Helen, the midwife, and I had a wonderful lunch, talking about missions and midwifery. I was quite relieved to hear that when she first went to the field, she was quite nervous about using her midwifery skills without the comfortable surroundings of the hospital she was used to. That is something I often think about... but to hear how she worked through that and how God provided for her was incredibly encouraging. Helen lent me a book called, "My Seventh Monsoon" by Naomi Reed, an Australian who moved with her husband to be physiotherapists in Nepal. The book is about different seasons in our lives, and how we so often long for the next season and forget to be thankful for the one we are in. Something, if you have read my other blogs shows, that I have been struggling with. Here is an excerpt from her book:
I guess the changes can be anything. The people we live with, the town we live in, the church we attend, the roles we assume, the friends we keep. The backdrop changes and we find ourselves in a season of adjustment. The adjustments take our time and energy. Sometimes it feels like it is taking all our energy. We wonder whether we have anything left over and we decide that perhaps we don't. The season feels too strange. And it can go on for a really long time. I guess the thing to remember is that we do eventually get there. At some point we end up looking back and realizing that we must have crossed over the 'normal' line. We don't even know when we did it. Imperceptibly, ever so slowly, life has taken on its new shape. It has become the new season. We don't even recall what 'normal' is anymore. Or indeed if life ever was.
That excerpt almost perfectly describes my transition to life here in Britain. Life simply has a new shape. And thankfully, I'm not fighting it (much) anymore. Well, a new season for me will start in just a couple of weeks. I will begin working as the part time secretary at our church. No, this is not the nursing job that I had been expecting to get when I moved here. But it is a job where I can serve the local body of believers, and therefore serve my Lord. I am excited... a bit nervous not having done much secretary work, but excited to be getting to know my brothers and sisters here more.
Well, I wish I could show you a picture of the leaves changing here. It is quite beautiful. Hopefully you are enjoying the autumn season wherever you are.
