The Grand Rapids Sprint

Well, this morning I ran to board my plane with 5 minutes to spare (thank you Delta for moving my flight up an hour earlier and failing to notify me) and then left my Seattle home. Last night Erin, Billy and I read our final bedtime story together and I said goodbye to the Le family. It has been wonderful getting to know them and I am so glad they invited me to stay with them back in May. Leaving is bittersweet indeed. 

I also finished up my project at work and "published" it. If you are interested in seeing what I have been working on you can access it on the EPA's webpage at http://yosemite.epa.gov/r10/tribal.NSF under Links and Resources. The document is entitled Promoting Generations of Self-Reliance: Stories and Examples of Tribal Adaptation to Change. It was written to Tribal leadership and Tribal environmental managers in our Region: Alaska, Washington, Oregon, & Idaho. I had a Tribal council review the document and I received a lot of positive feedback indicating that it would actually be very helpful to Tribes. It took a lot of synthesizing and was challenging trying to write in a way that was sensitive to Native language and culture. But, it was a great project and I made many good relationships and contacts through this work.  Most importantly, the project may provide Tribes with ideas, resources, or a vision for fighting the effects of climate change currently plaguing their communities. 

What a rich and exciting 3 months of my life. I have made some great new friends who I will continue to keep up with and have a whole new set of stories to share. When I think of all the cool places I have been this summer, I can only shake my head with amazement. It has been a blast hiking, kayaking, and exploring the PNW, Alaska, and Hawaii with friends and family. I already have close to 2000 pictures from the summer alone! But, beyond the pictures, I have the memories and the journal entries which often tend to make me smile. 

As I drove back from the GR airport with my family tonight I was struck by how accustomed I had become to being surrounded by mountains and a vibrant green landscape. I only wonder what the coastal desert of Peru will be like! The title of this blog is aptly named a "sprint" because I have only 3 days at home. In these 3 days I will try to love on the friends and family I haven't really seen since the beginning of May, or in some cases since January. I will be trying to re-pack all of my bags and make sure not to over pack. I will be trying to make sure all my applications are in order so it is one less thing on my plate. And, most of all, I will begin to mentally prepare to enter into fellowship with my new Peruvian host family. What an adventure! So many new stories, places and faces ahead. Transitions, transitions, transitions.    

Some snapshots of my last 2 weeks in Seattle:

Vancouver B.C. with the Le Family!

Erin & me in Stanley Park, B.C. 

At Mt. Rainier Nat'l Park with Sarah Gossman!

Brave Acrtic Lilies fighting the late snow

Our first glimpse of the majestic mountain through the fog...

We could see Mt. St. Helens and Mt. Adams from Panorama Point

Last Community Group with the girls - took the ferry to Bainbridge Island!

My "surprise" late night visit from the lovely Annika & Abby