Almost time to breath.

this week has been absolute craziness. I thought that the week of the celebration would be relaxing for us students. We had no lectures scheduled and we were all packed out of our rooms and sleeping in the classroom... so we really didn't have anywhere to have classes... BUT... we had massive lectures. More than you would think possible. We have been busy from 7am- 10pm everyday, and thats not even an exageration. We have about 45 minutes between lunch and the afternoon lecture... and then about 45 mintues between dinner and the evening lecture... but its insanse... this is our days.

Wake up : 7
Breakfast 7:30-8:30
Lecture 9-1230... with a small coffee break somewehre in the middle.... which is chaos with 700 people all getting coffee at the same time.
Lunch from 1230-2
Lecture from 2-4
Dinner at 5
Lecture at 7-930 ( but usually till 10)
and then lights out at 11..

that gets really tiring after a week with 700 people and lectures were sometimes so difficult to sit through. The one night we had nonstop lecture from 7 until 1030 by loren cunningham (the founder of YWAM) and it was really interetsing... but 3.5 hours is a really long time to be sitting in your chair without moving... and dont even try to get out to pee because we were so crammed together it was impossible to get out once you were in...

It was a good week though. God did amazing things and it was cool to be part of this 50th aniversary jubilee. I cant believe i met loren and darlene cunningham.. .crazy.

Today most people pack up and go home... and then tonight we have the 30th aniversary celbration for Restenas... (this base) and then tomorrow... we are taking a sabath and putting the cleaning off until monday... except we all have our journals due at 530 pm... and its not like we've had one spare minute to work on them all week... so tomorrow will be a massive journal party in the classroom...

sorry its been so long between posts... i've been too tired at night to post!

Samuel's Contribution

It's time. Time for what you might think?
For the Swedes to take over this blog of course! :-)
My name is Samuel and is one of the native Swedes going in the same class as Heidi.
I have to say thanks for letting us borrow Heidi for this DTS! She's a lovely gal! :-)
This week we've had a 50th year celebration for YWAM here at Restenäs. Loads of people (like 700-800) and looooong meetings!
Loren & Darlene Cunningham has been sharing their experience and testimonies from all their years in YWAM.
The celibrations will continue tomorrow with the 30th year celebration for Restenäs. More cake? Yes please :-)
Well well. I will give the blog back to Heidi now!
Samuel signing off.

Hopes and Fears.

tonight we gathered in the prayer room as a dts class to discuss our hopes and our fears.

WE started with some worship and just a time of prayer and then we went into open sharing time. Everyone shared one thing they feared for their time here... and one thing they hoped to see happen... or see God do, or learn. You get the idea. It was cool to see where people are at. What scares different people. What people have similar hopes and fears to me, ETC.

Tomorow morning i get the privilage of making breakfast for my base with a few other students. Its my first work duty and i'm rather excited. I also am doing breakfast clean up... and dinner prep. It should be a fabulous day though!

Goodnight!

the outdoor classroom

Hello all.



I would just like to say that i have succesfully completed Nico and have recieved my certificate of completion. I can not tell you much about it but i will say as much as i can.



so what is nico? It is a five day trip into the wilderness which involves no links to civilization and living very minimally. We had a limited packing list without the joys of deoderant and toothpaste. It is foccused on overcoming. Overcoming emotional, physical, mental, and spiritual challenges. It is about learning. Learning about teamwork, leadership, surrendering, and servanthood.



It is the most intense "program" i've ever gone through. Not because any task was too difficult to complete but because everything we did needed our all... and giving your all into everything for a week gets exhausting and beign in a group of 35 people with no alone time for that long is also draining.



All i can tell you about what we did is that we did alot of walking and hiking in the woods. We did teambuilding activities and we praised God in all circumstances and truly relied on God and upon one another to get through each day. If you ever have an oportunity to do a Nico... do one! HOnestly it is probably the best learning experience I've had.



So what did i learn?

• I learnt that you can accomplish so much more when you work together.


• I learnt what it means to lead in humility and to lead from underneath as a servant


• I learnt that when you put others ahead of yourself great things are accomplished


• I learnt what it means to surrender your rights


• I learnt what it means to support your team members


• I learnt about the power of encouragment. That a small encouraging word can be exactly what you need to keep going.


• I learnt about perserveerance and what it means to keep fighting when you just want to give up.


• I learnt about Loving through actions.


• I learnt how to dry your wet clothes when its raining and there is no place to hang them ( sleep with them in your sleeping bag and they will dry overnight) each night i slept with my pants in my sleeping bag and all my wet socks nicely against my stomach and chest underneet my shirt) smelled great!


• I learnt that if you tuck your wet socks into your pants while you walk your body heat will dry them and you'll always have an alternate pair for halfway thoruh the day when you need to change socks.

