just a brief synopsis...

"I'm movin on....

at last I can see, life has been patiently waiting on me,

and I know, there's no guarantees but I'm not alone...

there comes a time in everyone's life,

where all you can see are the years passin by,

and I have made up my mind that those days are gone....."

-Rascal Flatts

i got this idea from my wonderful "gran gran"...... it's a brief (haha, wow, i already know that's gonna be a lie... i'm sorry!!) synopsis of my life thus far.... a time line, if you will, taking us through the 4 major stages.... childhood ----> highschool ----> college ----> now! so if you'll bear with me, i'll take you on a trip... a trip through my life....

The life of Anna Kathryn Buffington:

april 7, 1983 (basically the best day ever) ----> highschool

well.... childhood was a pretty fantastic time for me.... i miss it.... i really do....... wow, i wish i could go back... to the love home porch, westminster, wyldlife and southwind as a camper, summit street, all those walks to onyx, and all those times layin out on the trampoline pretending to be two ridiculous radio broadcasters who believed Elvis would live forever (I still believe that)... how fun! anyways.... i had these great parents who raised me to be like Jesus, and i knew so many other amazing people who taught me so much about a life with Christ.... these years were full of growth in my knowledge of the Lord's love for me, but wow! i had so much fun being weird, and thats almost all i wanted to do.... have fun and be weird... haha... but i now more than ever have learned the harsh reality that life isn't all fun and weirdness.... at some point you have to grow up, some kids a lot faster than others... A LOT faster than i did... i realize now just how much i took for granted when i was growing up.... there are so many kids who don't have any of what i had growing up, and i thank God everyday for giving me that, and find myself praying everyday for the kids in the world who are suffering because there is no love in their lives... only anger and hatred and evil... i wish there were enough places like this and enough knowledge of them to house every one of those kids.... i pray that one day there will be.... but for now, all i can do is aspire, and seek the Lord along the bumpy road.....

highschool ----> college

high school wasn't so fantastic for me..... i think, instead of fantastic, i would use the words difficult (not classes), or lonely..... until junior year! cause that's when i found erin and rachel and coach moore (english) and mr. emory (art... more than the previous years)... and that's when i left gainesville high school for gainesville college, and only went back for, you guessed it, art... but during this time i met even more people, at school and outside of school, at my church and at other churches, who really impacted my life and showed me even more the love of Christ, and modeled a Godly lifestyle for me..... i look back now, and am so thankful that my high school experience wasn't like many other kid's, and i can see now that God was looking out for me, and watching out for me all those days i sat in the office with my mom during lunch... however, during that time i wasn't so grateful..... i can now see the impact those people had on me, but at the time, i was so focused on how much i wanted out of gainesville high school and how miserable i was there that i could hardly make any sense out of the love of Christ... i knew that He loved me and I knew that I loved Him, but i also knew i only had like 4 four or so friends my age (meaning not my wyldlife kids or younglife leaders), my love life was like negative, and i didn't fit in with the crowds.... praise God that all of those things are true!!! and praise God that i learned how to trust Him and discovered that He's the only friend i need! and praise Him that those 4 or so friends He did give me are some of the most amazing people i know and have impacted my life in such a huge way! and praise God that one of them was Jessi Hawkins! anyways, i was so focused on other stuff in high school that my life with Christ remained pretty stagnant... little did i know, He was working even then to mold me into who He wants me to be....

