Wow, what a month. Even though I’m not behind on newsletters, so much has happened since I last wrote. The first major event of December was our gingerbread house competition. Danielle and Hannah helped us four students design and build different cookie structures (because only Caleb decided to use gingerbread). Over the course of a week, we shopped and built structures based on some drawings we made earlier. Needless to say, things were chaotic. Putting Hannah, Sandra, and Danielle into the kitchen with four sugar-crazed teenagers resulted in unparalleled shenanigans and laughter. It was fun to see all of us students working together and having fun while building some tasty treats.
The entire week led up to judgment day, where everyone at CMTS (if they felt like showing up) would rigorously judge and critique the creations using a custom-made point system. The judging portion of the contest was possibly one of the funniest parts. You never would have guessed that a hillbilly from North Carolina (looking at you Justin) would have such a refined palette with cookies. Ultimately, I won the contest with my cookies.
After the competition, things got even crazier. We had to prepare ourselves for the upcoming Georgia mission trip. On top of that, we also prepped a double wide trailer to be moved to CMTS. Luckily, it only took us a day of work to get the trailer ready to be picked up. Nevertheless, there was still plenty of work for us to do.
Donovan and I were given the opportunity to ride along with Joel and Nolan to a highschool and advertise about the Equip program. This was a great opportunity because it gave Donnie and I the chance to talk to students our age about a program both of us are extremely passionate about. After the highschool, we came back to CMTS to scramble some food together for our Christmas staff dinner. Volunteers and staff alike gathered together to enjoy a meal, some silly games, and a play that Hilda and the losers of the gingerbread competition put together. It was an evening of silliness and fellowship. Sandra reignited the great pie war, by once again pieing us students.
The next eventful happening of December was our Georgia missions trip. We took two 15 passenger vans, threw the Smith family in one, and everyone else in the other and took a 12 hour drive to Glennville, Georgia. We made it down without strangling anyone, and holed up in a motel about 10 minutes from our worksite. We were working on a house for a lady with Georgia Missions. We laid subfloor, painted siding, caulked, put in doors, primed the inside and more. So much was accomplished and none of it would have been possible without the amazing team we brought. While in Georgia, we experienced hospitality like none other. A local church fed us lunch and dinner every day and the people in the church fellowshipped and demonstrated servanthood and the love of Christ so well.
After working throughout the week, our team took a trip to a wildlife reserve. We were excited to find gators but unfortunately, none were spotted. It was fun to enjoy the scenery and wildlife that the heat of Georgia offered compared to the weather here in PA. When we returned from Georgia, we were thrown right back into the thick of things. I finished up my time in the shop with Doug, and barely managed some last minute Christmas shopping before I was headed back home to Michigan.
Christmas break was awesome. It felt so natural to be back home with the family. It’s strange how normal things seem when you have been gone for nearly 6 months and you return home. I spent a lot of time with my family, and enjoyed tons of great food as always. I felt like a popular kid in highschool because everyone seemed to want a part of my time. My friend Ellie made me plan an ice skating event with some friends and it went about as well as you could imagine. Turns out having an 18 year old guy make plans doesn’t give you much of an itinerary. Nonetheless, we had a lot of fun, and it was definitely the highlight of my break.
Break ended all too soon, and I was Philly-bound on New Year’s Eve. Donavan picked me up at the airport, and brought me back home where we had a mini New Year’s celebration. As much as I loved being back home, it was nice to be back in the dorm hanging out with my roommates. The first thing I prioritized doing once I made it back was buying my new clutch, and fixing my car. I had broken it about a month ago, and I was sick of not being able to drive. I found one for a great price, and with Caleb and Ray’s help, I had it hooked up and ready to go after about 7 hours of work. I’m glad there’s knowledgeable people around the mission to help teach me practical skills like working on cars. It’s such a blessing to have so much information at my disposal. After all this craziness, we have enjoyed some epic weekends. The Equip staff sat down for a movie night. As a prize for winning the gingerbread contest, I got to pick the food and the movie. We watched Ford vs Ferrari and enjoyed some delicious Thai food. The day after, we had our Serve Day. Danielle and Sandra did a great job with scheduling and organizing all the volunteers into groups to maximize our time. The goal was to sort through various clothing and organize it for One Luv. Then we would bag the clothing and prepare it for donation. So much got done in such a short time. It was a time of real encouragement and a good time too.
The fun didn’t stop there as snow was on the horizon. These last few weeks we have had plenty of snow. Joel allowed the staff to take the afternoon to frolic in the snow and ride behind his quad on sleds. It was a cool way to spend a day and after all the fun, Hannah prepared us fresh hot chocolate and cookies. Even still, we students weren’t satisfied with the snow yet, so we went to a parking lot and did some donuts.
As for vocations, I’m back in the warehouse with Justin. The last few weeks, Justin has been teaching me to drive a forklift. But I also got the privilege to learn how to operate skid loaders. While learning to operate the bucket on the skid loader, we got a dump truck stuck in the mud. After some attempts to pull the dump truck with our skid loader, Caleb and I decided to try push-starting it in a conveniently located field. This proved to be a poor decision because while neither of us realized it at the time, the field was extremely muddy. After two afternoons of towing, borrowing tractors, and snapping chains, the dump truck was finally freed. Though a major annoyance at the time, I can look back at this event as a good opportunity to be more cautious, and not take things so seriously. It’s important to take inconveniences such as this, and learn the lessons you need from them.
As for spiritual growth, I have been realizing I have a major pride issue. It’s another of many flaws that needs to be addressed but it’s something I have been and will continue to work through. God has been teaching me a lot through Scripture as I have been trying a read through the Bible in a year challenge. As I have reread Genesis chapter by chapter, I have been noticing details and events that I didn’t previously remember. It’s great to see the old Bible stories I thought I knew so well through a new light and with new information. I can still say that CMTS and the Equip program is a part of God’s plan for my life. The growth and community I have experienced here is so powerful.