What did i experience?

• I experienced teamwork
• I experienced community living in its extreme
• I experienced rationing (food and toilet paper)
• I experienced the realitiy of ticks. Good thing i got my TBE vaccination.
• I experienced frustration and the importance of surrender.
• I experienced the outdoors.
• I experienced how seriously necessary hard core rain gear is necessary here.

Nico was amazing but challenging. It served its purpose well. It definitally taught is in a hands on / outdoor classrom type of way. HOwever... I do not feel like heading out on another Nico anytime soon...

"NIKO" greek for overcome

Today at 4pm we have to meet outside the gym ready for our 5 days in the woods...

No one knows what to expect other than a real outdoors experience with no modern accomodations. We are not allowed to bring deoderant, or toothpaste, or hair stuff, or lipsol... or anything. WE can only bring 5 socks, 5 underwear, 3 shirts... 2 pants... so basically nothing. I think they are even cheking our bags. It is strict.

I'm a little nervous and anxious because apparently my rain gear is not waterproof... and my walking pants are also non existent...

So we leave today at 4pm and we return some time on wednesday... i think:)

My roommates are Hanna, Anna, Helena, and ME:)

Hanna and anna are swedish, and Helena is from Germany.

The food here is decent. Nothing that i am like WOW that was so delicous... I more feel like meals are just a really good time to get to know people and have good conversations. I have really enjoyed sitting with different people and having some good "get to know you" chats. I like the "family" feelings.

I dont think my DTS is a "normal" dts... we have like the biggest mix and variety of people and ages, and cultures ever! I am 18... we have acouple who are engaged and are 27... and we have a guy who is 38 too. I think the most common age would be around 21...

Well i figured i'd write a post before i head into the unknown for a week... because who knows if i will come back alive... or fully functioning... maybe my hands will be frozen off! I hope not.

ps... dont be excited for NIKO stories because we are sworn into secrecy... scary.. i know!

Take a minute to backtrack.

Ok i feel as though i missed telling you all about the happenings of multiple days where a lot happened... so kelsey told me that i just need to start somewhere and if it ends up being a super long post... thats ok:)

so i'll start with my weekend...

Friday Chris stayed home from work so that i could have an extra day for my weekend to get in as much as i could before my monday departure to sweden. In the morning i did the usual routine of preparing breakfast and getting David to school on time. Then it was off to the Hague to meet kelsey. We met at the pearcing place where we got our ears pearced!

AFter that painfull adventure we did some shopping. NOt really for clothes although i did by a lovley warm winter scarf for the cold weather that sweden has to offer... I bought 2 english childrens books for David and Sara as a going away gift. I had 2 potted flours for Chris and Carolina and a card too. Then friday evenign i returned back to Voorschoten for some Surinamese food and then me and Carolina headed to the schevenigen to see the live muscial of Mary Poppins and a really nice theater there. It was such a fun musical to watch even though it was in Dutch. I still loved to see the actors and actresses and the dancing and the singing and yeah i just really like live theaters. (molly you would have loved their costumes)

When we got back at 1130 kelsey was already at my house waiting for me. So we headed upstairs to just chill and drink tea and eat blanke vla before headign to bed. Saturday mornig we awoke nice and early and ontime for our big day in amsterdam. We took the train and arrived in amsterdam around 1030 and our walking tour was scheduled to begin at 11. So we met at the tourist information center just outside of central station and followed the man with the sponge bob square pants umbrella to dam square where everyone was split into groups depending on language... and was taken around the city. It was supposed to be between 2 and 3 hours... but our tour was 4 hours... and free. The guides lead for tips only, so of course you are supposed to tip becaues it is their full time job. I thought maybe he was a student and doing tours in his spare time but no... this was his full time job! It was such a fantastic tour though we realy saw a lot of amsterdam... but our legs were a little tired.

So what were the "must sees" we checked off our list?

• a canal tour


• the heineken brewery


• anne frank house


• rijksmuseum (just from the outside)


• Dam square


• Red light district...during the day, and at night


• Rembrants house


• the jewish district


• coffee shops... lots of coffee shops


• the widest bridge


• the narrowest house


• the national monument


• the giant wooden shoe


• vondelpark


• the royal palace (also under contruction)


• the magna plaza a famous shopping mall


• the leideplein (the famous square for terraces.. a nice place to get a drink) we each had a shot of jenever here (some kind of famous dutch shot)


• and yeah.. i'm sure i saw more but obvioulsy i can't list 4 hours worth of sights that we saw... and i can't remember alot of the names...

so saturday night we returned tired and with sore feet... but lots of laughing.. I was so happy, and kelsey was very funny even though she was not particularily trying to be... and sunday we planned to go to churhc but it turned into a lounging around day. WE stayed in bed untill 11 or so and then we got up and ate breakfast (more like lunch) and then we walked to town to get some candy and chocolate and water for my bus ride... and then we did some more tv watching and just laying around.

