So, short post. :)
Flights went well, although definitely the most turbulent flights I've ever been on. Got some (uncomfortable) sleep, and was thoroughly delighted to see Brad coming up to hug me as I stepped through the barrier after getting my luggage in Frankfurt. We drove back to the Festaburg where Debbie was waiting with open arms and a ready dinner. Gordon is here, living in the basement apartment, as well as some missionaries from the Czech, and we ate and played cards and headed off to bed. I actually managed to sleep, and I am now unpacked and making myself of what use I can be around here.
Changes since last time - they have a dog (!!!) named Sam, there's more furniture in my room, and the basement is being redone, and looks really good! Other than that, it's just like when I left, and that's amazing. :) I am SO glad to be here!!
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Monday, May 18, 2009
Leaving!!
So, here I sit at Sky Harbor, waiting for my flight. I've only got about an hour, and sometime tomorrow morning (Phx time) or evening (German time) I will get off the plane, see Brad and Debbie, and go 'home' to the Festaburg. WOO!!! 
[[proof that I'm at the airport...my plane will be there ^ soon!!]]
I've been waiting so long to finally go back, it's almost hard to believe it's finally here! In about 20 hours, I will be in Germany. My friends are coming home, some within the week. I think I've written about all I can about how excited I am and how ready I am to be there, but I just thought I'd write a short little note as I wait for the plane to arrive to whisk me off to Dallas, then to London, then to Frankfurt, and then the drive to quiet, tiny Frauenberg just in time to go to sleep. Good timing to help get over jet-lag!
[[proof that I'm at the airport...my plane will be there ^ soon!!]]I've been waiting so long to finally go back, it's almost hard to believe it's finally here! In about 20 hours, I will be in Germany. My friends are coming home, some within the week. I think I've written about all I can about how excited I am and how ready I am to be there, but I just thought I'd write a short little note as I wait for the plane to arrive to whisk me off to Dallas, then to London, then to Frankfurt, and then the drive to quiet, tiny Frauenberg just in time to go to sleep. Good timing to help get over jet-lag!
Saturday, May 16, 2009
2 Days
Only two days left in the United States of America. The last week has flown by, and yet whenever I think of how far I still am from the Festaburg, every minute seems to be dragging. Even though I know there is still a lot to be done - like packing, for instance - I feel so ready to just BE there already. Soldiers are coming home, spring is spreading over Germany, friends are writing and making plans, things are coming together, and I am still more than 6000 miles away.
I got an e-mail from a friend yesterday that made me want to be there even more. As the soldiers come home, Baumholder puts on a (very) small ceremony, at which family are present and one wife is selected to receive the 'first kiss,' and then the soldiers are finally allowed to hug their wives and children after more than a year apart. My friend e-mailed me with their hopeful arrival, and said, "I don't expect anybody to be able to make it to our little return reception in the gym, but it would be really cool to have somebody to hug when we get back to Baumholder, if the circumstances present themselves." So many of these guys and girls don't have anyone on post to come back to - what family they may have is back in the States. This is where ministry happens: just being there to welcome them home, to thank them, to support and love and pray for and laugh with and hug them. This is why I am so excited to get there, before I miss anyone else coming back.
I got an e-mail from a friend yesterday that made me want to be there even more. As the soldiers come home, Baumholder puts on a (very) small ceremony, at which family are present and one wife is selected to receive the 'first kiss,' and then the soldiers are finally allowed to hug their wives and children after more than a year apart. My friend e-mailed me with their hopeful arrival, and said, "I don't expect anybody to be able to make it to our little return reception in the gym, but it would be really cool to have somebody to hug when we get back to Baumholder, if the circumstances present themselves." So many of these guys and girls don't have anyone on post to come back to - what family they may have is back in the States. This is where ministry happens: just being there to welcome them home, to thank them, to support and love and pray for and laugh with and hug them. This is why I am so excited to get there, before I miss anyone else coming back.
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
2 Weeks
So...two weeks from today I fly out to Germany! I've only got a couple finals left to finish, and moving out of the dorm, but part of me really wishes I was back there already. Brad and Debbie had a wrapping-party for some gifts for the single soldiers (www.festaburg.com), and I really wish I was already there to start handing them out!! I know that most of my friends won't be back in Germany till after me, but some will beat me there. Because of the nature of the Army, people are going to be cycling in and out of Baumoholder on leave and PCSing and all kinds of things, and I really don't want to miss the chance to see anyone I know and to give them a hug and welcome them back. I'm ready to go now!!
Monday, April 27, 2009
Heading Out Soon!
