Team Squirrels!

Now that I’ve been doing life with my amazing teammates for about a month, I thought I would take a second to introduce you all to these beautiful people who have become more than just friends. They have become my family.

Before I begin telling you about my teammates, I want to first introduce my amazing leader, Christie. To be honest, she is pretty much the glue that holds all of us crazy people together. She is the original founder of our team name, Team Squirrels, because she realized from the first day of training camp how easily sidetracked we are (and we’re all pretty nutty)! In all seriousness, Christie has a such a servants heart. Before she decided to lead our team, she spent the last year away from her home while serving as the hands and feet of Jesus all across the world. Her heart is for the broken and she brings peace to the chaos that is living life on mission. Christie is the definition of patience and grace. She’s the one who makes our dreaded “team time” more bearable and actually fun at times. She encourages us to push out of our comfort zones and into even greater opportunities. I would not have volunteered to lead worship with Annie and Megan for the worship school if it weren’t for Christie. The first interaction I ever had with Christie was the first night at training camp when I told her I felt like I was placed on the wrong team and then asked her if there was any way I could possibly switch. Her answer, which the whole team became accustomed to hearing, was “Take it to the Lord,” and that was all I got. Initially, I was annoyed with her response. I mean, how was I supposed to go to someone who was meant to be my mentor for the next three months and she won’t offer me any good advice? After deciding to stay on my team (which was a huge blessing) and listening to Christie tell me to “Take it to the Lord” countless times, I realized that her simple little phrase that irritated me at first, is now some of the best advice that I’ve ever received from anyone. She has modeled what walking with Christ looks like and she encourages me to take my worries and uncertainties to God first before overthinking anything or asking for others opinions.

Then, in no particular order, we have Payson! From the start, Payson has always been the joy on our team. No matter the circumstance, she is always a ray of light, radiating positivity and happiness to our team and to the people around us. Anytime that I was feeling a little down or was missing my family, Payson would come over and sit and just talk with me for a while. One of the first deep conversations I had with Payson was while we were walking back home from the hospital one evening and stopped to sit at a little park. It was the first two weeks of being in India and we were both especially homesick that day. We just sat together and people watched as we talked through our feelings with each other. About three hours later (we just lost track of time!) we were both feeling so much better. Payson was able to encourage me and share some of her positivity when I was wondering why I even signed up for the trip. All of her joy and child-like wonder also makes Payson a natural kid magnet. The little girl who lives next door to us is always hanging out at our house and immediately bonded with Payson. I don’t even know how it happened, but the two of them have been inseparable from the start and it’s so adorable to see! Whether through positive words, lots of hugs, or simply holding our hands, Payson’s natural wonder and joy attracts everyone around her and it’s so contagious. I’m so grateful for her encouragement.

Next is Annie, or granny, as we call her! From the start, Annie has been the “mom” of the group, in a good way! Her caring heart and nurturing personality creates a space for all of us to go to when missing home or needing a little extra comfort. The two of us are definitely the quietest out of the team and we quickly realized how alike our personalities were. Her openness and honesty makes her so trustworthy and easy to talk to. She values trust and she’s such an amazing listener which is evident whenever you talk with her. There was a night in India where a major power surge caused a power outage in the house and ended up bursting one of the light bulbs above Annie’s bed. Because it wasn’t safe for her to sleep there until it was fixed, Annie ended up sharing a twin-sized bed with me since the cots were uncomfortable. The light was finally fixed after a few days, but Annie and I decided to just share my bed for the rest of the trip! I know it sounds crazy, but the two of us just enjoyed being together rather than alone. I really do look up to Annie. Her God-given heart for people and making others feel like they have a voice inspires people to open up and be confident in their identity in Jesus. Annie creates an open and vulnerable atmosphere for our team to feel comfortable with sharing with one another and I’m so grateful for her.

