Last week in Milwaukee.

Well, my last week in Milwaukee has finally come. It felt like it was a lot farther away, and then all of a sudden... here it is. It's bittersweet, really. I'm really ready to pack my life into boxes, move out of my house, hang out with my family for awhile, and re-pack my life into a 65 liter backpack. I feel like I can't truly start thinking about the next chapter of my life (Uganda) until the Milwaukee chapter is officially over. So, in that sense, I'm so ready to get out of here.

But I'm also really going to miss Milwaukee. The people I've come to love as brothers and sisters, the places I frequent, the weird quirks that make me smile all over the city, my job and all the people there. I have five more days here and I'm going to bring my camera everywhere. I'm going to photograph things that I'll miss. Then I'll post them here.

I've been incredibly surprised and blessed these past couple weeks by how supportive and excited about my upcoming trip random people have been. While serving at Anaba, I've met a lot of people who ask what I'm doing this fall, all to which I say simply, "I'm going to Africa." Mostly everyone wants to hear why, what I'm doing, who I'm working with, and if it's safe.

Last week, I was serving two ladies. They were so excited and interested in what I am going to be doing in Uganda, and they ended up tipping me 25 dollars on their 15 dollar tab. The little note next to her signature said "Blessings to you!" Seriously, that gift is SUCH an encouragement to me! I wish I could have hugged her and thanked her, but she was gone by the time I saw the tip.

There have also been multiple regulars that come in to Anaba that I sort of know who have asked for my blog website and said they will follow it. Knowing that there are people who support what I'm doing and want to stay updated on it is enough to encourage me to push forward, even when it's hard. Things like that are why this trip is a reality. I hope that all you regulars are reading this right now... if you are, I just want to say thank you so much.

My mom has been a huge blessing this past week too. I talked to her on the phone for an hour the other day, telling her all about the chaos that's going on in Uganda for multiple reasons- one being the bombings in Kampala. I asked her if she was scared for me, and she said, "Well, I mean, I worry about it a little bit, but I'm not scared. I know you're doing what God wants you to be doing. I know this trip is happening for a huge reason. And that makes me not scared." I love that. So much faith. My mom is one of the most faithful women I've ever met. She's seen some really hard times in the past four years, and yet she continues to praise the Lord through it all. And she's been so blessed. It's really true that if you delight yourself in the Lord, he will give you the desires of your heart. I've seen it first hand.

That's all I've got for you right now. Stay tuned for photographs of my favorite things at the end of the week. :]

Love, Brynn