time, I was driving home due to a break at college. I got tired of my cds and put on the radio. Suddenly, this song came on, and I literally could not control my urge to dance around in the car. It made me feel SO much better too, because the trip had grown a little dull. It energized me for the rest of the trip. I definitely recommend you dance around at some point during your road trip. It adds to the whole experience.

10) Return to Innocence- Enigma I understand this is probably central to me, because this song really has nothing to do with traveling. Yet somehow, I get the travel vibe from it. I love to turn it up as loud as it will go and sing the Native American parts. One of my favorite songs.

11) The ENTIRE album Share the Well by Caedmon's Call. Reminds me of my time of preparation before going to India in 2005. Particulars are:

Dalit Hymn
International Love Song
Sarala
Mother India
Share the Well

12) Michael Jackson is SO great for road trips. I guess it's probably during the times when I want to wiggle around in my seat or just sing really loud. My favorites are:

Black or White
The Way You Make Me Feel
Will You Be There
Bad
Beat It
Don't Stop Til You Get Enough

13) Motorcycle Drive By- Third Eye Blind Oh my. I could listen to this over and over and over again and never get tired of it. A MUST for my playlist.

14) The Climb-Miley Cyrus Perhaps this is why I put my disclaimer. Or maybe I'm referring to Enigma. Or something else. I was skeptical of Miley, but she really has some good songs. Another song that is a must on my playlist is "Party in the USA."

15) John Hiatt- Have a Little Faith in Me Piano songs and road trips are such a beautiful mix. And if you haven't seen 'Benny and Joon', please go out and rent it now.

16)Vann Morrison- Into the Mystic

17) Life is a Highway- as sung by Rascal Flatts

18) The Zephyr Song-Red Hot Chili Peppers


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That's all I have for now. I'm sure there are others, but I can't think of them right this second. This will be a working list :) Were there any that you hadn't heard before? What do you think? Let me know!


Now, let's hear what songs you would pick and why!

Happy Birthday! and sickness.

I have the best friends. I always consider birthdays special, but this year, my friends have really done so very awesome. My great friends Heather and Renee took me out for a birthday breakfast on Saturday and I got some AWESOME things for our trip. Hello?! Books! and spray on pocket neosporin! and airport approved plastic bags and a crank light with no batteries and more? Genius. Also, my mother-in-law brought me a piece of cake on Sunday. Mmmm.

Then, I had the BEST birthday Monday EVER thanks to my great friend Becky. She bought me a frapuccino, then we went to get a pedicure. We then went back to her apartment and she had baked a pink cake. We ordered pizza and watched our bonding show from college days, 'Dawson's Creek.'

The problem this morning? I was up half the night with horrible stomach cramps, apparently spun from the pizza. Angry, angry! pizza.
So I am awake at 6:30 a.m. on my birthday.

I think I've noticed that since I've been eating more organically, anytime I stray from that, I usually get a sick stomach. Not fun at all.

And to think, I'll probably be going through these changes just as much overseas. I'm not looking forward to the getting sick part of things. While I'm (sometimes) no baby when it comes to getting sick, I do like to have a nice comfortable place to cuddle up in when I feel bad. My mother was always either great or horrible when I would get sick. When I was younger, she was great about it. She would give me one sippy cup with Coke and one sippy cup with Sprite, and make me white rice and noodle soup. She would always warn against drinking the sodas though, saying they were just for "sipping". But since initially, there wasn't a lot of soda around the house, when I was sick, this was one of the best things, because mom would have to buy it. I would lay on the couch all day and watch movies. It was the best.

When I got older, mom would often tell me to 'suck it up' and go to school.

Mom's latter instructions will work better during the trip. While I know I will have to take some time to rest when I get to that point, other days when I'm feeling achy and tired and homesick, I am going to have to 'suck it up' and do what God has sent me there to do.

I know I'll be able to do it, because God will equip me to do it. Hebrews 13:21 says that Jesus will "equip you with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen."

And amen.

How it began.

Wesley and I were eating Thai food with Dustan and Darlene Stanley in November 2009when they asked us if we'd like to go on Revolutionary Life's next international trip, expected to last 6 months to a year. As I chewed around the thought, if I had allowed my mouth to think for me, I would have said "YES!" immediately. I hadn't had an opportunity to travel overseas since my India trip in '05, and I was certainly due for a new trip. My first trip to India, I had to pay several hundred dollars out of pocket, and being a college student at the time paying my way through school, there just wasn't money there to try and take another trip. I actually became bitter. When I first came back to the U.S., I would try to find all things Indian, to try and quench the homesickness I felt for a country that had only been my home for 10 days. However, when this didn't fill up and replace my thoughts of my beloved India, I instead did the exact opposite. I shyed away from anything regarding international travel. I became envious of people who talked of going to other countries. I literally put international things "out of sight, out of mind" to help ease the pain I felt still being in the United States. And it worked.

