One year ago today,
I climbed out of an airplane in the snow-covered Sofia airport, bag in a hand
and full of excited dreams for the weeks and months ahead. What I didn’t know
as we began the last bit of the journey through snowy mountains and frosted
countryside, was how the town we were headed to would be become my home, and
how the people there would become as dear as family. I laugh to myself as I
remember how I initially thought I would be spending only six months here. It
took only weeks for me to realize that there was no way I would be willing to
give up this dear place so quickly. In this year, I have grown and learned and
changed perhaps more than in any other. I am by no means the same girl who
stepped off that plane 365 days ago, though I would like to think that this
version of her is a better one. When I look back over everything that has gone
into a single year – the joys and heartaches and dreams and friendships - I
stand amazed and simply thankful of how God directs (and redirects!) our steps
when we’ll listen and follow. He has given me a gift beyond what I could have
ever asked for in this time. And I know
beyond a shadow of a doubt that no matter where in the world I might go in the
future, thanks to all of those here who have become my family, I will now forever be
part Bulgarian.
