A Long, Sappy, Conclusion Blog

Things I will miss about St. Kitts                             Things I will NOT miss about St. Kitts

Tropical weather year round                                    Cockroaches
Oceans                                                                 Stinky A/C unit and apartment
Beaches                                                                Rude and ignorant Kitittians
Pools                                                                    Getting hit on by gross men
Crackhouses                                                          Inconsistent food at grocery stores
Neighbors and friends                                             Incredibly expensive groceries
Bible study                                                            Centipedes
Caribbean Christan Fellowship                                 Constantly sweating through clothes
Worship team                                                        Island cars
Kitittian Indian food                                                 Always having to ask people for rides
Snorkeling                                                             Not being able to drive
Shipwreck beach, and their beans and rice               Lack of simple conveniences
Flip flops and sundresses                                       High crime rates
Never being cold                                                    Lack of fast food
Being a desperate housewife                                   Expensive flights to St. Kitts

Things I am looking forward to in Maine                  Things I am NOT looking forward to in Maine

Brand new condo                                                   WINTER
Having a nice car and license                                  Snow
Fully stocked grocery stores                                   Being cold all the time
Couponing                                                             Having no friends
Fast food and Seafood                                            Having no family
Inexpensive electricity bills                                      Being bored
Access to a gym and indoor pool
The Maine Mall                                                      Wow, this list is depressing…..let's move on.

I have been asking myself these questions:  Why did God bring us all the way to St. Kitts?  Why not Medical School in Canada?  Why and how was this part of the plan?  Well, through the 16 months that we have been living here in St. Kitts, God has brought a lot of things to our attention that we never would have realized had we stayed in Canada, and missed out on this wonderful experience God had planned out for us.  Here are some answers!

1.  Stagnant Christianity - Our faith back in Canada was all too familiar and stagnent, so God was clearly trying to get our attention by placing us in a position where we we forced to trust Him, grow in Him, enter into a closer relationship with Him, and engage in a group of believers for fellowship and support.  The good news is, He certainly got our attention!!

2.  People and Wife skills - God allowed me to be in a position where I would not be working much, which allowed for little to no distractions for developing important friend-making and wife related skills that I will use for the rest of my life!

3.  Wilderness season - when we first moved here, we were extremely overwhelmed and were tempted to go back to our "safe zone" of moving back to Canada.  However, God wanted us to realize that he uses our wilderness seasons to develop a more intimate relationship with Him.  Sometimes our circumstances have to be a little overwhelming, difficult, or confusing for us to fully rely on and trust in God's plan for us.

4.  Practicality - God had me realize that although practicality is often a good thing, it can also be a barrier to faith if refuse to step out in faith because it seems impractical.  Fully trusting in God is believing Him regardless of what the circumstances may look like.

5.  Change in Heart - through lots of prayer and faith in God, I was able to experience first hand that God can really change your heart.  He was able to change mine to an appreciation for living in St. Kitts, and I have no doubt that he can change my heart for things of the future such as moving to Maine!

6.  Tropical Weather - Palm trees, sunshine, oceans, pools; come on!  Sometimes God just likes to see us smile!!

7.  Medical School - I left this one until the end, because although it seemed like the most obvious reason for moving to St. Kitts, it is actually second to all of the spiritual and relational growth that God had planned for this stage of our life.

And now that I am fully in love with St. Kitts, why is God making me leave??

Very similar reasons!!  God values our closeness and our relationship with Him above anything else.  He is fully aware of how much I hate change, and that we tend to need a little push, and so He is lovingly forcing us out of our comfort zones into an adventure of a lifetime filled with spiritual growth, abundant living, and strong and continuous faith in the God of the universe.

And at least I know that one thing will never change:  "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever" - Hebrews 13:8.   Thank goodness!

I also came across something interesting while reading the New Testament; 2 Corinthians 12: 7-10 "...Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me.  Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me.  But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.  That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

For me, a fear of change is the "thorn in my flesh" that God has chosen not to remove so that I may learn to fully rely on him in times of need, and so that I may boast of my weaknesses, accept the power of Christ, and witness to the amazing strength that is found only in Christ Jesus.  For it is clearly not of my own strength that I am able to endure these changes, but the power and grace of God that is strengthened through my weaknesses

We leave for Canada tomorrow, and Andee and I were able to get one last taste of our current life before we venture into the unknown.....again!  But not to worry, "What, then, shall we say in response to these things?  If God is for us, who can be against us?"  Romans 8:31.  PTL!! 

