Mexico Day 8

The grand finale!!!!!

Okay I know this was the traveling home day and everyone figures that's just for wishing you were still in Mexico and being upset and sleeping on the plane and going home.
WROOOONG :)

We woke up Saturday morning around 3:30 San Luis time and 6:30 Pennsylvania time.

We packed up the last of our stuff and brought it outside to the trailer.

I sat by Carmen (feliz cumpleaños hoy!!!) on a bench and dreaded what was coming way too soon.
I listened to the rooster crow for the last time. I love that rooster :)

When it was time to go I swear I hugged her three billion times.
Then we left.

When we were driving to the border, I looked at Christina and saw a tear fall down her cheek.
We held hands and silently cried all the way to the border.
And that theory that when you're insanely tired you don't feel emotion.. we proved that wrong.
I've never been so sad.

The few minutes between the orphanage and the border are the most painful.

Our van had to go through alternate security, because we had the trailer.
It usually takes hours.
We literally got out in less than 10 minutes.
God is so good.

So, we were back in America. San Luis, AZ, and almost everything was in Spanish, but nobody minded.

We went to McDonalds for breakfast.
Okay.. there is something you should know.
I don't eat fast food. As in... ever.
If we go there I get yogurt or a wrap and that's all I can handle.
I have an insanely weak stomach and fast food makes me sick.
But for whatever reason, a stroke of bravery came upon me and I had a burrito.
.....We'll talk about that later.

I called my sister who was actually on a mission trip in Michigan with some other wonderful people from our church.
"The people from Michigan say to tell the people from Mexico we love you!"
"The people from Mexico say to tell the people from Michigan we love you too and we prayed for you!"
"Awwww we prayed for you too!!"
"Can I talk to Lainey?"
"Can I talk to Mikey G?"
"Can I talk to Ben?"
Etc.
I love my church.

We left, I called my mom, and we got on the road.
I fell asleep after a while, and woke up with a little bit of a stomach ache.
Then fell back to sleep.
Then woke up again, to a bunch of girls holding up a blanket, peeing in the desert.
I am completely serious.

I wondered if I should get out and puke but I didn't. (Sorry I'll provide less details.)

Then I fell asleep again.
I woke up a third time. We were at a rest stop.

I felt like I was going to die.

I have never felt so sick in my entire life, and I was nowhere near home.

Mexican water + fast food + driving for hours + cramps + being super sad...
just really does not work for me.

Miss Wendy (best trip leader/youth leader/person that has ever existed) gave me some drammamine.
Mr. Mike (another one of the best people in the world) came and prayed for me and I cried.
We got back in the vans and still had hours to drive and I was scared half to death.
I've never been sick away from home, ever, and I'm 15.
I wanted my bed and my parents
but I was on the other side of the country in a van with 9 other people.
Mr. Dan (also one of the best people in the world) told me to try and just look out the front window and let him know if he needs to stop.
Everyone was so nice to me and I'm so grateful.

Again, I love my church.

I fell back to sleep and this time I was drugged (Drammamine) :) So I slept better and longer.
I woke up and we were at In N Out. Which is a fast food restaraunt that you can probably guess I didn't eat at.
My stomach ache was gone and I felt fine, just zero appetite.
Mr. Mike's prayer worked. And Christina's. And everyone else who prayed for me.
I really love my church.

In N Out is close to the Phoenix airport.
I missed San Luis with all my heart (and I still do) but I really really wanted to be home.

This past summer, at youth camp, during one of the services, the speaker gave everyone keys.
They represented something and if anyone who went wants to help me out you can comment what it was all about because I didn't go, but I know they are really special to the people who went.
Christina wore hers around her neck.
When we were in the bathroom at the airport, the chain broke, her key fell off, and it got flushed in the toilet.
We laughed but I know she was bummed.