THEN at 545 it was time to go for my farewell dinner. We went to this lovley italian restaurant with expensive meals! so expensive. It was so nice though. We had starters ( so many apetizers all at once...) and then we had our main dish... (Sara it reminded me of all your food pictures... it looked like crazy fine dining...

Sunday night was packing time... hardcore cram time. I started packing at 10pm... and gave up around 1230 and then started again in the morning... I hate packing... and i have so so much stuff... but i dont think i have enough warm clothes... becaues i'm freezing here... its so cold and its not even winter yet! just september and i have till november here... uh oh... I packed a lot of summer clothes... looks like i wont be needing those clothes soon...

so now i'm here... and photos of my new home in sweden are coming soon;)

Another new home...

so. I made it to Sweden... finally... after 23 hours of travelling... and not luxury travelling i might add.

My first trip seemed a little sketchy but it was alright. I left Den Haag at 215 and arrived in Hamburg germany at 11 15. I read until it was too dark to read... and then i read a little more from the light of my camera screen. After my eyes were too tired to keep looking at the dimly lit pages i decided to konk out for a few hours. When we got in Germany i had to to transfer busses and had to wait with some other fellow travelers for our bus which was late. I got a coffee at Mcdonalds to warm me up inside.

Once on my bus enroute to sweden I settled in next to a swedish guy who was quite freindly and we chatted for a good portion of our next "leg" of the journey. It was a full bus. Every seet was taken and it was also so hot! I was just sweating and pretty much hyperventilating. I hate feeling trapped in a certain temperature. I know its weird but i hate feeling like i am so hot and stuck in such a confined space and my next fresh air wont come for 2 more hours or so... and only then for a ten minute break. I found it so hard to sleep becaue of the temperature issue.. but since the night before i left i only got about 5 hours of sleep my body eventually put me to sleep regarldess of my comfort situation.

WE got a 45 minute "stretch" break on the ferry from Germany to Denmark.

Now the most ridiculous part of my journey occured once the bus ride was over. The bus depot is considered part of central station in gothenburg but it is not as close in proximity to the trains as one might hope. I had more than i could carry. A super heavy super full regular sized back pack as well as my over the shoulder bag stuffed full with stuff (including my purse inside) Then i had a massive backpacking backpack and also a huge suitcase. much to much for me to carry all by myself so the journey from the bus to the train information desk took a good 15 minutes of huffing puffing and sweating and of course frequent breaks to give my shoulders a rest. I finally found the information desk and the place where i could get swedish money instead of my euros... and i purchased a train ticket and was directed which platform i woudl leave from. I then had to call my base to let them know when to pick me up... so I had to ask how to use the pay phone and then get change to use it... and then hurry off to my platform in time for my train. I felt disgustingly grose on the train ride... so i brushed my teeth... and put a hair band in:) and i was gonna change but i thought i'd put it off till i got to my base... and now i'm here... and we are gonna be sardines... we are in farirly small room with 4 of us... well not yet. its just me here...

I love the base though. So beautifull... So so beautifull.... and I have spent the day with my school leader (Krista) I am eating meals with her and her husband for today because there are no students here yet... and so the cafeteria is not up and running... But tonight more students are coming.. and tomorrow a few more... and then lots come thursday...

anyways I am gonna go do some exploring... and sleeping... and unpacking.. and then i have dinner in a few hours and a church service thing tonight..

but i'm safe:)

ps... i left my lovley rain coat on the bus! man am i mad about that! I loved that coat

UH OH

I leave in 1 day.... ONE DAY!

and i have yet to pack... like really.... my room is chaos... it is a ridiculous mess! Stuff everywhere and nothing in my suitcase yet... o well... i'll get it done... just might be a late night!

Accomplishment.

Look who learned to french braid their own hair !

I did;)

I still can't master the two... but i like to do the one with a slight turn in it...

I prefer if it starts from the left and curves around so the brade ends up on my right shoulder...

I"m not a fan of the one straight back braid....

Goed Zo Heidi...

(translation being "Well done Heidi...")

Running

I just thought i'd let you all in on a little accomplishment. I am running. Consistently.

you may think whats the big deal? lots of people run regularily... BUT... I DONT. I usually make these great running plans or exercise schedules for the week but they last maybe 5 days and i'm done with it... this one has already lasted almost 3 weeks. The hard part is that my schedule will be derastically changing in a few days so where will my running fit? who knows yet...

but i do plan do keep up somewhat of a routine... even if it switches from five days on two days off... to everyother day or only 3 times a week or something like that. We will have to see how 'settling' goes.

