End of an Age.

I've literally started re-writing this post like 12 times today. A ridiculous amount of emotions are rushing through me and it's just a tad on the odd side. Today was the last day of school for all my friends in Floyd County so here's what that means:

• My 2 favorite high school dudes/teammates are done with high school. A very very bittersweet situation because they're both coming to Tech in the fall, but our time as teammates has basically reached it finale. 
• The 7th graders have graduated out of elementary school and out of WyldLife. They'll be up at the high school from now on and some of our strongest campaigners are now in the hands of the ever capable YoungLife team. Watching them go has actually made me tear up a little.
• The 6th graders are now 7th graders. They run Floyd E now and praise the Lord that I'm not forced to say goodbye to them just yet.
• The 5th graders are now big middle schoolers and I won't get to spend copious amounts of time with them in English class, but we'll be lunch buddies for the next 2 years so that's a definite perk. 
• Walking into Jenna's class next year will get me lots of weird looks from brand new 5th graders that have no idea in the world who I am.
• It's summer. Finally.

It's been a busy and crazy year. To be completely honest I don't even really remember all that's happened. Our beginning of the year planning weekend for WyldLife feels like eons ago. It's neat to look back though and see how much we've changed individually, as a team, and as a ministry here in Floyd. 

Before this year we'd never had campaigners (Bible study) for middle schoolers in Floyd. Now at the end of the year we have about 15 kids consistently coming every week to dive deeper into the Bible with us. Before this year we'd never had a full school year of WyldLife clubs. Two semesters, lots of craziness and 14 clubs later tons of kids have gotten to hear the good news of Jesus Christ and we've officially been in business for a whole year. At the beginning of the year we had about zero girls coming to campaigners. There are now four or five 5th grade girls that come regularly and that we'll get to keep learning with and loving for the next two years. Our team shrunk, grew, changed, is about to shrink again, and will likely grow again as well. We've watch kids turn from death to life and begin to transform and bring light to their school. We even got to take our first group of Floyd WyldLifers EVER to Rockbridge camp for winter weekend in January. 

I leave this beautiful county I so lovingly call home in just shy of a week to spend a month working at a YoungLife camp in New York and its like I'm being forced to travel somewhere but leave my heart behind. This county became my home this year. These people became my family. Last summer Floyd and the girls here barely ever crossed my mind, this summer they're all I'll think about. It's crazy to me how the Lord works when he plops you down in some random place to tell people about him. He took me - a girl who, because of my upbringing, has basically zero emotional attachment to anywhere in the world and no place to consider home - and made my heart swell, and break, and never want to leave this tiny rural county in a forgotten corner of Virginia. Placed me on a team of humans whom I fail and support, and who fail and show me the love of Christ so that I'm able to depend on him more and get a better picture of who he is. He's turned kids lives around completely on his own to remind me that I'm not an integral part of the process, but allowed me to play small roles to remind that even though he doesn't need me he still wants me. 

Transformation. That's really the word that sums up this entire school year for me. Nothing about myself, or WydLife, or Floyd looks exactly the same as it did when the year started, and that is all thanks to the almighty God of the universe who's deeply in love with Floyd County. Who laid all the pieces in their absolute right places so that I could basically spend the entire year in a 5th grade classroom as a volunteer and is making it possibly for me to continue working with ALL the kids at Floyd E as an intern in the guidance department next year. It blows my mind how much he's worked in one year and I think this scatter brained, all over the place, discombobulated post speaks right to that.

Thank God for being sovereign. And thank God for my sweet sweet Floyd County. 

Camo and a Carhartt....Floyd's effected my fashion choices just a tad.

We really love selfies - especially car selfies - at WL.

Hanging at my second home with my very large second family.

Our last (and biggest?) club of the year. Probably one of my favorite pics of all time. 

Softball: the official sport of Floyd County.

Giving back to our awesome county at ProjectFloyd.

The awesomely awkward and cool Nick and Garrett - my favorite high schoolers (now ex-high schoolers I guess) on the planet.

2 of the first 3 leaders to ever graduate from leading in Floyd. 

Taken after my 5th grade friends destroyed me at knockout (basketball is the other official sport of Floyd County).

Told you we loved selfies! Especially with my buddies who are now high schoolers!!!!