Grace

To go along with Chris' announcement of our latest life happenings, I would like to add a few ramblings of my own:

Grace. We have learned, in volume over the past month, that grace comes in many shapes and sizes and is called by different names. In a faith-filled child, in a mother of 4, in an organization full of lies and broken promises. Grace covers all. All.

I put my resignation in at the YMCA last Wednesday. Not 10 minutes after, I receieved an email from the VP of the Membership Division calling a mandatory meeting for all Youth and Family Directors (13 of us in all). The meeting was scheduled for the very next day, so I knew something was up. Considering that I had just given my last day, I didn't know if I needed to attend, and as it turns out it "didn't apply to me" so I did not attend. On my way into work Thursday morning, I called one of the other gals to hear the report of the meeting:

Me: Hey C, I was calling to see what the meeting this morning was all about.
C: Oh, you missed a good one.
Me: Really, what happened?
C: We all just got fired.
Me: What?! You are kidding me!
C: Nope, they have eliminated our position across the association.

After several seconds of silence and complete disbelief I tried to console my broken spirited friends and immediately began to thank God for his immaculate timing and changes that he has allowed in our life. I mean, not even 24 hours before I would have lost my job, I put in my resignation. God is good.

This past weekend Chris and I learned a precious lesson on forgiveness. Without going into detail, a picture of grace freely given was painted right in front of our faces. We learned the love a man should have for his wife (and a woman for her husband) that illuminates the love that Christ has for his church. Marriages may struggle and spouses may stray, but grace covers all. All.

So God has been BIG in our faces in many ways. It's crazy to think we are getting ready to close this Kansas City chapter and move on to a life we have dreamed about for a while now. I am so thankful for this chapter and the lessons I have learned. I can't say that I will miss a lot about the midwest, but what I will miss, I will miss a lot. This has been a great place for us to get our feet on the ground and learn to be the Fords together... we are eagerly awaiting what is just over the mountain for us.

We will share much more as we begin to explore our new adventure...

#21

DONE #21 See Jack Johnson Live.

Check.

In Kansas, nonetheless.

#18-20

#18 Travel to the Philippines. My dad's 1st memories come from the Philippines when he lived there with his family (Grandpa Ford was a doctor in the Navy). To visit the place he has told me some many stories about would be truly surreal.

#19 Dreadlocks. We love dreadlocks (clean ones) and what they stand for (which is not showering I guess?). Long white person dreadlocks...say yes.

#20 Convince Beth to VOTE. For anyone.

Accomplished Items

Well, I haven't really decided how to check off completed Items but Beth & I are 3 weeks removed from accomplishing some of our goals!

We have been offered and accepted positions (well invited to training) to work with a company called Second Nature Wilderness Programs (http://www.snwp.com/). We will both work as Field Instructors, which means we will hike and live with troubled adolescents in the wilderness.

The organization is located in Clayton, GA and we will be working in the mountains of Northern Georgia, about 10 minutes from NC.

We will work 8 days on, 6 days off shifts with the organization so we will live in North Carolina most likely...probably in Sylva, Waynesville, or Asheville. We are super excited to move closer to family/ work together in the woods!

There will be more about this and our changes to come!

So:
#1 Live In The Mountains DONE
#17 Move Back To The Southeast DONE