It all started out as a frustrating three years when things just didn't seem to be working out. We had a hard time understanding the "whys" when we felt like it was something he should continue to pursue. We continued, and came upon this unique opportunity and as crazy as it was, we felt it was where we were suppose to be. We knew when we moved there, it wouldn't be forever. We thought we would only be there for a little over a year. Our time ended in a blink and it wasn't our time to go... so we stayed there a little longer. I felt a good mix of emotions before our crazy move there. Wondering how I would survive without many things that made up my life before. We got there and those concerns turned into very real feelings. Yet, we were determined to find joy in this journey. And it wasn't hard as we instantly felt a love for that beautiful island. There were times that were hard... really hard. And times when it was so difficult to be away from family. But this place became our home and our neighbors became our family. The people changed my perspective as they showed me the real meaning of life. These amazing people showed me what true happiness is. I remember having hard days. Living without a car with two kiddos was not ideal, but it was in those moments when I was walking home from the store, pushing my two kiddos up hill, sweating to death, carrying my five bags of groceries (and praying that my eggs wouldn't be broken before I got home) and then it would start to rain (pouring rain) and I would think to myself, "This is so hard, seriously, could it get any worse?" and just as I would start to feel sorry for myself I would look over and see someone living in very humble circumstances, struggling to get by, and they were smiling. I was humbled everyday. Those people showed me by their example how to be strong and do hard things even when you are standing alone. Those people touched my heart. And as weird as it sounds, it was those really hard moments that made me love it the most. Because it was those sweet humbling moments that gave me perspective.
The sweet moments during Broc's time as Branch President, were especially memorable. As there were so many times when it didn't seem that there was enough time in the day to accomplish everything that was required, yet- blessings always came. We really saw the Lord's hand in our lives helping us to accomplish hard things that we didn't know we could do. We were taught some important lessons. We could almost always plan that something would come up right before an exam, where Broc was taken away from his studies. I can't tell you of the many, many blessings that continually came as I saw the importance of putting the most important things first. And during the times when there was no other way possible for things to work out, blessings still came. I could tell you story after story where I saw first hand the Lord's hand in our life, during the time Broc served. I saw many other blessings come during my time in Young Womens. There were many moments when I really felt that we were there for more than just medical school.
The goodbyes started about a month before we left. I got released from being Young Women's President on July 7 and the tears didn't stop. I can't explain the feelings I felt as I had to say goodbye to a place that had become my home. To say goodbye to the many amazing experiences and the constant humbling feelings we were able to feel on a daily basis was one of the hardest things I have experienced. August 7th came way too fast (the dreaded day, I never wanted to come), and we had to say goodbye to our home in Dominica. The little things that we did without helped us realize that there is so much more to life than just "things". I will say this, I am grateful for those really hard three years when things didn't work out... because those hard times led us to one of the greatest experiences of our lives. One that I will never forget. I know there is a plan for each of us. I feel so blessed to have been a part of such an amazing experience!
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