Friday, May 30, 2014

FINALLY here... Hola from Cochabamba!

We have finally made it!! We have arrived at our new home for the summer, and I couldn't be happier!! It was definitely a very long journey and after a day and a half of traveling, it feels so good to unpack the bags and say I am staying a while.  We flew overnight last night from Miami to La Paz.  We had an hour to sit on the plane in La Paz at like 4 AM while others deplaned and others got on.  At that point, we were all a little overly tired, in a state of wishing we could have just slept longer so we could get an actual night's rest.  I thankfully slept the entire overnight trip once they shut the cabin lights off and don't remember anything of that flight!  Then we flew about an hour from La Paz to Santa Cruz.

We got into Santa Cruz at about 7 AM and went through immigration.  Immigration couldn't have gone smoother.  It really was so simple and we were so thankful for that.  We had from that time until our flight left at 2 PM in the Santa Cruz airport then.  I wasn't expecting that long delay, but we realized it once we looked at our flight time.  That was quite the long layover, but we made it!  Had a little Cinnabon in the airport (nothing like comfort food ;) ).  Then we luckily found this really nice skydeck on the roof of the airport.  We sat up there and were able to watch the planes come and go for a couple hours.  It felt SOO good to finally breathe some fresh air after being stuck in an airport and on planes for over 24 hours.  It was windy, sunny, and warm with an occasional mist but so nice!  That was our first glimpse of the beautiful creation here in Bolivia!  I laid down for a couple hours on one of the benches up there and got some sleep (and a very nice farmer's tan.... oh well, I'll take any sun at this point). It felt SO nice!

Then we finally got on our plane to Cochabamba!  The flight was only like 45 minutes after that super long layover so that was nice.  We got off the plane, got our luggage, and immediately met Joana who was there to pick us up!  She is so nice and immediately put us at ease.  We didn't really even get a chance to say good-bye to Arianne and Emily, Arianne's teammate we met up with in Miami, as they went off with whoever picked them up as well.  We took a taxi back to the Quiroga's house, which is where we are staying.  I will hopefully share more about them as I get to know them more.  

Me and Leah have our own room at the Quiroga's.  Their place is beautiful with lots of space!  The doors all lead to outside and there is four levels to the house.  The top level is on the roof with an AMAZING view of the mountains and Cochabamba.  I can't wait to spend more time up there during the day and at night.  We spent a lot of time this afternoon in the kitchen just talking with members of the family we are staying with and getting completely immersed in Spanish from the get-go!  I can officially say I think my Spanish brain is getting warmed back up. :)  We talked a lot about our families and got to know each other.  They have a 7-month old grandson, so he is comparable in age to Tate. (And they think the name "Tate" is just the funniest/cutest thing!)  They love hearing about my nephews and I don't mind sharing. ;)  It's amazing how much you can have in common with people from halfway across the world.  It helps me feel very at home here.

So far, so good!  I really have been doing well.  The only moment any "sadness" or "nervousness" hit me was when we took off from Miami, and it was like well here we go!  Next stop=South America!  But other than that, I think everything is going remarkably well.  Praise God for the very smooth travel we had!  Pray that we get some rest tonight as we haven't had much but glorified naps the past couple of days.  And pray we continue to get settled here in our new home!  THANK YOU for all of your prayers thus far!!  I will hopefully be able to update often with what's going on here and what it's like!

Adios y vaya con Dios,
Breanna

Thursday, May 22, 2014

1 week...7 days...168 hours...

I leave on my Summer of Service to Cochabamba, Bolivia, in one week.  ONE week.  I really can't believe it.  I really don't know how I feel about that!  Some days I feel really scared, anxious, nervous, unsure... But most of the time these days I've been feeling an overwhelming feeling of being blessed.  I really am excited to go, and I don't know if it will really feel like it's happening until I'm on an airplane and leaving my family at the Omaha airport next Thursday morning.

When people ask why I signed up for an SOS, it's really hard for me to give an answer to them.  I don't really know!  I just kept feeling called to fill out the application, keep going with the process, and now I guess I am going to Bolivia!  There was a little bit more to it. ;)  But for the most part, I really just felt a tug on my heart always that this is what God wants me to do and the direction I am supposed to be going this summer.  

A song that was in my head a lot during my time of deciding what to do and whether this was something I was supposed to do was "Oceans" by Hillsong UNITED.  A lot of you probably know this song.  One line really stuck with me and gave me peace about my decision.  It goes like this...
"Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders. Let me walk upon the waters, wherever You would call me.  Take me deeper than my feet could ever wander.  And my faith will be made stronger in the presence of my Savior."
The hardest part about me going is clearly having to leave home.  But that song reminded me that I need to have the trust in Him to go wherever He needs me and wants me to go.  That's why I decided to call my blog "Trust Without Borders".  I will be crossing borders, and I will be far from home.  But I will be in good hands, because I will be in God's hands.. the ENTIRE time.  I love that.  I know this will be a transformational opportunity for me.  I can't wait to see what God has in store since I'm following His lead. 

Anyways, I leave next week Thursday morning!  I will be flying with two SOS teammates, Arianne and Leah, from Omaha to Cochabamba.  We will be leaving the Omaha airport shortly after 10 AM.  I will be with Leah the entire time working at El Centro de Amistad y Apoyo.  We will be tutoring kids, doing small construction projects, and just forming relationships with all the kiddos and people there.  I can't wait to see the ways in which God will use us. 

Thank you so much to everyone who has supported me thus far!  I was brought to tears many times seeing the many gifts people have given to get me to this place and fully fund my trip. Now, I am asking for your prayer!  Which is just as important, if not more important!  PRAY...

  • alongside me as I make the final preparations to go;
  • that any anxiety and nervousness would go away and in its place would be more excitement and peace;
  • that Leah and I and the 2 other interns we will be working with would really grow close, have unity, and work well together;
  • for my heart, that I would be ready to soak in anything God is trying to teach me while I'm gone.
  • that I am not homesick... as this is probably my biggest fear right now;
  • for my entire well-being... physically, mentally, spiritually.  

I will hopefully be writing a blog post every week while I am there, so check back in often! :) And meanwhile, be PRAYING!  I am so thankful for each and every person in my life and the countless ways they have blessed me and gotten me to this point.  So, THANK YOU again.  

Adios y vaya con Dios, 
Breanna 
{You can see Cochabamba is right in the center of Bolivia, which is where I will be!}