Home is Where the Heart Is

YAY! HAPPY NEWS!Francine knocked on my door yesterday as I was getting ready to go teach saying, "Holly, your medicine is here!" Turns out, it was not my Malaria medication...but instead was something less expected and better!MY CARE PACKAGE.I was led to believe that it would never actually arrive here, that the work Joey (& others) had done was completely pointless. I've been told that Kenya mail is incredibly slow (or inconvenient...as is the case with my Malaria medication having arrived only to be sent back to the States for an undisclosed reason!) and I have less than a month remaining. I had, honestly, lost hope and told Joey that I appreciated the effort but would likely never reap the benefits of receiving his carefully prepared package.So, this package...Joey has been very "hush hush" (much to my disapproval) about what was included in the package and that made it all better (...hate it when he is right). As I opened the package, I was in tears because I've never had someone do something so nice, so thoughtful, and so supportive as what Joey and my mom and Darlene did for me as I sit here writing this 8, 533 miles away.Here's what was in my package and why it is important to me:

• Starburst - Starbursts are easily one of my favorite candies! For almost every holiday/anniversary/random occasion, Joey gives me a bag of candy and 3 out of 4 times it is Starburst (especially the limited edition flavors!). There are no Starbursts here, so it felt like a little piece of home as I savored my yellow Starburst and shared one with Francine.
• Colgate Wisps - This is one of the weird things that I had wanted to pack and bring but because of my procrastination and packing the day I left, I did not get any. I had told Joey about this, but didn't expect him to find them or purchase them for me. Behold, I am now the proud owner of a TON of Colgate Wisps! For those of you who haven't heard of them, they are basically mini toothbrushes that work without water. Because the water is not safe here, I have to brush my teeth with water from my water bottle and sometimes that can be inconvenient. I'm happily going to carry these around if I need them throughout the day.
• Trident Gum - I've never been a big fan of gum, but I'm glad that he sent these! One, Isaac has been sharing his gum (literally dividing the pieces he has into tiny, tiny pieces) with his huge class of 60 some kids, so I can give half or so to him so that he has more to give to the kiddos who need it more than I ever will. I've been having a lot of headaches lately and the mint flavor will hopefully help that.
• Dozens of Letters from Joey - One of the cutest things that Joey does for me is write me letters but it's only on special occasions. When we first started dating freshman year, he wrote me some whenever I was leaving to go to California on vacation that said like simple things "I like you a lot!" "Have fun!" "I've never been there before!" but as our relationship has progressed, so has the content of our letters. The one I read today said something along the lines of "I hope you're having fun changing the world because you've already changed mine". So sweet. The letters made me feel a lot better about spending our "last summer together" so far away.
• 4th of July Card from Joey's Mom Darlene - Joey's mom is my favorite! She said "if you hear something moving in the box, don't worry it's just Yoshi!" YOSHI IS MY HEART, GUYS. Joey got the cutest kitten (that likes me more, just an fyi) literally the week before I left and it breaks my heart to not play with it every day. To clarify, no, Yoshi wasn't actually in the box (sad face), but I love Joey and his family so so so much and you could tell they put so much thought into the words they were saying and the items they sent. If you're reading this, thanks for giving me the best 2nd family!!
• two weekly editions of The Advertiser - K. I  LOVE The Advertiser, my local newspaper, and this was easily one of my favorite things to see in the box. From a young age, I would always read the paper at the dinnertime, just like my daddy. (I read the paper at Joey's house at dinner time too....I am ALWAYS reading when I eat!) That's one thing my dad taught me that has stayed with me, and will stay with me, forever...to always read. We always joke that I'm in the paper every week....and in my both editions of the paper they sent to me, I am! I was so so so so so pumped (call me a nerd if you want) to get the local paper and I'm trying to divide it into sections so I don't read it all in one day. For those of you were are from around my hometown, hopefully you've been able to see my weekly "Conversations from Kenya" that I write! Thank you to The Advertiser for fueling my love of current events/journalism/news, reading, and being involved in the community and for letting me share all of this crazy journey with the readers of our town. I cannot wait to start catching up on the town that has so much of my heart!
• Honey-Mustard Pretzels - I LOVE honey-mustard pretzels and whoever decided these were a good idea is a GODSEND. I sweat. I haven't had some in at least six months and I am beyond excited to start eating them! I'm trying to savor all of this food, but it is SO hard!
• A Huge Bag of Normal Pretzels - I love pretzels and Joey knows that. I frequently request Spinzels or pretzel rods as the snacks of choice from his cabinet and feel only a ping of sadness whenever I eat the entire bag. I haven't had anything really salty in forever and the pretzels sure hit the spot. Thank you for remembering the foods I like and sending them to me!
• Replacement Contacts -  Another result of my procrastination day-of-departure packing was that I only brought one pair of extra contacts. Contrary to what I actually do (sorry Dr. King), my contacts are supposed to be changed every 3-4 weeks and I sometimes change them in as little as 10 days or as much as 4 months. My eyes were really irritated toward the beginning of this trip because I was wearing contacts that were long overdue. Seeing the extra contacts was definitely something I was extremely thankful for. (Thanks Mom!)
• Hand Sanitizer - It's dirty here at times and when I hug, high five, and shake hands with my kiddos each day, I'm glad that I now have hand sanitizer I can use on my trek from the school to the gym each evening. Because the water is unsafe, I am always a bit skeptical when I wash my hands and touch my face or my eyes or my food, so it's nice that, even without water, I can freshen up and make my hands less dirty.
• Lemon Juice Packets - This one was one of those "aww" moments because Joey notices all of the little things I do. I love lemons in my water and I usually always get water when we go out. He sent me (from Pizza Hut, one of our favorite places to eat!) like 10-12 lemon juice packets that I can add to my water. I am trying to savor the lemon juice so I put half in my first bottle of the day and I'll put the other half in my bottle later!
• A Pen - The last thing I discovered rolling around on the side was a pen. Now, those of you who know me know I really love writing (hence the Journalism major and excitement over writing my research report) and that I am really, really enjoying this blog. My two pens I brought from home have both broke and I've been using one of the last ones at the Guest House and it's faulty at best. Seeing a pen was so sweet, because it's something you would never think you need but you do! As I was writing with it the first time, it broke (I was a little excited) but I think I've fixed it.