college ----> august 16, 2004

wow!! college was amazing!!! i mean, for the most part... there was some drama, but when isn't there? really.... college was a time in my life when i decided to resort back to my old way of living.... my main focus was having fun and being weird... difficulties were foriegn to me when i was a child, and it turned out that they were in college too, pretty much for the whole first year... so when i finally started experiencing them, they semed to hit me really hard.... i got really caught up in a lot of drama that really didn't even involve me and trying to find a way out of it, all the while forgetting that God is the only way... but through it all i kept on trying to be happy and most importantly, weird..... hahaha i definitely made some of the best friends of my life at mercer..... and some really incredible God fearing people who taught me so much.... like my roomies, and their families.... professors... people from church and bsu..... some really great people, and i'll never forget any of them.... it's just too bad i didn't take full advantage of them at the time.... if i had i may have taken some huge leaps and bounds in a forward direction... but instead, near the end of my last year, i started to look back at how the years had passed by.... all i could see were patterns of untrustfullness, mistakes, loneliness, stagnancy and back stepping.... but even with that knowledge i remained pretty much in the same place in my walk with the Lord, and kept on the same way up to the very end..... it's a good thing i'm in love with such a forgiving God, who, for some reason, loves me back!

august 16, 2004 ----> now!!

at last i can see that life has been patiently waiting on me, and i know there's no guarantees but i'm not alone!!! Wow! I've finaly rediscovered the fact that I am not here for my own happiness, or to make my life pleasant, but for the Lord's happiness and to bring Him pleasure..... and if I honor Him and seek to please Him in every part of my life, then I will find happiness in Him! i don't recall any time of my life that i have felt the healing power of God more than i do now... i've had some hard times the past couple months, but it's through these difficulties that i've learned to rely completely on Jesus because He is my only constant... in my darkest hours, He sent snow... and even though it's like in the mid 60's now, God has given me so much, and taught me so much through hard times and happy times and for all of it i am thankful... i truly watched my life pass by for years, and made very little progress, but i'm watching myself grow closer and closer to Christ now, and that's what life is... there are no guarantees but Jesus Christ... there's nothing we need in life but Jesus Christ... that's something that some of these kids have a grasp on at 11 years old... kids who have experienced 3 times what i experienced these last couple months probably every month of their lives so far.... and here i am learning it now..... God is doing amazing things here... these kids are incredible and an inspiration to me every day... i got a schedule today and it told me i'll be teaching lensa biology and home ec (i laughed at that one, but it'll work out... haha) and i'm super excited about it! i'll also be working with laura a couple days a week and i'll be with the horses every third monday with the boys from christopher house... monday through thursday abby and i eat dinner seperately at the three houses and we both do rec everyday.... (i laughed at that too... haha i used to do it once a week! but that, too, will work out...) i'm so grateful that God is still having me work with two of my girls and also with the other kids more in depth! as for my emotional status, i miss arissa more and more everyday... i sit on her bed and pray a lot, just like we used to do together, and God is changing me and strengthening me still through this.... i miss and her, and that'll never go away, but my joy for her also increases daily, and that's how i get by.... we serve such an awesome God, y'all, don't forget it! ps... tomorrow's crazy hair day!!! good thing i brought my wigs back with me!!! haha it's gonna be so fun!

thank you all for your prayers... wow, you're all incredible, and seriously, your prayers are so appreciated and i'll never forget the support and love you've shown me! please pray for me now as i begin the job hunt for next august and on... or maybe i'll stay here or do something else... pray that God makes it clear to me what His plans are for my near future.... also, make a note at the top of your prayer list to pray for becky downs, arissa's grandmother, who recently found out she's losing her house and her car due to her late husband canceling their insurance... pray that she seeks the Lord in this and finds strength.... my heart ached for her over christmas, and now aches even more for her..... PLEASE remember her in your daily prayers...

His,

Anna Kathryn

"I thank my God everytime I remember you;

in all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy."

-Philippians 1:3

here are some fantastic quotes... some of these are from a pretty long time ago, this email's been in the works for a while... like before thanksgiving... hahaha

me: "hey did you hear about the party this saturday night?"

luke: "what's the party for?"

me: "it's elvis's birthday! we're having a birthday celebration at laurel ridge!!"

luke: "anna, are you on drugs?"

me: "did you just call me anna? who is anna?"

An e-mail I got from Camile before thanksgiving: "Hey 'B'!"

from camile's devotional book i was looking through the other day:

question: is there someone in your life who always puts others before themself? if so, what impact has that person had on those around them?

camile's answer: "'B' ...she's a Godly example 24.7"

"I like when we prayer together." -Arissa

"Anna Kathryn, you crack me up!" -Mr. Mike

Dr. Pardue: "Are you likin' it over there at the ranch?"

