15 Days And Counting!

I can't even describe the intense range of emotions we're feeling right now. The most overwhelming is elation. We are so, so, so excited to finally be close to actually leaving for Papua New Guinea!!! But we're also experiencing some fear and sadness as well. It's scary leaving everything you know to go live in a country that's unfamiliar. And the thought of saying good-bye to our friends and family in Oregon nearly brings us to tears already. But overall, we are excited, and really feeling ready for this new chapter to start!

When we arrive in Papua New Guinea, we'll spend the first few days getting over culture shock and adjusting to our new home on the New Tribes Mission base in one of the bigger towns. Here's an ariel shot of the base

Our orientation program starts August 3 and will run for several months. During this time, we and several other families be learning the trade language (Melanesian Pidgin English) and the basic culture of PNG. We'll get to spend lots of time with native language helpers to help us get immersed in the trade language. We'll also have some class sessions with veteran missionaries. We're really excited to begin this next step towards reaching an unreached people group!