Join us next time for "Andee and Diana's American Adventure!!"  Coming soon!!

One "Last" Time

It is a week of "lasts", the worst feeling ever.  It seems like everything I do here in St. Kitts is the "last" time I will ever get to do it.  It is a sad time.  BUT, I'm planning on bottling up all my sad until the "last" day when I cry at the airport - YAY!

This past Sunday was the "last" Bible Study of the Semester!  All of the girls sat together, prayed for the future of everyone that was leaving the Island, and expressed such kind words about how we have all touched each others lives and how we will all be missed.  The women's Bible Study has truly been a place to be open, honest, and be comforted in all our stressed as we all work together to build each other up, as well as leaning on God for patience, peace, and understanding for our future endeavors.  I have been so blessed to have been a part of this group of ladies, and will miss everyone very much!!

On Wednesday we had out "last" Girls Night Out out at Karaoke and Club One for Jen and my Going Away Party!  It was really fun to hang out with lots of Desperate Housewives before leaving the Island!  Where else but St. Kitts will I find such awesome ladies with so much free time?  You will all be missed so much!!

Tomorrow is Sunday, and due to the fact that I have been apartment-bound for the last three days due to a mysterious flu-like illness, and Andee battling some sort of viral infection, we may have to miss our "last" Caribbean Christian Fellowship Church, where the entire church prays over everyone that is leaving the Island.  Unfortunately, "last" Sunday was the "last" time I would be singing with the Worship Team, which has been something that I will never forget!  It has been amazing being a part of such a wonderful Church and group of people that constantly and consistently praise God for their blessings, and lean on God in their struggles.  This growing group of individuals has really inspired me to come out of my shell and really participate and be an active member of a church!  What an amazing blessing the church has been to us!

If all goes well and Andee and I can start feeling better, we are planning on having one "last" beach day at Shipwreck Beach on Wednesday, the day before we leave, following Andee's "last" exam of his "last" semester on St. Kitts!  We also plan on enjoying Kitittian Indian food one "last" time with our neighbors!  Oh yeah, and some packing, I guess.  St. Kitts, you will be missed!!

Countdown - 4 days!?!?  Where has the time gone??  Very soon we will be on a plane headed home for the holidays!  One more conclusion blog, and we'll call it a memory!

Acting Like a Tourist

This last few weeks are turning out to be a blur of beaches, pools, snorkeling, and soaking up both the sun and common St. Kitts activities that won't be available to us for a very long time.  Although I typically tend to act like a tourist on a regular basis, constantly taking advantage of the amazing activities and desperate housewives that are always available, it is even more evident now that we are leaving in under a month.  Unfortunately, Andee is in the midst of block exams and upcoming finals, so for the most part, I will be enjoying these activities without him.  At least all us housewives are in the same boat!

In the last few weeks I have engaged in a ton of snorkeling at Shipwreck Beach!  There are hundreds of different kinds of fish, tons of sand dollars (or mermaid money) for collecting, and lots of big starfish in the deeper water!  With the growing number of friends with waterproof cameras, we were still able to capture some of our underwater adventures in photos, even though our waterproof camera is currently broken!  The pictures are amazing, but they still do not quite do justice to the amazing and colorful treasures and aquatic wildlife that we have seen!  Oh St. Kitts, your beauty is simply amazing!!

In addition to spending mostly every hour of sunlight outside by the water, I have also been enjoying hangouts with some desperate housewives in the evenings!  Partially to get out of the apartment so Andee can study, and partially because I'm trying to do everything St. Kitts has to offer before leaving!  Girls nights are always a lot of fun!

This week was also the annual Caribbean Christian Fellowship American Thanksgiving!  There was an amazing turnout this year of over 100 hungry guests, and tables full of amazing Thanksgiving food!  Andee and I ended up eating so much dinner that we had trouble fitting in dessert!  It was a fantastic way to celebrate with the church and with friends before exams!

Andee has his third round of Block exams this Monday, so prayer and encouragement is appreciated!  He is currently hard at work studying away, and will be until the end of the semester!  Only 2 weeks separates these exams from finals, so Andee will definitely be in need of a Christmas Vacation!!

