Sunday, September 4, 2011

England retreat.

After a month long trip to France, our family returned to base camp in St. Pete and began to wind down, except that we didn't. Just as soon we arrived and unpacked, Mom and I began packing again. The reason for this was that within two (2) days of our return to headquarters, the mother and the daughter of the house needed to rush off to London for a four-day girls retreat for the CRM (our mission organization) girls. Talk about confusion!

After a wonderful (and we don't say that about every airport!) six-hour layover in the unbelievably gorgeous and luxurious airport in Stockholm, mom and I boarded the plane to London. As we flew over London, mom and I had the awesome luck to see ALL the sights from the plane, such as Big Ben, the Tower of London, the London Eye, and Parliament. We felt we could go home right then and there.
At passport control, our passport man happened to speak Russian and surprised us after reading our visas. The Tube ride to our destination was pretty slow the whole way, but what caught my attention was that wherever I went, I understood what was being spoken around me (unlike France) and I could read signs at a glance. I heard English everywhere! Upon arriving at the Tube/ train station, Mom and I went up the escalator and found our CRM friends. Finally after a long trip, we had arrived and were ready for the few days filled with fun and spiritual groups.

As part of out time together, we prophesied over each other and bonded into best buds. We talked about being a missionary kid, the ups and downs of that life, and how all MK's can relate to each other. Together we saw Big Ben from a double decker bus, went to Trafalgar Square, and saw the Royal Mews. I came away from the retreat feeling safe in God and have a a bunch of good friends.