Living like celebrities

Last night I went to the cinema to watch inception with a dear friend of mine:) Getting there was quite the process. I followed my directions and ended up on the correct street. I then asked a pedestrian which direction to walk down this street... and vuah la... there was the theater. cute, and prim and propper. It was an old brick building in a lovley open square surrounded by other beautifull buildings. Kelsey however had a little more difficulty finding the place. The issue is that the hague has 3 cinemas all with the same name. You just need to check which location your movie is playing at. But kelsey went to the larger theater.... so i said, "lets meet at burger king" because we both know where that is... but then she went there... and i was still standing on a corner keeing my eye peeled for her... we missed eachother... so we were royally confused because both theaters when are beside a mcdonalds... so which theater... which mcdonalds.. but eventually we found eachother and got our mcflurries that we tried to get last time... and we thourougly enjoyed them while we hurried to our theater. we were there with time to spare and had a fabulous time in theater fit for kigns and queens. Literally it was ridiuclous. Beautifull lobbies a concession that was crazy. You could get wine with glass wine cups as well as beer and a billion other drinks, of course royally overpriced. It was so great to be at a decent theater because so far the theaters i've been to have all been old and sketchy and ahve had a break for peeing and eating halfway thorugh which totally ruins movies. who wants to we awakened from the movie watching trance they were in.. even if they do have to pee. All in all it was a great movie and made me think alot about dreaming... (we saw inception by the way) afterwards i ran the the route back to the train station and made it in time for the 11:09 train... which was fabulous so i could be in bed before 12.. not just arriving home at 12! I was very exhausted after my run through the streets looking like a fool and then pedalling home so so fast in an effort to stay warm... Getting up is still getting more and more difficult... instead of easier... I wish i was still able to just effortlesslye spring out of bed and have breakfast waiting and ready with a smile on my face... the smile is still there but the "spring " is missing...

ps... i have a billion things to do in 5 days.

Tentin it up in the rain:)

This weekend we went on a camping adventure , and by "we" i mean kelsey and myself.

The adventure started on friday night when kelsey stayed here for the night. We had to babysit carlijn while the family was away at a work function until late but we didn't mind. We cooked a lovley dinner, drank some diet coke and chatted while drinking some lovley tea. Saturday morning came much to quickly after our late night but we did a few groceries.. the neccesities of course (marshmallows, chocolate, stroepwaffles, and of course fizzy iced tea) We were then ready to depart. On arrival at the train station in Hoek van Holland it started to poor, so i speedily unpacked my rain coat which i unfortunatly did not let air out for the past 2 months. It has been tucked away in my packpack for sweden, and when i put in on i smelled like a thrift store mixed with an old man mixed with stale cigarette smoke. Yummy eh? so with rain jacket on and stroepwaffel in hand we piled into the back of a tiny tiny european car for our trek to the camp site. I felt bad for the guy sitting in the middle of the back seet between me and kelsey because we both had our packs on our laps... or actually half on ours and half on his... and to add to this discomfort he was in close proximity to my lovley smelling jacket:)

When we got there God decided to give us alittle sunshine before the rain storms that were soon to follow. We set up our ancient tent with clear blue skies and got in a few card games before the weather started to take a turn for the worse. By the time dinner started it was already raining and the poor boys had to bbq in the rain:) I was quite surprised that the boys thier cooked all the meals and all us girls did was set up and clean up meals... which was not a difficult task...

Now the evening after dinner was fabulous. We set up our fire chat circle dispite the rain and shared the Lords supper with eachother and sang a song before we started to share our testimoneis with one another. It was a time of encouragement. It was cool to see how everyone was open with one another even though lots of us were strangers to eachother. We all were connected in some way to at least 1 other person there but not everyone knew everyone. The group however all shared one thing in common, they all did their DTS in Australia so me and kelsey did not really fit into that cattegory but we were welcomed anyways.

After a night of testimonies we were ready for bed... quite late! so me and kelsey jumped into our tent and into our sleeping bags in hopes of warming up! it was cold... cold... cold! and then we chatted. I learned lots about her. Eventually it was time to call it a night and we slept pretty bad. I woke up frequetly to the sound of rain and wind and even a collapsed tent! We were sleeping in an ancient tent and it proved exactly how ancient it was when a pole broke during the ngiht and we woke up in a flat tent. I found it so so funny. I was laughing so hard in the morning. I was in a fit of hysterics forever... everything made me laugh and everything was funny. I still laugh looking back.

Good times! The rest of the day was also so much fun and but freezing and wet. We packed up in the pooring rain and headed home by train looking dirty, and cold and ridiculous with our giant wet packpacks covered in mud:)

what a fabulous weekend...

ps. five days to go!