Settled In and Feeling the Lord

My flight left on Wednesday shortly after 11:00. I switched planes in Chicago and flew to LA, where I had a 16 hour layover. I worried that I might not be able to see any part of LA, as I didn't have a place to store my bag, and I certainly wasn't going to drag 50 pounds of clothes around Hollywood Blvd. Wonderfully, my luggage was delayed and so I was able to take a Lyft to Hollywood Blvd and walk around- I saw the Chinese Theater, walked the Walk of Fame (saw many names I recognized woohoo), met a few crazy amazingly different people, then I crashed at an IHOP (free wifi; Netflix beckoned) to wait out about 6 hours before going back to LAX to go through security early and take a nap before my flight.

Arrival was surreal; it felt like a dream and it feels like it's been a week. I met a bunch of other YWAMers who I haven't seen since arrival day (different DTSs, so we don't interact), I met a bunch of people who I've seen frequently, met my leaders and roommates, unpacked, and then went to bed at 10:00 HST (4:00 in MI). Today we woke up at 6:00 HST (so, noon in MI), then had a full day of cramming information into our heads about what YWAM is and why and how and everything important that I promptly forgot; I was so tired. 

I'm still very tired (I'm certain my writing reflects that; I'll check tomorrow), and there's so much to tell and I can't tell it all, at least right now. I'm far busier than I thought I would be, so updating the blog every day like I was planning may be rather hard- I've already missed a day. We have weekends free though, so I should be able to catch you all up on stuff over the weekend. 

I'd like to tell you about a few of the people I met in Los Angeles, about the people I've met here, about my living situation and atmosphere, and about the wonderful experience I had tonight... The last one I'll do now. It was a welcome ceremony; there was traditional Hawaiian food, dancers, and singing; a guy who juggled fire; break dancers; a sermon/reflection thing led by the founder of YWAM Kona; and an official welcoming of all the nations represented by the hundreds of students participating, which culminated in a time of worship. It was powerful, and beautiful, and I nearly cried 4 times and actually cried once.

So! Again it's only 10:00 here, but I'm dead tired and ready to sleep; goodnight, God bless, thank you all, I'll post pics, and update you later! 

P.S. Oh, and tomorrow my Ships YWAM family (Ohana, yesss) are all going to the nicest beach on the island; should be fun, but we'll be leaving early, which means waking early.