2015 · a reflection

I can't believe it's time for another year recap post! I had every intention of jumping back into blogging this last year, but here I am, writing my first post since my reflection on 2014 post. 

I'd like to note, this reflection won't focus on what we have done ministry-wise. If you'd like to keep up with that - email us at nickandkarmen@gmail.com, and we will add you to our newsletter list!

2015 was ... quite the year. Let's jump in:

· january ·

January was a month of huge changes. I worked my last day at my office job on the 1st, we moved out of our first apartment a few days letter, and left the USA on the 13th. Saying goodbye to our family and friends was heartbreaking, especially as we didn't (still don't) know when we will see them again. It was much cheaper to fly into Vienna so we were able to visit a friend of mine, Miriam, and see this beautiful city! We arrived in Slovakia on the 17th and settled in. Our first few weeks were filled with jet lag, some culture shock (for me, Nicholas previously spent 4 months in Slovakia), meeting new friends, and getting over the "wait, we live in Slovakia?!" phase. The month ended with a beautiful blizzard, Nicholas's first time seeing that amount of snow (see his mesmerized face below)

 

· february ·

February was filled with snow adventures, exploring our new home, and befriending our friends awesome cat. Nicholas is usually quite allergic, and neither of us are cat people, but this cat didn't cause him to react and she became our buddy :)

 · march ·

Beautiful walks in nicer weather, a lovely visit from my friend, Tami, and exploring a castle. This was a month of discovering more of what a beautiful country we live in.

· april ·

The local mall had a huge lego festival, much to Nicholas's delight (he never outgrew his love for them :) more beautiful walks. This scenery was just a short walks distance from where we stayed for our first 4.5 months in Slovakia. We went on walks every chance we got!

· may ·

A highlight in may was our trip to Germany. Nicholas's sister, Amanda, was attending a YWAM school and we were able to visit her during a week off. It was so fun for me to be back in Deutschland, after living there 4 years ago. It is a country so dear to my heart and I loved getting to experience it with Nicholas. It was an awesome time of reconnecting with Amanda -- we talked for the whole week straight, I think :p 

· june ·

June was a month of settling in to our new 'home' on the base. Before this, we were living with a family in town while the base was reconstructed. We had just one room to ourselves, but we did our best to make it home-y (ignore the curtains, we hadn't put up ours yet) note the tin foiled windows -- we HAD to come up with a solution after getting woken up at 3:30am from the sun beginning to rise (crazy!) We traveled to a beautiful town for a ministry event and I took this scenic picture from our room. Slovakia has so much beauty to behold.

· july ·

We had such a fun 4th of July celebration with an American/Danish family & a Czech family. I love getting to share American traditions with those that haven't experienced them (& them sharing their traditions too, of course!) Nicholas and I were blessed & able to take a few days away to an absolutely breathtaking castle a few hours from where we lived. It was an early celebration of our anniversary and my birthday, as both events would happen during a very busy time with YWAM.

 

· august ·

Another new country added to my list - Hungary! Budapest was gorgeous. We went there for ministry training and it was such a fun time! We celebrated our 2nd anniversary - time is flying! The month ended with my 24th birthday and the start of our Discipleship Training School. The first night we gathered around a bonfire and shared our stories - so special & the start of something great!

· september ·

We kept VERY busy helping with the DTS, but managed more beautiful walks and more time with Nicholas's sister Amanda, when she came and visited.

· october ·

More DTS busyness & more visits from wonderful people! Our pastor & his wife from back home came and spoke on our DTS. It was so fun to show them our new home. They were a breath of fresh air and encouragement to us. 

· november ·

November was spent preparing for and going to INDIA! It has been a dream of ours to go to India together since we have been married, so it was an extra special time. We both love Asia so much, and experiencing it together was incredible.

· december ·

Part of December was spent in India, and when we came back we had more special visitors - my parents! They came to celebrate Christmas with us, help us renovate our soon to be little cottage, and of course just to reconnect & see where we live. They flew into Vienna and we spent a few days there seeing the sights & visiting my friend Miriam, again. Our few weeks spent with them were lovely - full of productivity, relaxation, and lots of coffee! :)

And there you have it -- that was my year! These are of course just some of the highlights, if I wrote all this year held I might be writing forever :)

While this year held so much beauty seen, adventure experienced, and newness found, it was also a year of tears shed, fears faced, dreams dashed, and hope deferred. We have faced some deeply, deeply painful things, while in the midst of a season of wonder & possibilities. I so clearly experienced this year how pain affects beauty and how beauty affects pain, the pain overshadowing the beauty, and the beauty lessening the pain. I am a very deep feeler - of both good and bad, and my 'feelings' were on overload with year... for this, I am so thankful. I am so thankful for the ability to FEEL, to fully experience a moment. I've learned that while pain is hard to walk through (& I hope 2016 is indeed a new year, full of joy!) that having experienced it can enhance the joyful moments & give you a new appreciation for them. It has been such a huge year of growth for me. This was also a year of taking on more responsibilities, new roles, of trying new things, and of learning that I am capable of much more than I thought. It was another year of being so very thankful for the husband I have, and of growing into a deeper love with him. 

Above all, this year, I learned more of God's steadfast love for me, and how He is endlessly with me, ready to hold me in His arms when I'm sad and ready to celebrate with me in the joy. He is so good, so so good. 

I am facing 2016 head on, filled with curiosity & wondering what it will hold. What would our lives look like, if we weren't shaken by circumstances, but truly believed God would do what He has promised? For me, 2016 is a year of continually choosing hope, of learning to hold on to what God has promised, no matter what circumstances may say.