Leaving Soon

Wow, it is hard to believe that we are taking off soon. It seems like time is flying by yet standing still. We are in the last stages of packing/moving and I cannot wait to be done. I enjoy the packing process because I can go through our stuff and get rid of a lot of those extras that we really do not need. It amazes me how we can collect so much stuff in such a short period of time. I also get overwhelmed with the moving process because I want it all to be done and not drag on and on. Plus I do not like looking at all the boxes of stuff stacked in my parent's basement. I feel bad being a burden on them plus I don't like having a lot of things. We have not been put on this Earth to gather stuff and things but rather to share the Good News about Christ. I cannot help but look at all our stuff and think maybe we aren't focused correctly. I feel the same way about all the stuff we are taking with us to Colombia. My sister-in-law, a very wise woman named Marcie, was talking with me about living as a missionary in the Dominica Republic. She said that you can get by with a lot less than what people in North America live with. People keep asking her if her kids need more clothes or other things. She says her kids don't have a lot of clothes but they have enough, more than enough. It makes me re-evaluate what I am packing with me. It does not help that when I am trying to work through these types of dilemmas that Matt says, 'oh just take it'. We are going to put the finishing touches on our baggage on Monday then attempt to weigh them again and see where we are at. We are hoping to just take our two free checked bags and two carry-ons. We will see how that goes. Right now we have three bags completely packed that are right at their limit and one more to go. From what I can estimate of the stuff we still have to pack... that last bag is going to be overweight. Now we are faced with deciding if we want to spend an extra $75 for an additional 20 pounds in one bag or $200 for an extra bag of 50 pounds. So we will see what happens. Just a few more days till we get on that plane. I am not looking forward to saying good bye.