19 DAYS!

I remember counting down 150 days until departure for Zambia and now there are only 19 short days until I board a plane to take a trip that will change my life and hopefully the lives of many others. It seems so surreal that 19 days from now I will be riding in a bus from Lusaka to Malole, 19 days from now I will be building walls at St. Francis High School, 19 days from now I will be watching Victoria Falls and observing wildlife at Chobe in Botswana, and 19 days from now I will be singing and dancing with beautiful, kind, intelligent children who appreciate everything they have in spite of everything they don't.

June 15, 2010 9:30 p.m. I will depart on a plane from Logan Airport (in Boston, MA) and with a short lay over in London, I will arrive in Lusaka (the capital of Zambia) at 6:20 a.m. on June 17, 2010. June 15 is barely weeks away(only 19 days!) and I feel like just yesterday I handed in my deposit to a secure a spot on this trip. Months of anticipation, preparation and excitement will soon be over and the three and a half weeks I spend in Africa will go by faster than I ever expected they would. I hope that on this trip I learn that all the hype and excitement was worth it to see one smile, to give one moment of my time, to give a tennis ball to a young boy or a doll to a young girl. I hope with everything in me that on this trip I can help someone, truly help someone and maybe make a difference in their life.