hello hello!
I arrived safely back in Canada almost 7 weeks ago, and hit the ground running!
Almost immediately after returning home, I began prepartions for my move to my new place at Landsdowne and Davenport where I live with two Inter-Varsity staff workers at UTSG. Prepping the house for the move and the move itself was strenuous, but in the midst we began building community with each other and with our IVCF staff neighbours.
In between the preparations for the move, which included puttying holes, priming and painting our bedrooms and scrubbing the kitchen and bathrooms; we attended the VCF August Staff Conference which took place at Ontario Pioneer Camp during the week of August 17th - 22nd. The week was my first introduction to the richness of staff life. We studied 2 Timothy, and it was led by the leader of my GP to Zambia. It was an interesting experience to study a text I am well versed in within a vastly different context! I still managed to walk away with something new from the text and with more strengthened relationships with my fellow staff from across the province.
After the conference we moved into our new place and began the process of settling in. Shortly after that I began preparations for work on campus. The rules of my internship state that I can't actually do any ministry work until I am fully funded, but I am VERY close. So my first few weeks on campus were fun as I got to meet new students and reconnect with others, but also frustrating as there wasn't much I could do on campus in regards to ministry.
However, this past weekend, our fall retreat, an exception was made and I was able to lead the manuscript study for the weekend! We studied John 3:1-21, Jesus' interactions with Nicodemus. There were 26 students that attended the retreat which made for some lively discussions during the study! I really enjoyed teaching and felt comfortable doing so. Along for the ride at the retreat were my housemate and one of my team mates from my Zambia GP. It was such a blessing to have them both there as they are part of my strongest support system outside of my Ryerson Inter-Varsity community, they were amazing cooks and amazing support during my preparations for leading the study!
There are so many more stories to share, including many from my time abroad, and they will be posted soon.
Til then,
Peace and Love,
~A
