Back in America Until...

"How was China?"

Literally one of the most common questions people ask us;)

Right up there with, "So what's next?"

And those are both great questions! They're fun to answer, and we love sharing with everyone. But honestly, after being asked these questions so many times, we still don't have concise answers. So here are some of our less-rambling thoughts...

1. How was China? Well, our 3 years there are hard to put into words or even a few sentences. So much happened, we grew a lot, and we saw the Father work in amazing ways through teammates and other friends. It felt like sometimes we were the cheerleaders and supporters while other times we were getting to speak into lives and plant seeds. Such a privilege and an honor. We have made some really good friends back in China, and our hearts often long to be there continuing those relationships. Actually, a better question is, "How is China?" because while we are definitely happy to be here in Auburn spending time with family and friends, we're not sure we feel called to end our time in China just yet. Which leads to the next question.
2. Hmmm... what IS next? We don't know. We have a few options:
• Language school in the northeastern part of China and then continuing to teach with our company (somewhere in China) for another 3-4 years. 
• Wait another year to return to China so Jesse can get his Masters in the USA (school TBD... and major TBD... actually not even sure he wants to get his Masters... ;) )
• Jesse could possibly get his Masters degree in China. A couple universities there look promising with English programs available, and there are a lot of interesting things being done in the Sustainable energy field, which is what Jesse is interested in.
• Could be that our time in China actually is over (for right now).
3. Right now, we are enjoying our first 6 months back in America. We told our families we'd spend July 2018 - end of January 2019 in Auburn, so that's where we are (but we might be in Auburn longer than that). We're both working part-time, and we have a cheap place to live-- a huge blessing! It's like a sabbatical with a lot of intentional time spent with family, where the Father wants us right now. There are some things about American life that have been a reverse culture shock for us, while some parts of life are nice comforts that we have missed. It's really hard to explain! Many days we miss China, but we are definitely enjoying this time with family and friends. Everyone has been so patient and welcoming as we adjust to American life-- thank you for loving us so well!

We're so blessed by our amazing and supportive community here in America, even if some of that community is spread all over the country. If we're traveling near you, we'll try to let you know! It's fun meeting up with friends in other cities or states. If you want to meet up with us for coffee/hot chocolate/ tea or even a meal, we'd love to share more of our hearts with you.

We love y'all!!!

Love,

Jesse, Sara, and Camellia