So, after 9 months, the countdown begins again - 22 days until I head to Germany!! I've been asked to go back and intern for Brad and Debbie once again this summer, and I'm heading out May 18th. This is a shorter trip, 'only' three months this time. I'll be getting back with just enough time to catch up to the time change before starting my second year at Southwestern in August.
This summer marks the end of the '15' month deployment and the return of Baumholder’s troops from Iraq! This means that the Festaburg will be full of returning friends and heroes, and an increase in ministry opportunities. My duties will again include childcare, cooking, cleaning, teaching German, and helping the couple who take over from the Ellgens for the month of June to keep the House open and running smoothly in their absence. I am so excited to go back and see what God has in store for this summer, and to see my friends again!!!!! (!!!) [just a little excitement here!!]
I'm still about $6500 short on the support I need to raise. I do have enough to get over there, which is the main importance, though. Whether or not you can contribute financially, your prayer support is essential, both for the fund raising and preparation and for the soldiers and ministry in Germany. Please keep the deployed soldiers and the families they have left behind in your prayers, especially now as their return is so close!
If you do wish to contribute, please make checks payable to Cadence International. Specify on a separate note that you include with the check that the gift is for Laura Cardy, account #10728. These donations are tax-deductible; Cadence will mail you a receipt. Cadence International's mailing address is: PO Box 1268 • Englewood, CO 80150
I really appreciate everyone's prayers! The blog will be updated like before, hopefully every couple days, and I'm going to work on having a weekly e-mail update as well. If you'd like to be added to the list, just send me your address at laurakcardy@aol.com and I will be sure you get the newsletters! Thanks so much everyone.
God Bless!
~Laura
This summer marks the end of the '15' month deployment and the return of Baumholder’s troops from Iraq! This means that the Festaburg will be full of returning friends and heroes, and an increase in ministry opportunities. My duties will again include childcare, cooking, cleaning, teaching German, and helping the couple who take over from the Ellgens for the month of June to keep the House open and running smoothly in their absence. I am so excited to go back and see what God has in store for this summer, and to see my friends again!!!!! (!!!) [just a little excitement here!!]
I'm still about $6500 short on the support I need to raise. I do have enough to get over there, which is the main importance, though. Whether or not you can contribute financially, your prayer support is essential, both for the fund raising and preparation and for the soldiers and ministry in Germany. Please keep the deployed soldiers and the families they have left behind in your prayers, especially now as their return is so close!
If you do wish to contribute, please make checks payable to Cadence International. Specify on a separate note that you include with the check that the gift is for Laura Cardy, account #10728. These donations are tax-deductible; Cadence will mail you a receipt. Cadence International's mailing address is: PO Box 1268 • Englewood, CO 80150
I really appreciate everyone's prayers! The blog will be updated like before, hopefully every couple days, and I'm going to work on having a weekly e-mail update as well. If you'd like to be added to the list, just send me your address at laurakcardy@aol.com and I will be sure you get the newsletters! Thanks so much everyone.
God Bless!
~Laura
Thursday, August 14, 2008
The Last Day (again)
Well, I'm here - back in hot, flat, brown, cactus-y Phoenix. :) I love it. I do miss the coolness of Germany, the rolling hills, the forests, the green-ness....but I'm glad to be home. And I'm BUSY already!! Dinner with friends tonight, orientation tomorrow, job interview and open house saturday, hopefully pre-church starbucks with a friend sunday, and school starts monday! WOO.
It's amazing how much things don't change...and how they do. Even though I was gone a whole lot less time this time, I feel like I was gone longer, now that I'm back. Don't know why. It's a lot weirder to drive my car, now that I'm so used to driving a stick - my foot won't accept the fact that there's no clutch! And Opie, the little starving kitty who was nothing but fur and bones when I left is now FAT. And heavy!!! Fiyero still loves me, though. :)
So, my last days in Germany went well. It was sad to say all my goodbyes at VBS. Lots of hugs, a couple tears. One of my little pre-schoolers cried that she had to leave me. :) Went home to pack (ugh) and managed to get both my bags under 50 lbs. (Don't ask about my backpack, though...it may have outweighed them!!) I thoroughly enjoyed my lunch that day - I had a BLT with the first of the ripe tomatoes from Mac's garden. It was delicious, and I'm really glad I got them because here, tomato season is already over.
