June 22

A year ago, when I dropped Abby off at the church office in the wee hours of the morning to embark upon her first-ever mission trip, she was nervous. (Really, really nervous.) When I dropped her off today to go on the same trip, her approach was strikingly different: she was animated and --dare I say it-- excited for the adventure to begin.

She cheerfully chit-chatted with a handful of her fellow travelers, and acted silly as she got into the van when it was time to head out. It made me smile to see such a display of enthusiasm.

I know my daughter and I know that she doesn't love social interaction as much as a lot of people, so I'm really proud of her for embracing the experience and going into it with a positive attitude. And I'm hopeful that the trip will wind up being a bigger blessing than she could've imagined.