I literally just finished teaching my very last class - like 5 minutes ago. I can hardly believe it. I have been teaching these wonderfully energetic kids for 9 months, and I will soon have to say goodbye. What a boggling concept. It's amazing how a place so far away can become one's home. Everything about this country that once seemed so oddly foreign has somehow become the norm.



It is not rainy season, but today we had rain for the first time in a long time. Thailand, mind you, is a country that experiences very few seasons. If I had to label them, it would be hot, rainy and hot, hotter, and hottest. So the spontaneous bout of drizzle that appeared this afternoon got me to thinking about seasons. I will soon return to a place that is dictated by four distinct seasons. And, let me tell you, I am SO ready for that. I have forgotten what it is like to not sweat for an entire day - day in and day out ;) But, although I have been living in a part of the world with quite a monotonous weather pattern, my spirit has been experiencing all sorts of climactic changes and transitions in the past 9 months.



I'm reminded of a song by Nichole Nordeman called Every Season, and it seems to be my theme song for today. It talks about the seasons of life and God's sovereign hand in each one. Here's how it goes:



Every evening sky, an invitation To trace the patterned stars

And early in July, a celebration For freedom that is ours

And I notice You In children’s games

In those who watch them from the shade

Every drop of sun is full of fun and wonder

You are summer


And even when the trees have just surrendered

To the harvest time

Forfeiting their leaves in late September

And sending us inside

Still I notice You when change begins

And I am braced for colder winds

I will offer thanks for what has been and was to come

You are autumn


And everything in time and under heaven

Finally falls asleep

Wrapped in blankets white, all creation

Shivers underneath

And still I notice you when branches crack

And in my breath on frosted glass

Even now in death, You open doors for life to enter

You are winter


And everything that’s new has bravely surfaced

Teaching us to breathe

What was frozen through is newly purposed

Turning all things green

So it is with You and how You make me new

With every season’s change

And so it will be As You are re-creating me

Summer, autumn, winter, spring

I'm trying to prep myself for the season of change ahead. I have no idea what it will be like to re-integrate myself into a western culture. I am so excited, though, to see what lies ahead and to have the chance to think back on this marked experience. I can't wait to breathe fresh, mountain air, to see the incomparable NM sunsets, to taste green chili, and to be with my family again.