To be honest, I may have cried over the food a little more than I did a letter....but you will never realize how much you miss American junk food until it's gone. Starbursts don't even exist here and Skittles/chocolate/gummy bears/whatever are expensive. I didn't ask for food, I had only asked for replacement contacts if they were to send a package. Every little item, that seem so small yet are so big to me, was a pleasant, beautiful surprise. I'm trying to savor the pretzels so they last the rest of the trip, but it's proving to be difficult already. Joey and his mom have always been thoughtful in the fact that when I come over they makes sure that there are Spinzels (a type of pretzel), Blue Heaven drink (I'm pretty sure it's just normal koolaid but whatever -- which I brought with me!), Pizza Rolls, ranch dressing and vegetables for my convenience. Every time. Joey doesn't even like vegetables! I did not expect them to do the same when I am miles away and seeing my favorite food items (that only Joey would know) in my box melted my heart and made my stomach happier than a kid in a candy store.Harley and I had an Instagram conversation a few nights ago where he decided to tell me that my beautiful Jeep Wrangler had been driven on the gravel road with THE TOP OFF.1) It's my car -- why is someone driving MY car!?2) I've never taken the top off!3) I was supposed to be the first one4) DUST on black interior5) I left it so clean6) I have three days from the night I get home to the day I move in to college and don't have the time to also clean a car.At the end of the day it is just a car and I'm sure it'll be cleaned by the time I get home. It reminded me that things are going on in my hometown, in my house, in my family and friends' lives that I have no clue about. It made me kind of sad, especially when my mom told me that (surprise) one of my favorite aunts, my uncle and my cousin (who I haven't seen in three years) were coming to Missouri at the end of July. Really? Whenever I'm gone. :( It made me a little more homesick than it should but lucky me will see them in California (hopefully!) next summer!I went to class to teach yesterday and one girl told me her name was Nelly. Excited, I told her that MY cat's name was Nelly too! I pulled on my phone and the class got really excited as I showed her a "Live Picture"of my cat Prince (I didn't have any photos of Nelly) and proceeded to fib and tell her that this was Nelly. I hope my little kitty is doing okay without me; sometimes I'm the only one that seems to love him.Needless to say, I was a little homesick thinking about Joey, Yoshi (our kitten), Nelly, my Jeep with the top off and dust on the inside (or anger...not sure what I feel about that one), and my family from California visiting whenever I am gone. Of course, I am having a great time here and I wouldn't trade this experience for the world -- but I do miss home at times.They say "Home Is Where the Heart Is" and I was always skeptical of that, but I see it now. Even as I am exploring the world, I realize that I love my little town more than I ever thought I did; I love the people who provided scholarships so that I can write, read the newspaper, and find my home in Columbia debt-free; I love knowing that I can do this level of work write now because of the college classes and the education I was given at Eldon High School and Eldon Career Center. It's crazy, but when you leave home, you realize home has your heart.Joey, if you're reading this, thank you for always paying attention to the little things and for changing my world too. 8,533 miles is nothing for us and neither will the 3 hour drive this year. Mom, dad, family, brothers, cats, thanks for taking care of Nelly and my Jeep and my stuff while I am gone.