Keely, Benita, and I went on a search for Quiznos.
I am not exaggerating, every single year I've ever gone to Mexico I try to find Quiznos in the airport and it is like impossible.
There's only one in the whole airport and there are so many sections and gates and it's like.. a quest or something to find it.
We FINALLY found it and I got soup crackers and Sprite. Sick people food :)
That settled my stomach and I felt all the way better.

But GET. THIS.
When we were boarding the plane, somehow my sprite fell out of my arm, between the platform and the plane, and onto the ground.
Are you serious!?!?
The flight attendant laughed at me.
That would happen to me. :)

I sat on the plane with Christina and Katarina. Thank you Jesus. I really needed to not sit with strangers.
We had this brilliant idea that wouldn't it be so cool to pray at take off.
Start praying, and be lifted into the sky as you're praying.
SO COOL.
So we did that!
It was basically awesome.

OKAY EVERYONE HERE COMES GOD!!

As soon as we took off, we noticed that the lady in the row across from us was crying.
Something about her made me so incredibly sad.
I wondered what her story was.
So Christina and I decided to get out our Bibles and right down a bunch of verses about God's love.
So we did.
We folded it up, wrote "To the beautiful lady across from us on the plane", and prayed over it.
We put it on her tray when she was asleep. (She cried herself to sleep... so sad)
She woke up later and was reading it.
We were trying not to make it obvious and stare at her hahaha.
Katarina was giving us the play-by-play.. "She's reading it!" "She stopped crying!" "She's smiling!" "She's laughing!"
We were so excited.
A little later she came over and gave me a hug.
She said "You girls are so beautiful. I just wanted to give you this. Thank you so much."

AND SHE HANDED US A KEY ON A CHAIN.

What!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!
Christina JUST lost hers hours before!!
This lady had no idea!!

GOD IS SO AWESOME!!!!!!!

We ran to tell Miss Wendy what happened.
Then we went to tell the lady just how crazy it was, what just happened.
She told us her name was Lisa.
I'm not sure if she knew Jesus because she said "Yeah, life is crazy!"
But Christina was just awesome!

She was like "I just love how God knew you were upset and I was upset about the key and how He just worked this all out!"
She had such boldness and such a way of pointing everything to God.
I was floored.

Wow I love my GOD.

When we got off the plane, Lisa hugged me and said "I just want to thank you again. You girls are beautiful. You really brightened my night."

As it turns out, when we were praying during take-off, Christina had asked that we would be able to minister to someone on the plane.
I had no idea.

God. Is. So. Good.
All the glory to Him!!

Seriously I think that was my favorite part of the entire trip,
and it wasn't even in Mexico.

We landed, got off the plane, got out luggage, and drove back to the church.
It was hard to say goodbye to our team! I love waking up every morning and running outside to love on orphans with my best friends.

When I got home, I talked to my mom for a while and then went to bed. It was late.

When you go on a mission trip,
you expect to come back with an appreciation for what you have.
But I was ashamed.
Ashamed that, just the day before, I was talking to a woman who literally lived in a pile of garbage,
and I have so many things I can't even count them all.
Ashamed that I met a little girl in the village who loved to read, and I have an entire bookshelf of books I don't read.
Ashamed that an old man, all skin and bones, asked me for a dollar for some food. He could barely walk. He, a man, had to lay down every ounce of his pride to ask me for one dollar.
Yet I have instant access to food at all times whenever I want.
Ashamed that I saw a woman with tears in her eyes, sitting on the sidewalk with a ripped styrofoam cup that contained a couple pennies. Ashamed that SHE took MY hand and told ME God bless.

Just utterly ashamed for having so much.

I sat in the middle of the floor in my room and cried until 2 in the morning, just staring at all my stuff.

That week in Mexico taught me something.

I went to San Luis to give everything.
To give my stuff,
to give my love,
to give my God.
And He took that and proved Ephesians 3:20 to me over and over.
That same God is here, wanting to do amazing things here too.
And He will; He proved it on the plane.

For the rest of my life, my goal is to give everything.
My stuff, my love, my God.

Para siempre.