Over winter break, I was hit by the realization that the end of my college career was rapidly approaching, and I had no idea what I wanted to do next. After spending hours and hours scouring the internet, I threw up my hands in abandon... God, you'll have to take it from here. Then, as God tends to do when we finally relinquish control to Him, He dropped something right into my lap: Mission Year. As soon as I read their Who We Are page, I knew that Mission Year was where I was being called to next. Within a few weeks, I was accepted into their year long program. I was given the choice between three cities (Philadelphia, Chicago and Houston), and chose Philly as my top choice. However, when city assignments were sent out in April, I found out Houston was where I would be calling home for a year. I was a little apprehensive at first, and I resisted doing much related to this next stage in my life.
Admittedly, the entire month of April was a bit overwhelming for me. I found out about Houston, turned 22, and totaled my first car. A lot was changing, and graduation seemed to be coming at me as fast as the airbags deployed when I crashed my car. Due to health issues, my college career had been extremely rough (lookin’ at you, Grave’s Disease), but it was also comprised of some of the best four years of my life.For a while, I was grasping for time, hoping things would slow down. However, I started realizing that, despite my best efforts, I can’t control time. So, I finally gave in to the fact that the future would come whether I wanted it to or not. I caved and bought a graduation dress, made it a point to visit the places that make Ithaca the quirky little town that it is, and began trying to mentally prepare myself to say goodbye to it all.
That’s why ,one Wednesday, when my class was cancelled, I decided to skip out on doing work and headed to Buttermilk Falls instead. When I got there, I was ecstatic-- one of the trails that I had been itching to hike was finally open for the season. The trail starts with stairs carved into the side of the waterfall, and after making my way up the first section, I decided to sit and enjoy the view. As I looked out around me, I was amazed by this view of the falls that I had never seen before. I decided I should just stay in that spot and meditate for a bit, it was the best view of the falls I had ever seen, so it didn’t make sense to keep going. After a few minutes, however, I decided to continue my trek.
As I continued, I came to an overlook and looked out to discover the best view of Ithaca I had ever seen. As I gazed around me in wonder, realization began to creep over me. When I first started the hike, I found a view I enjoyed, and didn’t want to move past it. When I did move on, though, I found something much more magnificent. I knew God was telling me that, while my time in Ithaca was great, greater things lie ahead. I may not know exactly what that means yet, but as I watched the water gush past me with incredible force, I was washed over by an overwhelming sense of love, a love that let me know that-- while ups and downs will come-- I’ll be okay moving on.
So, over the next few weeks, I kept on taking in the views. The end of my college career was filled with finals--final papers, final events, and final goodbyes-- but it was also filled with joy and the promise of new beginnings. Ithaca was good to me, but God isn’t finished with me yet, so it’s time to continue on this trek.
How’s the view from down there H-Town?