Twenty minutes ago I was in the process of applying for a replacement passport. The process of leaving the country for an extended period of time is tricky. You have to apply for a passport through the post office which will take at least a month to arrive. Once you have a passport, then you can make an appointment in DC to get your visa. Visas take at least seven months to arrive. In total the whole process takes a minimum of eleven weeks. I leave the country in EIGHT WEEKS! Knowing that these time frames don't match up, I had to seriously considered what next semester would look like if I wasn't able to go to Spain. Immediately, I panicked at the thought of taking Spanish classes here at Longwood again without the perks of immersion. I considered whether I prayed about it enough. Is this God's will or not? I thought this was the answer to prayers that I've been waiting all semester for, I would need more than a counsellor to get through another semester at Longwood after the one I just had! When else would I go to Spain if not this semester? It doesn't exactly fit in anywhere.. All of this and more was racing through my mind all day and for the past week or two. In this panic I realized just how badly I want to go to Spain. To me, Spanish has always been more than a language. For the past six years I've studied words and the meaning of these words that Spanish speakers have been using for centuries. I want to hear these words come from native Spaniards. I want to hear Spanish children use them effortlessly. I want to experience the language alive and tangible.
Well then, I guess it's a good thing I found my passport today and the Spain is that much closer! I just had to check one last place before my appointment in the post office at 12:00 and there it was, my beautiful passport complete with stamps to and from Peru and my awkward bob hair cut picture from the end of tenth grade. Now on to DC for that visa!
Half way in between now and Spain, the 17th of December, 21 brave students are coming with me to New York. This missions trip is the last thing I will be putting together as a Baptist Collegiate Ministries council member. Serving on council as the missions coordinator has definitely been a growing experience. Right now, my heart is in New York waiting for me and soon it will be in Spain!
