Streams of Consciousness & Thoughts~~~

Going to Guatemala, which in some ways feels like going full circle since my first mission trip was to Honduras (20 years ago). Yep I really am starting to get old, the big 4-0 isn't even that far away anymore.

Apparently it takes me 3-4 years to recover from being burned out overseas and willing to try again. Granted I'm just going on a 1 week trip that my church is doing and not moving back overseas and I have mixed feelings about it, but this should make for an emotionally interesting year. In the meantime, I have Spanish to brush up on over the next 7 months and passport to renew and paperwork to fill out. (If you had spent the past 4 years in my head, you'd understand why this is kind of a big deal).

Has it been that long? I feel like it was only a year or so ago you were coming back to the USA.

Is there such a thing as too much love...or loving someone too much?

Apparently it takes me 3-4 years to recover from being burned out overseas and willing to try again. Granted I'm just going on a 1 week trip that my church is doing and not moving back overseas and I have mixed feelings about it, but this should make for an emotionally interesting year. In the meantime, I have Spanish to brush up on over the next 7 months and passport to renew and paperwork to fill out. (If you had spent the past 4 years in my head, you'd understand why this is kind of a big deal).

You’ve been living abroad?

What is your experience with living abroad? How did they react when they heard you were American?

What about the language, and not to mention the culture?

I’ve been living abroad for many years myself, that’s why I’m asking😀.

I lived abroad from 2012-2015 in Vietnam (and did various other short term thing before that). Spent the first year learning the language and learned it well enough to communicate the essentials and attempt to explain more complicated things (like minimum wage laws) about like you'd explain them to a child because that was the extent of my vocabulary. And then there were a few instances where I understood every word said to me but still had no idea what the person talking to me was actually trying to communicate.

As far as being American, walking around with white skin means everyone wants to employ you as an English teacher. Culture wise it was a huge mismatch that not even understanding the differences could completely overcome the stress, frustration, and emotional reaction to some of it.

To be fair they were also people who were amazingly innovative, resilient, and often extremely kind to me. And since so few foreigners learn the language beyond phrasebook level, it was always entertaining for them to have me talk in broken vietnamese.

Anyway, what country have you been living in and how has it been living abroad?

Possibly. And there certainly is such a thing as love getting twisted around into an unhealthy obsession, dependency, or desire to have someone dependent on you. In such situations perhaps the better question to ask is if the quality of that love is pure and godly rather than if the quantity is excessive.

Possibly. And there certainly is such a thing as love getting twisted around into an unhealthy obsession, dependency, or desire to have someone dependent on you. In such situations perhaps the better question to ask is if the quality of that love is pure and godly rather than if the quantity is excessive.

'Tis a sad, sad day within the CC community.

I don't know if I missed a goodbye post or thread, but the user "MissCris" now says guest, and she will be sorely missed.

I knew I hadn't seen her around in a while, but I didn't know she left the site. She was, hands down, one of the best writers that CC has ever had.

God's blessings to you, Cristen, and we hope to see you back with us soon.

'Tis a sad, sad day within the CC community.

I don't know if I missed a goodbye post or thread, but the user "MissCris" now says guest, and she will be sorely missed.

I knew I hadn't seen her around in a while, but I didn't know she left the site. She was, hands down, one of the best writers that CC has ever had.

God's blessings to you, Cristen, and we hope to see you back with us soon.

I didn’t really know her, but I noticed her writing skills. Some folks somehow manage to put down in writing excerpts from their everyday life in a way that makes you want to keep on reading their posts. I could relate to some of her posts as well, because, to my recollection, she was a wife and a mother.

I don’t know why she left, but I have left this site on several occasions, the last time a couple of years back, due to the fact that some men, way older than myself, felt free to say whatever to me.

I hope that didn’t happen to her.

The irreversible nature is the most daunting aspect of death. Once you go to the other side there is no way to return. Maybe it is a better place, maybe it is not, but whatever it is you are stuck with it once you get there... and we are all being pushed inexorably toward it.

Death wouldn't be nearly so intimidating if you could pop in and out at will.