A Call To Live With A Purpose

Walking the streets of a broken village, and yet something about it feels like home to me. The smells of the Dominican, the consistent dirty feet from the unpaved roads, the sound of the word “Buenas!” and the sight of a smile from a stranger, it all seems like home to me. As much as I long for my friends and family in Buffalo, I long for this time in my life to continue.  I will miss the weekly visits with Cinthia, Diahana, and Hedi. I will miss teaching Arlenis her numbers and losing at the game of “Memory”. I will miss Claudia’s hugs and Delianna’s surprised expression that I can speak a little bit of Spanish with her. I will miss my boys from Josiah’s House; who seem to know how to make me smile more than anyone else. I need to pause this thought. I am here. I am sitting right now in my bed in the Dominican Republic. How often do we think about the future and forget to live in the present? How many times do we say, “Well, next week….” Or next month, or even next year?  I don’t want to forget to be present. I’m beginning to realize that I spend a lot of time thinking about what’s next and I pray that when I take my last breath, I gave all that I had to that last moment on this earth. My time in the Dominican is not over, and when it does come to an end, I will be living out the same goal, just in another country with different people.  I want to love with a bold Jesus like love. I want to see people’s lives transformed. I want to see needs and help meet them.

Thank you all for your prayers and support! This past month has been full of adventures, laughter, and at times tears. I’ve jumped off waterfalls, I’ve helped translate, I’ve prayed with hurting people, I’ve even turned another year older and I’m surprised that even though I have been in the Dominican for 8 months, I can still see everything with fresh eyes and a new perspective. This is because I know my time here is not forever. How often do we go through the motions of life because we believe it has become mundane and repetitive? We stop looking, stop listening, and we stop sharing. We stop sharing our hearts, our hopes, our dreams. There is a sang that is often said at my home church in Buffalo “Do life together.” I believe that the only way we can truly “Do life” with one another is by taking into account the brevity of life. Every moment counts. Breathe in and breathe out. Be thankful and love deeply. Please don’t let this day slip away without seeing the beauty within it.