Arissa: "Huh? Lichen? Are you talking about botany?" a proud moment for a botany teacher!!

Giving Arissa a spelling test:

Me: "Beaches... Every night she walks the beaches of Cheyanne." (Garth)

Arissa: "Of what?"

Me: "Against... Sometimes you've got to go against the grain." (Garth)

Me: "Brother... Oh, brother, where art thou?"

Arissa: "What does that mean?"

Abby, listening from afar: "Anna Kathryn...... great sentences!"

Me: "I mean.... sometimes you run out of your own material....."

no snow in the valley

"Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will."

Romans 12:1-2

it snowed in the mountains last weekend..... but we didn't get any snow in the valley..... as you can clearly see in the picture.... however, it did rain all week... and when it rains it pours.... and hails........ a lot..... it's been probably the worst couple of weeks i can remember having ever, and it's taken all the strength that God has given me to get through...... but everytime i start feeling ok, something new happens, and i start feeling worse again..... i am full of anger and bitterness, and i don't know what use i am to God when all i feel is anger... i would much rather be with Him, and Jessi, and Arissa..... but for some reason i'm not, and all i can do is trust God to lead me through the torrential downpour, even when it seems unfair to have been led into it...... but here i am, dodging lightning bolts, and waiting for the tornado to lift me up and take me away to be with Jesus..... the hardest thing for me to do is trust Him, because i don't understand all that's going on right now...... but Proverbs says "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding..." so that's what i'll do....... i'm gonna walk blindly with Him, and trust Him..... He's given me such strength the last two weeks... more strength than i thought was possible for this weak body to ever encompass....but He makes me walk on water in raging storms.... all i have to do is keep my eyes focused on Him and not on the storms surrounding me.... pray that i have continued strength to do this.... and pray that i will be released from the grip that this anger has on me....... i've been pretty mad before... but i don't think i've ever felt anger like i do right now, and i don't know how to handel it or how to get rid of it...... i can't get rid of it, but God can take it away from me if i give it to Him..... pray that i can let go of it.......... i don't know what God is doing in my life right now, but trust is a huge necessity..... pray that i will have a renewed faith and a renewed trust daily......

"Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer."

-Romans 12:12

that was yesterday... and get this! it snowed in the valley tonight!!!!! and it's still snowing! the snow is a reminder to me that God's love is unfailing, and it's not always gonna be rain and hail.... wow! i had a terrible weekend, and last nigt we broke the news to the girls that our laurel ridge family is separating.... it was sad... it was really hard, we all cried, and then we had a slumber party, and all slept in the living room in front of the fireplace..... it was a really great end to such a sad night.... and this morning abby and i decided we weren't going to let these kids or ourselves be depressed all day, so we declared december 13 "don't bend your knees day"... wow! we had so much fun! i don't think the 8 of us have laughed so much in one day the whole time we've been here! so tomorrow is "double speak day" and wednesday is "don't use your thumbs day"..... we're gonna make it through this, and we're gonna use the gift of laughter that God gave us to do it..... i still have all the same prayer needs, and i'm still struggling with anger, but i'll never forget that in my darkest hours, God sent snow to the valley.... and even though people don't always follow His will for their lives, even when it's as clear as daylight, and clearly laid out in the scriptures, He is unfailing, and works for the good of those who love Him.... what an awesome God!

thank you all for your love and support! they all say "never say never" but i will definitely NEVER forget how wonderful you all are and how much you've done for me!!! and i have no hesitation in using that word! i hope i get to see as many of you as i can this Christmas! i said i wasn't gonna send another e-mail, but apparently i lied...... and who knows what the next 4 days hold for me... wow, i feel like i've bombarded y'all with emails the last 2 weeks! this is crazy! (i'm being a yenta....) i love y'all!!

His,

Anna Kathryn

"I thank my God everytime I remember you.

In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy."

