01/13/10
Hi friends and family! Today has been one crazy, hectic day. As most of you know, I have a little bit of an anxiety/stress problem, so for the last couple days, I’ve gotten zero sleep and been pretty much in a constant state of panic. BUT, on good news, I did not get motion sick on the plane! Which never happens… I got these wristbands that push on your radial pressure point and they worked wonders! So that made me happy.
With all of that being said, I am writing to you from Los Angeles, CA. I’m boarding my flight for Nadi, Fiji in about 2 hours. (Sadly, I’ll only be spending about a 3 hour layover there!) On my flight to LA, I was supposed to sit in the middle seat (of which I was not excited about), but when I sat down, someone was already in my seat, so I got the aisle. Which ended up working pretty well for me. The man sitting next to me was named Jason and we talked for a long time, pretty much the whole flight, while we both played “angry birds.” If you don’t know what it is, it’s a game that you’ll get addicted to, so DON’T download it. he had heard of YWAM and had a friend who was a missionary in Nepal. It was nice and refreshing and calmed my nerves (as well as the 2 bloody mary’s I had on the plane, tehe). I also met a really sweet woman named Priscilla and she and I talked for a while. As cheesy as it may sound, I think God gave me those people to calm me down a bit and ease my anxiety. It made the plane ride seem like it took no time at all.
So, after I arrive in Nadi, Fiji, I board a plane for Brisbane, Australia. Both of those flights together equal 20 hours. Holy smokes. But I am hoping to sleep during a lot of that to pass the time. I’ve already read 2 magazines and I have to admit, my boredom is growing by the minute. My brother was going to meet me at LAX (he lives here) and he ended up having a school midterm that he couldn’t miss. Sad days. Once I arrive in Brisbane, I have an hour layover I believe before I board my final flight, a 2 hour domestic flight to Townsville. When I arrive, it will be Saturday, January 15th there and it will be 87 degrees and sunny. AHHHHH. I cannot wait!
It is definitely weird flying alone, especially internationally. I was a little worried when I got to LAX, I got about 4 different instructions on how to connect flights and where I was supposed to go. I finally found it and they also gave me a window seat for my flight to Fiji, yesssss. Let the sleeping coma begin!
I cannot tell you how grateful I feel to be doing this and also how humbled. There are so many parts of me that I feel are inadequate and not capable to do this, and even undeserving. But the Lord chose me to do this and so I’m gonna trust it and just go with it. even if it means taking me out of my comfort zone, raising my anxiety through the roof, and having to get shots and take lots of yucky meds while I’m overseas.
I have some prayer requests for all of you:
-as most of you know, there has been extreme flooding in Queensland, specifically in Brisbane and Townsville (where I’ll be). I have a feeling we’ll be doing a lot of flood relief. However, please continue to pray for the country, for the city, for the people, and that we can start rebuilding asap, and for our safety. Several lives have been lost, some are missing, and people’s lives are devastated.
-my nerves. This will be an ongoing thing throughout the duration of the trip. I’ve spoken about it several times, but I get the tendency to get very nervous and overly stressed, sometimes unnecessarily about things. I make myself sick, literally. That’s one of the things I’d like to overcome on this trip. Breaking free from that anxiety and from the worry that seems to follow me around constantly!
-the safety of my team and I and that we would create lasting, positive friendships and be able to work as a team to do what we are there to do.
-lots and lots of opportunities for outreach. We will be in Australia, Papua New Guinea, and depending on which outreach location we all choose individually: Thailand, Indonesia, Fiji, PNG, or New Zealand.
-lastly… where I should go for my outreach. I’m in between a couple of options, and I don’t have to pick for a little while, so I have some time to decide. But just pray that I learn to discern where God wants me to go in the midst of where I want to go. Hopefully they’ll be the same thing, but ya just never know.
Lastly, I am so grateful for all of your contributions to my trip. Whether it be financially, emotionally, spiritually, etc. it all makes a difference and it is a huge part of what gave me the courage to do something like this. My heart literally aches because I miss you so much. Know that I am constantly thinking about all of you. And don’t you dare worry about me for a second. I am alive and well, I am going to thrive, and I am going to be made new. I can’t wait to hug all of you.
Carly, Hayley, Allie, Lark: there aren’t words for how much I miss my girls already. It’s margaritas and ladies night out when I return. You can count on that.
Momma, Daddy, Julie, Marc, Taylor, Isabella, Madeline, Nana, Poppy and the rest of the fam: thank you. Just thank you.
I am a nervous wreck but I am so joyful that it’s RIDICULOUS. The Lord is up to something CRAZY and I cant wait to tell you all about it when I can.
Love you all and miss you something fierce,
Mal
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01/15/10 (sort of 01/14/10, but we skipped that day through the time zones!)
So I am now in Nadi, Fiji waiting to board my next flight to Brisbane. I got a nice surprise, instead of what I thought was an 8 hour flight, I now know that it is only 3 hrs! thus my time is now equaled to 27 hours of total travel. The flight through to Fiji wasn’t terrible. We were in a 747 HUGE double decker plane. I managed to get the window seat, and I got to sit next to this wonderful elderly couple named Eve and Pat LeBlanc. We talked for a long time and then I finally went to sleep. I’m not sure how long it was that I slept due to all the time changes and stuff, but I do know it couldn’t have been more than 5 hours. I’m not sure I’ve ever been so tired in my life! But I am a happy girl. Dinner and breakfast on the plane wasn’t bad at all. The seats were a little snug and I didn’t have much room at all, but I didn’t mind since I had wonderful people to talk to. I did run into a little bit of problems today with the Fiji security. They took every singe mini bottle (travel size appropriate) that I had, as well as my entire makeup bag and wouldn’t let me keep it unless I could get a zip lock bag. Of course, I was furious and really had to try hard not to bite the ladies head off. She even took my chapstick for crying out loud! It’s not even liquid! LUCKILY, this nice man who came through after me gave me his plastic bag and consolidated all his stuff into one bag. So I still have all my goodies.
After this next flight, I have a 2 hour layover and then I am in Townsville! YWAM will have someone there to pick me up and take me to the base and there I will be for the next 6 months.
Fam- sorry I haven’t called. No phone and no reception and also NO internet. I am writing all these posts on word docs. I will let you know I’ve arrived as soon as everything is accessible.
Love you all so much,
Mal
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I'm happy. here are some pictures. i feel like the word the Lord has given to me over the next few months is "thrive." that's what keeps coming up and i will do just that.
PS. that hike is BRUTAL. sam and i only made it 3/4 of the way and let the boys finish it up. goal of the trip, make it to the top. granted i did run 2 miles this morning, haha. but it's gorgeous and totally worth doing it over and over and over.
brisbane
brisbane again
my bed is the top one, and that's my wonderful bunkie, sam! she's from canada.
the closet i share with 4 other girls.
my view from my window! beautiful.
our balcony
sam and i at the top of castle hill
sweet friend.
where i live :)
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