i think we're standing on the edge of something big.

hey friends! so i'm sitting in room 211 of pacific woods lodge at qwanoes, at almost midnight on day 3 of kaleo seven. i'm extremely blessed to be able to be a part of this program - a partnership between camp qwanoes and briercrest college - and couldn't possibly be having a better time. there are 28 students in the program, and together over the next eight months we'll be studying, going on adventures and coming alongside one another, forming a community and getting to know each other really well. kinda goes without saying that i'm stoked!

it's only three days in and there's so much to tell, and not a lot of time to tell it; i never thought it was possible to be so busy so quickly, but i'm pretty much swamped with things to do. they're all more or less really cool things, but it's getting a bit hectic.

so i'll give you the rundown. i'm living in room 211, as i said, with three other dudes for the year. we're all within a year or so of each other as far as age goes. i'm rooming with a dude named john from white rock, trent from alberta, and jeremy from orangeville, ontario. actually, jeremy and myself did cit at qwanoes the same summer, but were in different groups, so it's cool to have someone i kinda know but have lots of room to get tight with throughout the year still. it's been really great so far, it's a great group of guys for the room, as well as a really great kaleo group over all. i've been really surprised (in a great way) at the conversations some of us have been having right off the start, and am really excited to get to know all these folks real well over the next year.

we're currently doing work in prep for our first course, spiritual formations, which is taught by marv penner, a youth worker/professor/counsellor/writer/super-hero who spoke at qwanoes staff training last year, and i am very much a fan of his, and so stoked for his class.

we've also picked the churches we'll be serving at for the next year, and met with the pastors today. i'll be at a church called st. andrews, and it's the first year that kaleo will be working with them, and i'm so flipping excited. we met with the youth pastor today, and he told us that the three of us (jessica, nick, and myself) will be joining a team of only two other youth leaders for this year, and with a youth group of around 30 kids, it'll be a far cry from what i'm used to as far as size goes. i'm really excited though, because i have heard incredible things about the community there, and the youth who go there and their leadership potential... this description reminds me a lot of coquitlam alliance's youth group back home. i was talking to jim, today, the kaleo leader, and he was telling me the history of duncan, the city (town?) that neighbours us here in crofton and is where st andrews is located... there is such a dark history, full of evil and hatred between the caucasians/hudsons bay company and the first nations people. i am appauled at the horrible things that the settlers did in the very area i'll be serving, and am shocked at how little i've known about this in the years i've been coming to camp. with a first nations population of 20-30% this is an extremely relevant issue and as disgusted as i am by what's gone down i'm glad to be more knowledgeable and better equipped to serve God and fight for truth in this town.

our first trip is also in two days! we'll be hiking up mount albert-edwards, which is a three-day journey, and one that promises to bring us closer as a community. i don't know much except that i'm really excited.

prayer requests for you, my friends, would be for my energy and time-management, first and foremost. i've got a lot of reading and writing to do before spiritual formations starts, as well as personal reading - and my own devo's! which i don't want to allow to suffer, but days have never felt shorter. another prayer request would be all of our group's safety on the trip ahead and really cool opportunities to bond on this journey. prayer that i will find where God wants me at st. andrew's, and that i would be able to pour myself out for the sake of the gospel in these kids' lives. also, praise Him that i already feel really tight with a number of the students here, please pray that this continues and we can grow close and reflect Christ in our community here, made up of so many people from so many different backgrounds with so many stories. and of course, praise Him for this opportunity! i cannot believe that i am here, and i don't want to take a moment of it for granted. i am blessed more than i can realize or acknowledge.

some paint/laundry detergent antics we had on the first night.

riding around a shopping cart in wal-mart... regular college-student behaviour?

what remained after the first night.

myself and bitty, after hitting up wal-mart for some last minute hiking stuff.