The insightful gift of hindsight

One year ago, I quit my job. More accurately, a year and a half ago I quit my job, but circumstances were such that I phased out very slowly. It was a blessing and a curse. Two years ago I decided I needed to move on from my job. I no longer felt that I…

San Francisco | 2014

Less than three weeks after I returned from my year in Paris, I was on the road again. Over the course a month I traveled west for work, paused in the Midwest for vacation, headed east to visit family, and then flew down to the Caribbean for a volunteer trip. For the first stop on…

China | 2011

In order to get to China, I had to endure Air India once again. Not wanting to ruin my now positive impression of Indian cuisine, I wisely stuck with rice and cucumbers on the plane. We first flew in to Shanghai. Our time there was primarily spent doing touristic activities. As was the case in…

India | 2011

India was wonderful. Before arriving, I was slightly worried that I wouldn’t handle the heat, smells, culture shock, crowds, or food very well (mostly based on a terrible Indian airline experience in 5th grade). Although we still had to contend with airline food, I wisely chose the vegetarian option (always the safest bet in my…

Ephesians 3:20-21

The past few months of my life have been a mix of chaos, order, confusion, peace, busyness, relaxation, and anxiety. Although those adjectives seem to make my personal life significantly notable, I suppose that such a statement can sum up most people’s lives. While I know that my situation is not remarkable, in a long…

Fort Wilderness

For nearly 20 years my family has made a yearly pilgrimage to Fort Wilderness in Rhinelander, Wisconsin. Each summer we have piled 70 hours worth of mosquito spray protection, 7 days worth of adventurous clothing, and 7 hours worth of car-riding activities into the family vehicle to spend a week in the northern woods getting…

England | 2011

I’m only slightly embarrassed to admit that my first priority when we got off the ferry from the Netherlands and drove into London was finding coffee. I am slightly more embarrassed to admit that I was over the moon when we were directed to a Starbucks. We hit the ground running in England enjoying an…

Netherlands | 2011

Our stay in the Netherlands was quite lovely. Going into this leg of the trip I had no expectations (except to see tulips & windmills). The country was full of hospitable locals, beautiful sights in the cities (we got to tour the Hague, Amsterdam and Rotterdam), delightful drives through the countryside, flavorful food, and historical…

Switzerland | 2011

Despite the financial stability of Switzerland, my bank account by this point in the trip was a little worse for the wear and consequently I did not do many touristic outings or try much local cuisine at the restaurants. The best parts of Switzerland were the continuation of the gorgeous mountains and the chocolate. In…

Austria | 2011

Our trip from Germany to Austria was truly magical. The landscapes we passed were absolutely incredible. My camera was unfortunately tucked away on the drive, but I made lots of mental pictures of the scenery. The tops of the mountains were shrouded with low clouds, but spotting the occasional castle tucked into a lush forest…