and I am so excited!!!!

Early in November I'll be headed to the Philippines to meet with folks who help to coordinate prayer and communications efforts for Bible translation organizations around the world.

I am really looking forward to hearing about the things God's doing around the world through these organizations, learning how to more effectively communicate about these exciting things to the Church and seeing where God leads us as a group.

I'm also excited because I'll get to see Manila again.

To be honest, there have been times over the last several months when I have felt less than excited at the thought of moving overseas. It's a hard thing to think about when a loved one at home is dealing with cancer.

But at the same time, God has been dealing with me.
He has been challenging my faith and trust in Him.
And, He is renewing my vision and excitement about being engaged in this work from Manila.

So, I'm looking forward to being there for that week. I'm praying that God would use this time to continue to build excitement and confirm again this direction I'm heading in.

And what are my long-term plans for moving to Manila??
As long as my mom's recovery continues to go well (which we are hopeful and prayerful for), I hope to move to Manila at the beginning of 2009. After my November trip I'll head home, pack up what's left to bring to Manila (hope to bring a lot with me on the first trip!), spend the holidays with my family and finish final preparations and make the move!!

I've been realizing that as much as I thought that the last couple of years and this whole process has been about getting me to Manila... it's not really. I'm realizing that in each stage in life it's not so much about getting closer to a specific place, as much as it is about getting closer to Him.

So, as I look forward to being in Manila... yes, I am excited about the place itself. But, I am even more excited about how my living there, the work that I'll be doing there, the challenges I'll face during that time, the lessons I'll learn... will be used by Him to show me more of Himself, show me more of myself and experience greater intimacy with my Lord.

From the time I made my final decision to take an assignment overseas, I've known that I can't take every personal possession with me. I purposefully sorted and sifted. I packed things away and shipped them home to store (intending to pass them on to my sister for when she gets a place of her own). I tossed things and gave things away.

I'm still left with a lot. I have to decide what makes the cut. For the most part, most anything I need for daily living I'll be able to get there. So, unlike friends who are moving to more remote locations, I don't need to worry about packing pots, pans and such. And, it's quite possible that for some things it will be more cost-effective to buy it there than pay to ship it or pay the baggage fees.

As I look through things I find myself asking... "Do I need this? Can I get this there? Is it better to get it there or bring it with me?"

Thankfully with the invention of the iPod / iTunes I don't have to worry about lugging my CD collection. I love that I have almost all my music loaded onto iTunes!!! I've done a preliminary narrow down of movies, and I figure I can get most any other DVD in Manila. And, thanks to the age of digital photography and my cousin's gift of a digital photo frame ... I won't have to pack boxes of old-school photo albums.

Probably the most challenging part of packing will be sorting through my books. I don't even know where to start. A friend told me this weekend that there's a great bookstore in Manila where I could find pretty much any book. Good to know!! That little tidbit does help.

But, there's something about my book collection. The book that so-and-so gave me for Christmas. The books that I bought when I was going through such-and-such. The book that made me laugh when I needed it. And then there are the books that have marginalia in them. The little notes I wrote to myself remind me of certain things. The underlinings and exclamation marks that scream out to me with each reading. While I could, borrowing or buying another copy when I get there just probably won't be the same.

But, I have to face the fact that I can't lug a ton of books to the other side of the world. So, the elimination process must begin. Which books will make the cut?

What books would make your packing list????

"So, you're stranded on a desert island, what 5 movies do you want to have with you?"

Okay... so moving to Manila is not at ALL like getting stranded on a desert island. As a matter of fact, I'm pretty sure I'll probably be able to find most any movie / DVD I would want to have, but I do have a few that I will make sure to take with me. I probably would be able to find them there... but these are the ones I want to make SURE I'll have.

I love watching movies so this list took some time to develop. From the time I decided to go to Manila I knew that I wouldn't be able to take all my stuff with me... especially not my whole movie collection. When I began moving around from place to place I started to cut down my collection and I kept a mental list of the movies I wished I had with me to watch or the movies I actually did watch over and over again.

These are the movies I never tire of watching.

These are my Top 5...

Anne of Green Gables (the collection):

The first time I watched this I was in high school. My dad and I were home alone over a long weekend (Thanksgiving?). We flipped on the TV and somehow landed on PBS while they were airing the Anne series. Little did we know we would be glued to the TV the rest of the weekend long to follow the adventures of Anne of Green Gables. Oh, I love watching this one!!!

Pride and Prejudice (A&E version):

I'm trying to remember the first time I watched this, but I can't. I'm thinking it must have been sometime during college?? But, ever since I first saw it... I loved it.

I tried to be educated and cultured and actually read the book but, I haven't been able to get through it. I think I've watched the movie too many times.

Lord of the Rings Trilogy:

I had some fun times working with the folks in the Communications Department in Orlando. When the 2nd movie came out a bunch of us went to the midnight showing at the movie theater in Downtown Disney. Fun experience. There were people dressed up, there was picture taking in the theater and there was even an announcement requesting that all staves be placed under the seats.

I was enjoying the movie, but it's a long movie... and it started at MIDNIGHT. So, I started to doze off. Okay, I fell asleep. When I woke up it was the end and the credits were rolling. I thought ... awww...that was a nice ending. At work the next day we were talking about the movie. It was only then that I realized that I missed A LOT of the ending. For me the movie ended with beautiful green scenery and happiness. Not at all how the movie ended. Not at ALL. HA!!

A Knight's Tale:

Great music, great story... Heath Ledger. What else is there to say??

Braveheart:

Action, romance... a man passionate who takes action.

Okay... some may consider picking trilogies cheating, but obviously I don't. hehehehe!!

Musicals???

Where are all my musicals? Meet Me in St. Louis? Music Man?

Old movies?

Where are all the great old movies?? Audrey Hepburn? Doris Day? Jimmy Stewart? Cary Grant? Katharine Hepburn?

I know that there are many more movies that I'd put on my packing list... so hopefully the ones that don't make the list will be found in Manila.

Hmmm... this list may still change before my boxes are packed.

So I guess this is My Top 5... for now.

What DVDs make up your TOP 5???