Countdown:  18 days until we are Canada bound!  Andee and I plan to spend one last day at the beach together after his finals before we leave the Island!  First stop - McDonalds.  Second stop - anywhere playing Christmas music!

St. Kitts Photo Shoot!!

Much to my delight and Andee's reluctant participation, we were recently able to have a St. Kitts photo shoot before we leave the Island!  Our wonderful neighbor Brigett, who is an AMAZING photographer, drove us to some picturesque Island locations to capture the beauty of our 16-month adventure of living in a Tropical Paradise!  I have been wanting a St. Kitts photo shoot pretty much the entire time we have been living here, so I was glad that Brigett was able to capture some of the reasons why I love St. Kitts so much!  These bad boys will certainly make it onto the walls of my and Andee's future house (distant future...a girl can dream!), and we are very excited and happy with the photos!!  Thanks Brigett!!!!

Here are some of our favorites!!

Countdown:  Unbelievably, we have only 24 days until we head back to Canada for the holidays!  Hopefully, I can use these pictures to remember all of the amazing and beautiful experiences we were able to have here in St. Kitts!  See you soon Canada!

Med 4 Banquet - Almost There!!

After 4 semesters on the Island watching students come and go, we finally attended Andee's Med 4 Banquet, otherwise known as the 'Transition Ceremony' between both St. Kitts and America, and Basic and Clinical Sciences.  Seeing everyone all dressed up and almost finished with their time in St. Kitts was great, and the Banquet itself was absolutely beautiful!  A delicious dinner, some clever awards, a slide show, and a great afterparty - just like prom!  It was a little sad to think about leaving St. Kitts, but I decided not to focus on that and just enjoy the night!  Oh, and St. Kitts evenings are just the perfect temperature to be wearing a dress!  Enjoy the pictures!

Some exciting updates for our future travels!  This week we were able to book a beautiful condo in Old Orchard Beach, Maine!  We will be staying in Maine from January 2012 until the end of May 2012, and then will be moving BACK TO CANADA for the summer months while Andee studies for his USMLE and I can hopefully make some money working!  YAY!!  We are very happy with this plan for many reasons!  Firstly, we will be back home during the best part of the year, the summer, which will allow me to spend lots of time with family and friends up at the cottage and at home which will give Andee an opportunity to get some quality study time in with little distractions!  Second, Andee will be close to UOIT, where he can use the school library and facilities for optimal studying!  Thirdly, I can legally work in Canada, and am hoping to make some money during the three months we are home!  And finally, we will be in Canada for a couple months leading up to Dave and Arielle's wedding, and we will be home for their Wedding Day!  So exciting!!!  And, in true Medical School fashion, we will be living in 4 different places, St. Kitts, Maine, Durham, and an unknown Clinicals location, in 3 different countries, St. Kitts, Canada, and the United States, in the course of just 1 year.  For someone who hates change, I suppose God must have a sense of humor.  Just kidding!!  

Link to our Condo in Maine:  

http://www.apexrentalproperty.com/vacation-rental-home.asp?PageDataID=31594

Countdown:  Tomorrow marks just one month, or 31 days until we arrive on Canadian soil!  We are super excited to be celebrating the holidays with our families, and preparing for our move to the US!  Prayers would be appreciated as we transition into another major change in our lives, and that God's will is placed above ours in making future decisions!  I can taste those delicious McDonalds fries now...

Sunfest and Zip lining!!

This weekend has been an exciting one!  To kick off the weekend, myself and my neighbors crossed off the last of my St. Kitts bucket list by going zip lining!!  I just had to participate in such an amazing adventure before leaving the Island!  Soaring through the sky 250 feet above the ground with the ocean in the distance and the rainforest below was an unbelievable experience that I will never forget!  It literally feels like you are flying!  And with the half-price student rate, it was definitely well worth it!  Now I can confidently say that I have experienced all that I could ask for while living in a tropical paradise! 

And, of course, we captured both photo and video evidence of the adventure!!

After zip lining, we attended our last Sunfest at Reggae Beach!  Lots of students were in attendance after finishing up a round of block exams, and Andee and I were able to enjoy the beach and the ocean together!  Wilbur the Pig also joined us for a swim in the Caribbean Sea!  An excellent way to spend a Saturday! 

Countdown:  Tomorrow will mark 37 days, or just over 5 weeks left in St. Kitts!  If you haven't already heard, I am really going to miss this place!!