For a little while.

A few months before Dustan and Darlene extended the invitation, I had become restless. I was so very ready for a change. At the time, I thought that change meant to extend our family. The natural course of action in a woman's life at my current stage was to begin trying to have a baby. I had a stable job, we were doing ok financially, and I had baby fever worse than ever. But, it didn't work as easily as I had planned. Through much difficulty and heartache, I began to learn that perhaps God had a different path for me than what I expected. I mean, if we obey a God that doesn't shake things up pretty regularly, what kind of God is that? Did God ever promise anyone in the Bible stability in life? Certainly not. Look at the way Jesus approached the disciples. They were given what appears to be minutes to decide if they wanted to follow Christ or not. Matthew 4:20 says "At once they left their nets and followed Him." At once!

When we were offered the invitation, I struggled with it. I felt like I had to choose between having a baby or going on the trip. Someone helped me to realize that our whole life is ONE path. Choosing one decision doesn't mean we will stray from another if it is God's plan. And I knew that God wanted me to have lots of children due to my insane love for them. He had promised me children when I first began praying for them. It was at that moment that I realized I had to just let go. Once I truly did, it was one of the most freeing things I've ever experienced.

We struggled with the decision. Though we both had excitement about the opportunity, we were terrified to leave. But when we really began to examine these feelings, we realized that we, ourselves, didn't become scared at the unknown. It was other people that had beat into us the fact that we had to: be stable! Grow up! Don't leave a good job in this poor economy! There are plenty of people here that need God! You both have great jobs with great benefits! etc., etc. Always the exhausting etc.

When Wesley and I finally made the decision, this overwhelming peace washed over us. We KNEW that God wanted us to do this, no matter how crazy it was. So we were going to succeed. We were going to do this and do it right. We were going to show others that dropping everything to follow God is what God requires of us EVERY.SINGLE.DAY. No matter how much it doesn't make sense. Whether that be leaving all that is comfortable to journey into the unknown for the sake of the gospel, or simply dying to ourselves daily by taking our thoughts captive. Whatever that be, once we made that decision, we realized that this was for real. We would never be the same.

Because, you see, what it means to be a Christian is to give our all. Whatever that looks like. Take a look at your life and figure out what the ultimate sacrifice is. What would be the hardest thing to do for God? Now, figure out if you could do it or not. If you think you couldn't, pray for God to change your heart, and He will. Because it's not a matter of whether or not you could do it. You CAN do it. It's just allowing God to do it through you.

Wesley and I are no different than anyone else. Just because we have decided to go on this trip doesn't mean that we are any more spiritual than anyone else. We just happened to hear God tell us to do something...and we decided to do it.


So, we have our plane tickets booked. We will leave from LAX on September 16 at 5:40 p.m. We will travel 12 hours by plane, where we will have a 9 hour layover in Taipei, Taiwan. We will get back on the plane and fly to Bangkok, where we will catch another flight to Chiang Mai, Thailand. We will minister and travel all over. We will live out of backpacks and sleep anywhere rest can be found. SE Asia will be our home for the next 6 months.

And I am so very ready.

One Beginning Leads to Another

Some of the greatest memories I have are of when my mother would check me out of school early and we would take off and go somewhere. It could just be to the movies, or even back home, but occasionally, she'd surprise me with mini trips over the weekend.

Once, she picked me up with nothing packed at all. We drove for a while, then stopped at a thrift store. She said "pick yourself out a swimming suit. We're going to the beach!"
I laughed and played in the sun and ocean all weekend long, and my mother was my hero for this wonderful memory.

I'm not sure what it was first that caused me to get bitten by the travel bug. The easy answer would be to say that it's genetic; my mother is the same way. Always traveling, always craving new sights. Maybe it was the trip we took the summer I turned 14, a cross country road trip from Mississippi to California. Or the other trip right before college, through the Great Smoky Mountains of TN and NC. My first international travel (besides vacations here and there in Mexico) was in the summer of 2005, when I went on a missions trip to India. My time there changed me. From waking up to the sound of native tongues and clanking dishes, to the hot, stifling heat of New Delhi, to the unmistakable, mouth-watering scent of red curry hanging in the air.

From there, my heart for international missions grew into this bubbling inside of me that would not go away. The type of zeal and exuberance that would lead me to smile at every Indian I saw, and crave to be reunited with the orphan children I played with in the market. It is a feeling I can't describe, but if you could take the feeling I have when I see a plane take off, slowly making its way away from the clouds...bottle that up, and that would be this feeling. The way the song "Ventura Highway" by America makes me feel. The way I felt when I finished the books "On the Road" and "Into the Wild." The way I felt when we drove across the New Mexico desert on that trip at 14. How my dreams of hitchiking across the U.S. and taking care of children in other countries make me feel. It is all the same.

Whether here or there, it will always be the same.