Bought a One-Way Ticket...

If you know me at all, you know that singing is my thing.  There is usually no phrase that I can't relate back to song lyrics.  My ideal life would consist of people randomly breaking out into song and dance.  Music is expressive; it goes beyond the mere spoken and written word with more emotions.

I digress.

This week, the song stuck in my head literally reflects the next part of my journey. LeAnn Rimes sings a song, One Way Ticket (Video here; Lyrics here) about all the things she is going to do after a breakup.  While I'm not moving forth from a boyfriend-breakup, the song really speaks to the changes I've experienced the past month since graduating.

A month ago, I was "standing on the border and looking into the great unknown."  Over the past few weeks, a few experiences have given me enormous amounts of peace.  There is a great unknown, but I'm ready for it.  I have  "promise of a favorable wind."  This favorable wind is the result of being a blessed daughter of my Creator.  I am so excited to see what mountains He has placed for me to mount.  And I cannot wait to finally "look the eagle in the eye."

You may remember one of my earlier posts "The Double-Edged Sword of Being Abroad" where I talked about all the downsides of a year of being in a different country.  Tough times are expected, but "I won't let fear clip my wings and tell me how high I can fly."  All of the blessings that I have been afforded, from internships to friendships to amazing priests give me confidence in the fact that God is always with me.  Even though I'll be missing a lot of highlights over the year with my friends and family, we are together in spirit and faith.

So, the real reason this song has been my mantra this week is the first line of the chorus.  "I'll buy a one-way ticket on a west bound train and see how far I can go."  Much to my mom's dismay, the first part of that refrain now applies to me.  I have a one-way ticket to Poland.

Unlike Rimes, I'll be traveling east, on an airplane, and I know my end destination.  But the same excitement exists.  A one-way ticket took a lot of trusting God.  For me, it says I don't know when You're going to bring me home, but I trust You actually will remember that the USA is my home. 

The "plan" is for me to visit either for Christmas or in January, but who knows what opportunities there will be during my breaks from teaching.  There's an incredible amount of freedom and excitement building and the plane ticket is just the start.



Side note:  For those who care, I depart the afternoon of Sept. 5 and arrive in Poland the morning of Sept. 6.  (TIME TRAVEL!)