Pre departure thoughts

Tomorrow I leave for my summer internship at Hogar Rafael Ayau in Guatemala City, Guatemala. I will be the Mission Coordinator Intern for the next 2 months. I return August 17--just in time to head back out to Huntingdon and get ready for my senior year at Juniata College. It has been quite hectic this past month. I studied abroad in Quito, Ecuador for my spring semester this year, and returned home a little more than a month ago. I have been going non-stop with preparing for this trip, seeing people I haven't seen in a while, weddings (my roommate and her college sweetheart were married yesterday [I was a bridesmaid!] and are headed to the British Virgin Islands this morning for their honeymoon. Best wishes to my dear friends!), and squeezing in some last minute quality time with the little sister. So, because I have been so busy, I haven't had much time to absorb the fact that I will be living at an orphanage in Guatemala for the next 2 months. I am definitely excited, but I don't think it has really hit me yet that I have been in the country for less than a month within the past 6 months.

I decided to set up a blog for my summer adventures in Guatemala so that anyone who would like to see what I am doing on a daily basis (and ensure that I am safe) can follow along and for donors to see the great cause that they helped out by supporting me! This is my frist blog, so I am learning as I go. I will post pictures, video clips, and of course blog. I am going to attempt to write at least every other day, but we will see how busy it gets at the Hogar. I can't thank everyone enough for all the love, support, and prayers they have offered thus far when the journey hasn't even begun yet. So, if you are interested, stay tuned! I believe there is an option on the blog or maybe my profile page to "follow me" in which case you can comment on my posts. I do not believe it requires an account and I would love to hear your thoughts/feedback on my mission work. We are headed to Liturgy now and of course if you know me, you know nothing is done and we have a million mini errands to run. So, it will be a busy afternoon (not to mention its Fathers Day). So once again, thank you for any support and I look forward to keeping in touch!
Hasta Luego -Larissa