As I sit in our comfortable home in Gainesville, I look out at the lush greenery behind our house and listen to the birds in the sky. It's a typical fall Florida day. I'm so thankful for all we have here. But, we are looking forward to moving to Les Cayes, Haiti early next year. There, we will still have humid and hot summer and even fall days with thunder and rains. But, the environment will be different. Instead of quiet, we will awake to the sound of chickens, children playing and women's voices as they prepare food for their families. Most will be cooking over an open fire.
In a way, I feel we are sitting still. I'm still teaching at the University of Florida College of Nursing full time, through the summer and fall. It's a privilege to teach undergraduate and graduate nursing students at one of the top schools in the country at a Level I Trauma Center, Shands. Again, I wonder about the clinic at Citi Lumiere at the mission center in Les Cayes and the resources there for those who need help. Or, at the hospital at Bonne Fin up in the mountains.
But soon the life of teaching nursing and being a nurse, mom, wife, and daughter will change. I will be retiring in December. The early mornings to the hospital, the long evenings of grading papers and preparing lectures and tests will be over. Soon, I will be helping others to learn about Christ's love and learn to care for their health in a less than favorable environment. How different will it really be?
What will it be like to live in a country with a "foreign" language? To not have interstates and large grocery stores? It will take awhile to adjust, but God wants us there and will guide us every step of the way. "Draw near to God and He will draw near to you." (James 4:8).