Can’t forget about sweet, sweet Sarah! Sarah is the creative mind behind the team and she’s always bursting with new ideas and ways to serve the community around us. She is a natural born leader and although she may appear tiny in stature, she is mighty and always ready to jump into whatever lies ahead and I truly admire that about Sarah. Before any of us knew anything about each other, she fearlessly volunteered to play guitar and lead us in worship, something I personally would NEVER volunteer to do! Sarah is always coming up with creative ways for the team to show our love and appreciation for others such as buying flowers to give to the Aunties who cook the meals for us, taking the students and interns out for dinner one evening, and coming up with more effective ways to share Jesus with the people around us. Her can-do attitude and fearlessness is what really encouraged our team to step out of our comfort zones and jump into whatever our ministry looked like for the day. Even if her ideas weren’t always used, Sarah kept a positive attitude about it and looked at it as another idea to file away for a better time. Most of all, Sarah dreams big and she’s not afraid of failure. She desires to make a difference and to see a change in the lives of those around us and she won’t let a anything like fear get in the of trying something new. I absolutely adore Sarah and her ambition because without her, I have no clue where our team would be!

Often mixed up with Sarah, and Hannah, is Sarahannah! Oh my Sarahannah. This girl is such a sweetheart and I’ve had the privilege of getting to watch her open up to us and show her silly side that I never thought I would get to see. In all sincerity, Sarahannah is one of the most honest people that I know and I so appreciate her willingness to talk openly and deeply without any judgement. She was the first person I met and was drawn to at training camp because of her quiet yet easy going personality. I love how the two of us can go to cute little pastry shops and sit and have meaningful conversations all while stuffing our faces with chocolate cake. Her honesty creates a space on our team where anyone can feel free to be genuine with each other without feeling judgement. Sarahannah is the one I would go to for honest advice. Her insight and discernment are such amazing gifts that she brings to the team and I can’t tell you how many times her advice has brought me peace and comfort. She’s bold and not afraid to bring up difficult feedback that other people may not want to hear, but she does it in a way that calls people up instead of tears people down. Sarahannah always has the right words to say in order to mend disagreements and restore understanding. She brings insight to our meaningless arguments and calls us to be forgiving and understanding like Jesus is. Gosh I just adore Sarahannah.

Now we have our little brother, Dillon! Oh my gosh, Dillon brings so much joy and laughter to the team. Whether trying to get us to say mines instead of mine (which mine is correct btw), or coming up with the weirdest analogies, Dillon is always cracking jokes and filling our team with cheer. Being the youngest on the team, we all adopted Dillon as our “little brother.” While that may have negative connotations and makes him sound annoying, Dillon is just the opposite. He is full of so much energy and his desire to learn fills him with so much curiosity. It takes a special guy to spend three whole months with nine girls, and let me tell you, both Aaron and Dillon did an amazing job not only putting up with us, but loving us so well as brothers and sisters in Christ. One of the sweetest things that Dillon did for all of us on the team is that he took each of us out on a “date” (including Aaron haha) to get to know us all better. His desire to constantly be learning has encouraged him to grow deeper in his understanding of God and he uses what he learns and shares it not only with the team, but with the people around us. Dillon isn’t intimidated by the fear of sharing what he knows. If anything, his passion for reaching the un-reached fuels his curiosity and motivates him more than fear. I don’t know what I would of done without Dillon.

Next is our big brother, Aaron! While each of us played a unique role on our team, Aaron is definitely the leader on our team. Being the oldest on the team his previous experience on mission trips and in college provides us with a role model and something for us to look up to. His maturity and love for the Lord makes him such a kind and incredible leader, and he’s naturally amazing with any and all kids and adults he meets. He calls each of us up to be who Jesus says we are and he pushes us to be fully confident in ourselves and who we are made to be. I can still remember one of the first conversations Aaron and I had. He walked over to me and was asking about what kinds of things I like to do and just some general “get to know each other” type questions. All of a sudden he said “See, that’s the Hannah that I’m looking forward to getting to know. I want you to open up and speak your mind, you have some really amazing things to offer the team.” It caught me off guard at first, but I genuinely appreciated what he had to say. Aaron’s desire to talk with people and encourage them in realizing their God given talents and gifts makes him the perfect leader and an even more crucial part of the team. Aaron is such an amazing person to look up to and that is why he makes the best “big brother” for our team.

