Well, actually, I got my visa today in the mail from Detroit, SOOOOOOooooo, I’m officially now going to Japan, leaving April 1st…not an April Fool’s joke.  My visa looks really cool…they actually have my photo on it.  My passport is so neat…what with China, now Japan, and possibly Egypt…if everything goes accordingly.  That would be wunderbar!  So, there you have it…in 5 days, I will be on an airplane, heading to Chicago, to Seoul, and then to Fukuoka to be picked up and transported to Shimonoseki for my year of service.  Then, who knows!

Last night, was my last night of Wednesday night Connect Bible Study.  It was hard…so say goodbye to my regular chair for a whole year.  It was sad.  What else was sad…saying goodbye to Josh Holbrook, possibly for a whole year.  I almost cried afterwards.  I’m doing pretty good at not crying, but having lunch with Candi today, and her kids, I started to tear up while we were talking.  I’m going to be a basket case the next week.  Thankfully, I’ll have plenty of time to cry on the airplane and freak out the other passengers.  🙂  But then, I’ll have to get to work.  I know myself pretty well, and I’m confident that I’ll feel better once I’m on the airplane and in transit. 

Other than that, things are wonderful!  I have all my funding (as long as people are faithful with their commitments)…which is totally a God-thing.  I could not have thought it possible to raise $10,000 in a month…but God did it…if only as a sign to me that I’m supposed to go on this trip.  I was pretty certain that I would have to leave with only a 3rd of my money in my pocket.  But God is amazing and has provided everything!  He also paved the way for a speedy processing of my visa paperwork….it happened in record time, seriously!  I know that I would tell you all that I’m just waiting on my visa and it seemed like it was taking a long time, but in the way things are done, it went as fast as it could go.  Amazing!

Well, I need to get some things done, but I wanted to share that I am now waiting for the next part of my journey…the journey itself!  Also, I’d appreciate your prayers as I try to wisely pack for a whole year…it’s a pretty daunting task.  Good news is that I get to take my violin with me!!  Ok, everyone have a great weekend!