After packing was finished, Brad and Debbie and I enjoyed a delicious dinner and watched a movie together. I really am going to miss them. They're so different from any other people I've ever met. They challenge you - you can't be around them and not think. They've helped me to grow in so many ways, and they are just so wonderful! I love them. Wednesday morning we left at 6:15 for Frankfurt, said goodbye, and I was on my way home. The long flight was fine - I was next to a guy from Spangdahlem, and beind a friend of Mac's from 1-35 stationed in Baumholder (I didn't learn that until we were in the 1st line for customs). Then I had a 6 hour layover in Detroit (boooooring), and my last 4 hour flight, which was miserable, cramped, loud, and FREEZING. But hey, it got me home! Dad and Elisabeth and Aunt Lauri and Uncle Terry were there to welcome me, and an hour later I finally had my luggage and headed home. Woke up at lovely 6:30 am this morning, and am all unpacked! Happy to be home, indeed - but part of my heart is still in Germany.
It's amazing how much things don't change...and how they do. Even though I was gone a whole lot less time this time, I feel like I was gone longer, now that I'm back. Don't know why. It's a lot weirder to drive my car, now that I'm so used to driving a stick - my foot won't accept the fact that there's no clutch! And Opie, the little starving kitty who was nothing but fur and bones when I left is now FAT. And heavy!!! Fiyero still loves me, though. :)
So, my last days in Germany went well. It was sad to say all my goodbyes at VBS. Lots of hugs, a couple tears. One of my little pre-schoolers cried that she had to leave me. :) Went home to pack (ugh) and managed to get both my bags under 50 lbs. (Don't ask about my backpack, though...it may have outweighed them!!) I thoroughly enjoyed my lunch that day - I had a BLT with the first of the ripe tomatoes from Mac's garden. It was delicious, and I'm really glad I got them because here, tomato season is already over.After packing was finished, Brad and Debbie and I enjoyed a delicious dinner and watched a movie together. I really am going to miss them. They're so different from any other people I've ever met. They challenge you - you can't be around them and not think. They've helped me to grow in so many ways, and they are just so wonderful! I love them. Wednesday morning we left at 6:15 for Frankfurt, said goodbye, and I was on my way home. The long flight was fine - I was next to a guy from Spangdahlem, and beind a friend of Mac's from 1-35 stationed in Baumholder (I didn't learn that until we were in the 1st line for customs). Then I had a 6 hour layover in Detroit (boooooring), and my last 4 hour flight, which was miserable, cramped, loud, and FREEZING. But hey, it got me home! Dad and Elisabeth and Aunt Lauri and Uncle Terry were there to welcome me, and an hour later I finally had my luggage and headed home. Woke up at lovely 6:30 am this morning, and am all unpacked! Happy to be home, indeed - but part of my heart is still in Germany.
Sunday, August 10, 2008
The Present is for Exploding Sodas and Eating
That's what Sara put on the inside of my goodbye-card. It seems like it should be one of those oddly profound kind of statements. :) We had another Super Sunday today, and after lunch it was also prayer time for VBS (which starts tomorrow!) and a goodbye for me.I cried, I admit. I have grown to love all these people so much. This ministry is all about relationships, which is why I believe it is so wonderful - but also why it is so hard. Everything in Army life is transient; you meet new people all the time and it seems as soon as you manage to build that close relationship, someone leaves - whether because of a deployment, PCSing, ERDing, or, like me, just going home. I really am excited to go home and to start school and start working. But I am going to miss this place so, so very much. All my friends here are so wonderful.
Lisa made me a BEAUTIFUL cake. Sherry gave me a journal, and people signed it and wrote in it. I got a picture from our trip to the Maginot Line that everyone signed. (the people who signed it are not the people in the picture! haha) Sara and Erika made me the sweetest cards :) and gave me mentos! (They know me well.) Kristen even got me my faaaavoritest potatoe chips from the commissary. Everyone prayed for me, wished me well, hugged me goodbye.I wondered when I came over here if this was the right thing to do with my summer. Throughout the months I've wondered if I've done any good, if I've had any impact on those around me, if I've really done something to further the kingdom of Christ on earth. Today I realized the answer - yes. I have built relationships with people, and in some way touched their hearts, and they have touched mine. I have grown this summer, both personally and in my walk with and understanding of God, and what it is to follow Him. I have learned more than I am able to articulate - and some things I have learned I may not even know yet. But I have grown, and changed, and loved.
As Sara put in my card,
Goodbyes are not the end.
They only say I miss you
until we meet again."
okay....so, I just now got what she meant by the statement..."the present" didn't mean the present, as in the right now, but as in the mentos....it makes a lot more sense now. I was thinking more symbolically, you know? Like, eat, drink, and be merry - only more fun and laughter with exploding sodas and eating....oh well. I feel awfully silly now.
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