-Philippians 1:3-4

"you and i... we will be ok..."

--corrie (in my cell as I AM WONDERFUL) i love you so much!!!

hmmm...

here's the situation:

my life at the ranch will be 100% different when i get back here from our 2 week christmas break.... my house parents are leaving, camile and elizabeth are moving to the other girls house, and laura and lensa are going elsewhere to learn "independant living skills" with a couple who works here, and abby and i will live at laurel ridge all by ourselves and probably do odd jobs around the ranch (filing, answering the phone, pastor wood's radio show.....) unless abby decides to go home... then i'll live here all by my lonesome..... and be a bitter old maid for the rest of the year, because not one, but all five of my girls have or are soon leaving me, plus my house parents..... the past two weeks have introduced a lot of change into our lives and have been really hard, but after christmas, i anticipate it getting harder..... i miss arissa..... i miss her hugs and her i love you's...... i miss everything about her, and there's nothing that i do here that isn't hard for me because she's not standing next to me and holding my hand.... walking back to the house by myself after devotions is the hardest thing to do... everytime i open my second drawer and see all of our science kit stuff and all the experiments we were going to do, i tear up.... it's really hard, and truly, the only comfort i have is knowing that she is safe now and happier than ever with our Lord...... after christmas, all the joy that i have left in this house will be gone..... except for my seperated at birth twin sister, abby, who hopefully will stay here..... i'm praying, firstly, that i won't remain bitter, and i'll accept this as God's will and surrender to Him, and secondly that they'll assign me as camile's mentor and i can teach her english and whatever else...... if that's what God wants me to do, then i'll be very pleased, if not, i'll work hard, and learn to love what He has me doing anyways..... camile needs some stability and that's something she's seen very little of since she's been here..... i'm worried the most about her, because she really has bonded with our house staff, and is now being moved out..... i agree with zero percent of what i heard in meetings today, but it's not about me and what i want to do.... it's about God and what He wants me to do and what is best for these kids...... i hate change, and i've accepted a lot of it the past few months, and it's been hard, but i'll continue to accept it and deal with it with the Lord's help..... i pray that the girls and our house parents can do the same, and somehow see the hand of God in everything that has happened since thanksgiving and is still happening..... please pray for continued strength for this house that's grown so strong together the last two weeks, and is about to be separated........ it's gonna be a really huge transition for the 8 of us, and we each need your prayers so badly...... so that's the situation..... this is probably the last e-mail i'll send before i leave here, so cherish it, and please pray that we will joyfully surrender to God's will without question or bitterness....... i hope i see you all while i'm home (except for my maconites..... you'll have your chance sooner or later....) i love y'all and i thank you soooooooo-------> much for loving me and being so supportive through your prayers for these kids and for me.....

His,

anna kathryn

"i thank my God everytime i remember you.

in all my prayers for all of you, i always pray with joy."

-phil. 1:3-4

fuzzy wuzzy cindy was a great caterpillar...

firstly, i am going to email each of you who i got a reply from back, but be patient, because there are a lot! and secondly, i want to thank each of you so much for being part of my life and for praying me through this.... GOD will get me through this.... He is getting me through it!

so many neat things happened the past couple of days in indiana, things that give me comfort and things that reassure me that i have a purpose here... i've really been feeling useless this week since arissa was my day and night.... we were two peas in a pod... when you saw one of us, you knew your were about to see the other one.... without her here, i really don't feel like i have much of a job... i just don't have anything to do... so that reassurance was much needed!

here are a few things that happened:

*"Let's prayer." -Arissa

*"I like when we prayer together." -Arissa

*tucking arissa in one night after we prayed: arissa: "do you think God is amazing?" me: "yeah, i do..." arissa: "i do too.... and miss anna kathryn?" me: "yeah?" arissa: "i think you're amazing too..."

*Arissa: "And God, thank you for Miss Anna Kathryn, because she really is in my heart... and so are you... but not satan... and God, just crush satan right now, so that no one will go to him anymore, and everyone will come to you..."

