Chapter 4: Blue Crush

This week involved another one of our out trips. We went to Tofino for a three day surf trip. It was so awesome! I'll be completely honest, I was not exciting for surfing and nervous, but the morning before we went surfing I was able to watch a little of the Coldwater Classic which is a surf competition. It actually made me excited to surf, and as it came closer and closer to go actually surfing I became more excited and less nervous. To be honest, I love surfing! I didn't stand up- I got onto my knees- but I never really tried to hard to get onto my feet. It was so much fun though, and I even enjoyed being pummeled by the waves. The first day was a little rough, and I swallowed so much saltwater, not a nice feeling. Even better, on the second day I felt like I really improved and I didn't swallow salt water once! I am really glad I was able to do it, and so glad I pushed myself to go the second day.
Anyways, at Tofino we were camped right beside the beach; so beautiful. Chasing the waves along the beach made me feel like I was fulfilling a childhood dream. One of the nights, Jim gave us time to either chat with people or have some time to ourselves. I chose some time alone. I walked along the beach and looked up into the sky. It was great time to just talk with God and slow down. I am finding it so hard it seems to have time to slow down and have solitude time.
So after our trip we came back, and lo and behold, I was serving at the Women's retreat this weekend. So I worked at the challenge course for an afternoon. I was slightly nervous having to talk to the women and such, since I am shy, but it was actually pretty easy. I didn't have any deep conversations or anything but it was good to talk a little to the women here. Oh! I also got to try out the skyscraper... 3 times! They needed an extra person to go with them so they could do the ride, so I was able to try it out. I'll admit, it is in some ways more nerve-racking than a rollercoaster.
So I again I did the Kidstown ministry through New Life. The first week was good but I found it hard to get involved. This week I found was easier and this week there was also a puppet show. I am starting to learn some of the girls' names and getting to know them, which is so exciting! I really hope that I can continually keep going to Kidstown and being able to get a glimpse into these childrens' lives.
Oh! Lastly, I don't know if I mentioned this before but I was really worried about my grandpa who was diagnosed with cancer just a few weeks ago and was going into surgery. My grandpa had a little rough patch after the surgery but he is doing so great, which I am so thankful for.
That is it!
Have a great week.
P.S. I got a gnarly rash/scar thing on my neck because of my wetsuit during surfing, it looks like someone tried strangling me!