Oh, how lucky

Goodbyes are the worst.

I've decided one of the reasons heaven is so heavenly is because of its eternal nature-- there are no goodbyes.

No goodbye tears or goodbye hugs or goodbye heartache.

The scariest part of goodbyes is knowing nothing will ever be the same.  

No person, no relationship, no point-of view.  

When I come back to the 719 there will be new buildings, new people, new lots of things.  

My world is going on without me all while I trade it for a new one a few miles East. 

And above all else, I’m never going to be the same.

The words "I will miss you" don't seem to cover the feelings that fill my heart as I say farewell. It seems more like mourning than "See you at Christmas!"

I'm trying to challenge the hurt of my goodbyes with thankfulness.

At least gratitude makes parting bittersweet instead of just plain bitter.

As my long-term bud Winnie the Pooh one said

“How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard.”

but I think Pooh's small vocabulary may merit some edits.

In my world it's more like 

"How BLESSED//THANKFUL//AWESTRUCK I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard."

But I’m going and I’m adventuring—and today, I must say goodbye to the home I've known for so long--until Christmas at least.

So goodbye, beautiful mountain.

Thank you for being a constant, in-ignorable reminder of God's creativity, grace, and magnitude.

Goodbye, beautiful church.

Thank you for bringing me up in Him, for teaching me what a body is supposed to look like even when it’s hurting.

Goodbye, beautiful school full of beautiful people.

Thank you for teaching me about the world--but also about myself and the value people can have in my life.

Goodbye, beautiful mentors.

(Hey Dannie--You're on this list.  I couldn't find a picture of your face next to my face. Let's fix that.)

Thank you for pouring into me and showing me what it looks like to be a Godly woman, I wouldn't be who I am today without you.

Goodbye, beautiful family.

Thank you for raising up a Christian, loving me unconditionally, and giving me just enough dysfunction to be interesting.

Goodbye, beautiful friends.

(If I missed you--it wasn't on purpose  Photo collaging is harder than it looks.)

Thank you for pushing me, supporting me, and being there whenever and wherever I needed you.

Goodbye, beautiful Colorado Springs

For you, I am grateful.

There is a time for everything,
   and a season for every activity under the heavens:

   a time to plant and a time to uproot,

   a time to tear down and a time to build,

   a time to mourn and a time to dance,

   a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,

   a time to keep and a time to throw away,

   a time to be silent and a time to speak,

  a time for war and a time for peace.

                                              Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

Praise the LORD. Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever.
Psalm 106:1

Now to the real stuff...

I need to decide which song is the best "headed to Boston" theme!

My Heart's New Home

For me, summer has always been a time of "Goodbye's" and "I'll see you later's." Sometimes we moved states during the summer. Usually, I say goodbye to the new college students during the summer. Sometimes others move, just because summer is the easiest time to make a new transition. This summer has been no exception... its actually exceeded any summer from before. All summer, I met new people and made new friends, even though I knew that it would be my first and last time to spend with them. All summer, I grew closer to people that I would soon be leaving. And all summer, I refused to think about the fact that this was the last time my life would ever be "like this."
Today, I left the home that I've known for the past seven years. Being a military child, I became used to packing up my life and moving every three years or so. But when we settled in Colorado, the friendships that we made grew stronger than we had ever had elsewhere; I think we knew in our hearts that God intended us to live there longer than any other place.

Today, I said goodbye to my wonderful family, who has supported me through everything, and has stuck by my side through my worst moments. Right now, it's just my mom and I, as we drive from Colorado Springs to Phoenix. All four of my siblings are at home with my dad; for most of them, this is already their second day of school. My biggest fear going into this has been that my youngest sister (age 6) will never feel as close to me as to the other three children. Camille, Daniel, Catherine, and Claire: you are all so talented and beautiful, I am so blessed to be your older sister, so blessed to be watching the man and ladies that God grows you to be, and so amazed at the hearts for Him that you already have. Mom and Dad: good gracious, I'm so thankful for your constant love and support; I'm so happy that I'm your daughter, and I'm so blessed that God gave me you as the people who trained me up in the way I should go.

I said goodbye to 6 astounding girls that have been my safety net, sounding board, and have kept me from doing some ridiculous things. Seriously, I don't know how long it's going to take me to build up friendships like these with someone new. Hannah, Janette, Amber, Kirstin, Taylor, and Lauren: I know we'll always be able to pick up where we left off, but until then, I will miss you. Here's to all the tea parties, late-night heart-spills, adventures, and amazing memories we've shared.

I said goodbye to the incredible people that I spent all of Junior and Senior year with. Y'all, I can't wait to see how much everyone's grown up by Christmas time; I can't wait for another two-hour-long game of "Murder in the Dark"; I can't wait for all the jokes that are cracked; I just can't wait to be with you again.

I said goodbye to my breathtaking church family. All of my mentors, my friends, my "mentees" that I wait with anticipation to watch grow up: I love you all! More than anything else I've found in Colorado, you are the reason I am who I am today.
And before that, I said goodbye to countless other people and things.

I'm so ready to start saying hello. Hello to my roommate and my two suitemates. Hello to my professors and future friends and mentors. Hello to my new church family. Hello to the place I will spend the majority of the next few years. Hello to my ridiculous nursing classes. Hello to days cooped up in the library. Hello to sleepless nights before test days. Hello to being forced to make my own decisions.

Hello to finding new fears to conquer

"For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and self-discipline" (2 Timothy 1:7, New Living Translation)

what ABOUT it?

Hey there!

I'm Hannah.

I love denim shirts, brownies, Instagram, the book of Hebrews, and American politics

I'm Caroline.

I love turquoise, any kind of tea, Pinterest, the book of Acts, and missions.

We've been best friends since 7th grade.

We love church, harmonizing, Swedish fish, a good book, shopping, and Colorado Springs, CO (aka the 719).

But now, we're going to college.

Hannah's headed to Gordon College in Wenham, Massachusetts 
and studying Political Science.

Caroline's headed to Grand Canyon University in Phoenix, Arizona 

and studying Nursing.

For as long as we can remember, 
going to Christian colleges have been one of the dreams we've shared... 
Starting August 20th, we're headed to live it out!

Thank the Lord for the internet--because even 2,713 miles apart, 

we're only a blog away!

So, let the adventures begin!