Site Placement! EXCITED!

"The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely I have a delightful inheritance." Psalm 16:6


How true, how true! God has prepared a place for me and now I've found out about it! :) Can't WAIT to share with you! 


I received word last Saturday morning that I will be living and working at CMS College in Kottayam, Kerala!!! I will be living on campus in campus housing. CMS is in Kottayam, one of the larger cities in Kerala. CMS was founded in 1817 by the Church Missionary Society and (according to my admission letter-yes, I am actually enrolled in a college in India-how crazy/cool is that?!) is the oldest college in India!


Here's some thoughts/reasons why I'm so excited:


1) I am looking forward to being in a city. I was worried about ending up in a remote place with not much to do-if you know anything about me, you know that I need to have a lot going on! I greatly prefer a city to a rural setting-lots to do, lots of people to meet! 


2) I love colleges! I want to go to school my whole life! I love the university setting. Though I do greatly enjoy working with children, I prefer working with older students. (When I was student teaching, the older the kids were the more I enjoyed working with them by far!) I'm really looking forward to being with university students. I think this is an age range and setting which will be a great fit.


3) One of the big things I've really been praying about is for God to provide opportunities to use my music, and while I can't know just yet what I'll find once I get there, I feel like there will probably be a lot more musical opportunities for me in the city than there would be elsewhere. We'll see! :)


4) I'll have a variety of different things to do! 


Here are some of the things I'll be doing/may be doing:
·         Engaging a few classes on areas like developing communication skills, creative writing and media.
·         Involving in student activities including initiating and maintaining blogs which will enhance the skills of students.
·         Associating with College Chapel service, Bible study groups and college choir.
·         Initiating and developing a College Music Band.
·         Exploring and getting involved with possible activities at Lea Hostel
·         Visiting churches (if possible, Dalit churches) and associating with youth groups on week ends.
·         Visiting homes of students and staff and get a clear understanding of the community around.
·         Visiting different schools in Kottayam and engaging short sessions for the students.


...AAAND more! 
 Those of you that know me know that I have a really hard time doing repetitive tasks. I do well with a lot of variety of things to do-and where better to find this than a college? I am thrilled that instead of doing the same thing day after day, it sounds like I'll have many opportunities and groups with which to associate. Hooray!


It's really nice to finally have something to at least picture or imagine in my mind about where I'll be...up until this point I've had no image in my mind as to where I'll be-rural or urban, etc etc., but now I can at least begin to visualize it in some way and prepare. The more I think about my placement, the more I look forward to it! :) 


I'll be off in just a few hours now to the New Wilmington Mission Conference-the BEST WEEK OF THE YEAR! I'll be serving as high school staff again this year. Conference always is so powerful-I look forward to it as the highlight of my year every year! I am so excited to meet my girls that I'm be counseling and for all that God is going to do this week-He always shows up so mightily at NWMC! I look forward to sharing more with you about it later!


Blessings & peace,
Claudia