Sorting through our mounds of junk yesterday, I found the graduation card that my mom gave to Tim. On the front it says, "Where your talents and the needs of the world cross, there lies your vocation. (Aristotle)" On the inside, it says, "The world awaits you!" and my mom wrote, "I can't wait to see what the world has in store for you and Hannah." I nearly cried reading it. I feel so honored to be set apart by God for this work.... and especially with Tim.

The weight of this unfolding adventure is even greater because it is the culmination of 12 years of dreaming (on my part at least). The Aristotle quote was particularly meaningful because of Tim's vocational fog. He really doesn't have a sense yet of where God is calling him to exercise his talents, but he knows he needs to be working in a way that uses them to the fullest, and he knows he wants to use them to meet the needs of others and bring glory to God. We're not looking for jobs; we're looking for vocation.

We have a lot of ideas about what might come next after Peru. The world is wide open. Tim has considered living and working abroad in a secular job, remaining with missions in Peru, taking missions to a different location, going back to school for an MFA to be an art professor, working in operations for a non-profit, finding a job making ridiculous sums of money so that we can give it all away. I would love to go to seminary, teach a couple more years, continue in missions, have kids and stay home (although not in the works for the next two years).

For the first time in my life, I feel free in my future. Because I'm not on my own to make these decisions, I can't plan away my life. I'm waiting, exploring, trusting, enjoying this season and looking forward with eagerness to the next. And praying for real vocation, the space where my gifts meet the needs of the world for the glory of God.

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