Then we have Kassie! Oh my, Kassie! Kassie is the life on our team. No matter where we are or what we are doing, we can always count on Kassie to lighten the mood. Her easygoing personality and flexibility is definitely needed on our team. Her laid-back and relaxed nature makes her the perfect person to resolve conflicts because she chooses to let go of things rather than to stay upset. Her openness and reliability creates a welcoming atmosphere for others to feel able to share their thoughts. Living a life on mission is definitely a life of up-in-the-air plans and constantly changing projects. While most of us were still warming up to the idea of having nothing set in stone, Kassie was always ready for whatever the plans were. Her relaxed and carefree nature is what I think of when the bible talks about how Jesus went about sharing the gospel with the people around him. Instead of focusing on certain steps or specific plans for sharing God’s love with the people around the world, Jesus went wherever he felt called and he shared the truth in many different ways. Jesus doesn’t have a step-by-step plan on how to share the gospel with others, he just wants us to be unhurried and ready to share with people at any moment. Kassie seems to know this well and she encourages our team to be open to change. I’m so grateful for Kassie and the peace she brings to our crazy team!

Kelsey is next, or as she was nicknamed, Calcy (calculator sister)! Kelsey is beyond her years both mentally and spiritually. Her heart and devotion for Jesus is deeply rooted and she most definitely brings great wisdom to our team. Kelsey is the person I go to for encouragement and incite in what Jesus calls me to do and what the bible says because of her vast knowledge of the bible and spiritual discernment. For only being 20, Kelsey’s maturity is far above most twenty year-old’s that I know. Her maturity allows her to be an example to our team of what it looks like to be Christ centered and have a passion for something greater than herself. I really do look up to Kelsey. She has such a passion for seeing people come to Christ and she inspires me to dig deeper and continue to find my identity and self assurance in Christ alone. Kelsey is the perfect fit for our team because, in a way, she is a mentor to each of us. She has so much truth to speak over each one of us and she encourages all of us to push further into the truths that God is speaking over us daily. While she is all of these things, Kelsey also has a fun, goofy side that brings so much laughter and joy to our team. Whether from cheesy puns and impressions to random spazzy dance parties, Kelsey brings the fun and the energy to our team. I just love Kelsey and everything she brings to our team!

And finally, Megan! Sweet Megan. I don’t even know where to start. She has such a servants heart and it has been apparent to all of us from day one at training camp. For every evening at camp, each team was in charge of some kind of “chore” such as washing the dishes or serving the food. The first night, our team was in charge of dishes. We split the team in half and once we got to the kitchen, we found Megan standing there with a massive pile of already washed dishes. Since then, Megan has been a blessing on our team for so, so many reasons. Her positivity and cheer always makes us smile and her sassiness has made all of us laugh countless times. The first time I had a heart-to-heart converstaion with Megan we were at a Dunkin’ Donuts (I know, it’s crazy that they have a Dunkin’ in India!), and we realized how alike we were. Ever since then, Megan and I have been inseparable. In all seriousness, Megan’s servant heart sets an example to everyone around her of what it means to actually be the hands and feet of Jesus. She models Christs love through simple acts of kindness and she encourages our team to constantly be thinking of ways to make people’s days just a little bit brighter. Her selflessness is apparent in everything she does whether through giving away her bible to an Indian couple to making dinner for the team, and I absolutely adore her!

I hope this gives all of you a more personal introduction to my little family. Each person has so much to offer and each brings something unique to the team. I love each of my teammates with all of my heart and I can’t wait to share many more stories and adventures with you.