Peace Corps news--After several days of hurrying to the mailbox and returning to the house cast down because there was no letter, I finally emailed the lady in the placement office in hopes of receiving some kind of update, information, explanation, reassurance. In return, I received an out-of-office reply. . . . . Since then, she has emailed me with news of a sort: I should hear something by the end of the week or it will be 2 or 3 more weeks. If they decide to go with the original placement in West Africa doing the agricultural job, I should hear this week. If they think I should be placed somewhere else, it could be weeks before I hear anything.

I have been so grateful for the talks I had with so many of you about patience and waiting for God's timing and will. You reminded me that waiting is the best option if it means waiting for God's plan and his 'job placement' rather than my own, and those talks come back to me daily. Thank you.

On the way to Florida, my parents and I had the opportunity to stop at my sister Kathryn's new house in Flagler Beach. We visited the beach, which looks the way beaches are meant to. No buildings on the beach side, one story buildings on the inland side, free parking, and just a handful of visitors. Dad and I also got to go kayaking on the lake behind Kath and Andrew's house. Neither of us had done that before. We also had the opportunity, the day before, to stop at an exit just south of Atlanta that I had never visited before. My car decided to overheat so we pulled off at what looked like a very unpromising exit. Fortunately, there was a McDonald's parking lot, a Texaco station for coolant, and a hole-in-the-wall garage right in between with an excellent mechanic who replaced the thermostat and got us home. What adventures.

All of my belongings are now in storage and most of my to-do list is crossed off and I have begun casting about for something to do. One exciting possibility is volunteering at an experimental farm here in Bradenton called Hope Seeds. It's a Christian organization that develops seeds for specific environments and soils and then gives them away. I am hoping to volunteer there and maybe learn some things that will be useful if the Peace Corps gives me an agricultural job. I'll probably also put my name on the sub list at my dad's school.

It is hard to be without a firm deadline and goal for the fall. But I am trying to remember that this is not endless. Regardless of what happens with the Peace Corps or when, at some point I will be headed in a new direction and this is precious time for being with family and friends, for resting and reading, for opportunities like volunteering at Hope Seeds. After all, "To travel hopefully is better than to arrive." (Robert Louis Stevenson)