The day’s chilly wind and gloomy skies are a stark contrast to the Caribbean heat and bright sunshine we’ve known since September..

Where do we even begin?

Here in the silence, the memories flood my mind. 20 kids with pink eye. Endless knocks upon the door. Jovenal’s back injury that left us googling signs of internal bleeding. It seems like a lifetime ago. The whisper of praise in seeing Jovenal up and walking by the time we left Haiti. The tug-of-war in leaving those 33 kiddos. The sheer exhaustion. The traveling. Colorado mountains and the celebration of a sister’s high school graduation. A heartache trip to Chicago. Us sitting on the living room floor, talking of memories through the tears; saying goodbye to my grandpa, sent home on hospice and dying from liver cancer. Attending his funeral last week, in all its surrealness. Alaska. So many new faces. Such a new way of life.

8 short weeks have held so much.

We are here. Nestled into a quaint little camper where our refrigerator is in the shower and towels line the windows because Alaska never grows fully dark in the summer. I double check my math, making sure it’s our 3rd week here. 

It is hard to describe our days, because each day is its own kind of different. 7:30 breakfast, 12:30 lunch, and 6 o’clock suppers are dependable. Stephen’s groundschool lessons faithfully begin at 9:30 each morning- something he has really enjoyed and learned a lot from. Some days there are sight seers. Some days Stephen is off for an unexpected flight to Palmer. Other days he surprises me by walking into the camper in the middle of the afternoon. Some days the air is still and silent; other days, the rumble of airplanes taking off and landing is seemingly non-stop. 

Regardless, life is busy here at Kingdom Air Corps. 

Moose walk the woods behind our camper- a sight better enjoyed indoors rather than out. Alaska’s mountains are an altogether different kind of beauty. Before we left Chicago, someone described Alaska to us as God’s land.. and from whispering winds to breathing-taking mountain views to wooded tree areas, that description has stuck with us.

We are adjusting to a new rhythm of life here on “the ranch” as they say. Stephen’s time and purpose fills much quicker than mine, as there is often something to work on, something to study, or a project to lend a hand with. In all honesty, I’ve felt quite lost the last few weeks. For what seems like the first time in a long time, there are no children to tutor or classroom plans to make, no nanny responsiblity to fill, no family to cook supper for, no Mikey to cuddle or kids to give attention to. After spending time giving and helping a ministry, this summer we find ourselves on the other end- we are now the ones receiving someone’s hard work and time and energy. 

This is life. And we are adapting to the changes. Right now Stephen is back from ground school, studying and reviewing things he learned this morning. More instructors have come in during the last week, as well as teams from Texas and other places in the States. The pace is picking up here, and more dinner tables fill as the days go on. The pine cones that were just babies on the tree outside our window are nearly full-grown now. The heater has kicked on, easing the chill of a drafty camper. The sky threatens rain. 

Now that we are settled, we are planning to post more regularly once again. I have a video of Stephen’s first takeoff here on the grass runway, but despite my numerous attempts, it just won’t upload. It may have to wait until we are back home.. but slow internet and water that turns to ice cubes mid-shower keeps us from forgetting where we came from 🙂  

You’ll have to follow us on facebook (Stephen has an album on his page) or my Instagram to get our photo updates, the files seem to large to upload to the blog. 

-Anna