Time for some rest and reflection

The semester is over.  And what a semester it was.  Classes officially ended on Thursday (with four tests.  whew!!), we celebrated with a dorm Christmas party at our dorm parents' that evening, Friday we cleaned the dorm from top to bottom and packed for Christmas break (Rochelle and I managed to do a cleaning job for our dorm parents that afternoon as well), Saturday was graduation, good-byes, tears, and hugs, and then Rochelle, Hanna and I loaded up the car and turned our sights to New York state.  In spite of the ice storm that hit the New England states, the roads were very dry and we had perfectly clear weather.  It was a fun road trip, but BOY was I glad to pull into that snowy driveway and be rescued by Mr. Seth.  (My poor little car couldn't quite make it up their long, hilly driveway.)  We crashed into bed around 4:30 Sunday morning.

We managed to grab a few hours of sleep before church, then yesterday afternoon we again piled into the car and wound our way through mountain roads and charming Vermont villages that were all decked out for Christmas following the map as best we could before arriving at our final destination in New Hampshire.  And now we're with FAMILY!  I have been longing to spend time with Rochelle's family.  It is interesting how someone can be such an encouragement when you've never actually met them.  Rochelle's family has been missionaries with NTM for the past 20+ years, and I have been so encouraged and challenged by her parents' testimony and example of following the Lord in His work.

And now we have three glorious days stretching out before us before I fly home.  Ah, friends.  Family.  I am blessed.