*Arissa: "Do you think God cares if we repeat things sometimes when we pray?"

Me: "Not at all..."

Arissa: "Good... Because everytime we pray together I'm always gonna start like 'Dear God, thank you that we get to spend this time together.'"

arissa and i used to pray together every night..... i started and she closed........ these were definitely the most precious moments i spent with arissa every day, and probably the most precious moments i spent with God.... everynight i saw that child growing closer and closer to her Creator.... in the beginning she basically just repeated what i said, but after a little while she started really talking to God from her heart, and asking me questions afterwards..... she was so thankful and so loving and there was no doubt that she loved Jesus Christ and that she loved me... when she got home for thanksgiving break, her grandmother asked her what she has learned since she's been here and she said: "what i've learned most is really how to pray."

now..... as many of you know..... i'm not typically one to pray outloud in front of anyone ever..... but God doesn't care what our weaknesses are, because He can break those barriers and work through us anyways! and He taught that beautiful child to love Him and to share that love with Him, and used somebody who never in a million years would have imagined being used that way! how incredible! i am so greatful that He chose me as one of His tools in helping Arissa learn this!

*Dr. Pardue: "Are you likin' it over there at the ranch?"

Arissa: "Huh? Lichen? Are you talking about botany?" a proud moment for a botany teacher!!

if you recall, i also felt that teaching botany was a huge weakness, and something i was terrible at.... but wednesday night, arissa's grandmother took us to see her room, and while we were there, she said "one of the first things arissa said to me when she got back was 'grandma, i LOVE science! we're learning botany, and that's the study of plants, and did you know that moss is a nonvascular plant, because it doesn't have tubes to carry the water?' and went on and on about botany!" wow! another barrier! and you know what.... i am SO scared of having a different student to teach, because the only options are middle school english and history or high school english and history, and while i LOVE the girls and am thrilled to be one of their "mentors" (teachers), i do not so much love english or history, and am not so thrilled to teach either..... but arissa, in those comments to her grandmother, showed me the power of God to give me the ability to do something i don't think i can do..... and who knows, maybe God put an english teacher somewhere inside of me..... i did learn from the best (coach moore! ...does this mean i get the flying frog? haha)

*arissa runs down stairs at 7:15 am, with her red sweat pants on and entirely TOO much energy for that early!! "miss anna kathryn! i have 5 shirts on! two tee shirts, my purple sweater, my red sweat shirt, and a jacket!" this happened at least 3 times a week!!

at the visitation, arissa was so made up, and in such a grown up outfit.... you wouldn't know it was the same kid..... she looked so serious and that's so not her! and you know what, it was a HUGE comfort to me to see her like that, because it made it so so so clear to me that that body was not her! it was her body, her shell.... it contained none of her liveliness or her personality, or her soul.... if it did, she would have had on red sweat pants, a funny face, and been giving me a knubbies up..... Arissa is with Jesus! her body is in the ground in laporte, indiana, but she is with her Father, and everything i love about her is not dead and buried! it's relocated, and my only comfort comes in knowing that i will be reunited with that amazing child again! maybe not tomorrow or the next day, and that's the hard part, because i miss her so much, but i'm certain that i will see her again! and she'll be even happier and bouncier than when she was here, because she will have nothing to fear, and nothing to be sad about! that body, as beautiful as it was, was not my arissa......

one of our songs here at laurel ridge is 'go light your world'... a song about spreading the gospel to unbelievers...... one that we listen to over and over and over again, because it's a beautiful song.... now... the main girls who to my previous knowledge loved this song so much were camile and laura.... arissa usually belted out 'come, now is the time to worship' or 'agnus dei' while she was in the shower instead... but at her funeral, the song that her grandmother chose to play, because arissa loved it and sang it so much when she was home, was 'go light your world.' we had no idea she loved that song so much! but it makes sense, because even in her death, God continues to use her to spread knowledge of His love to people who have no idea.... i already know of one little boy who accepted Christ this week because he knew arissa, and he knows she's with the Lord right now! my prayer is that so many more, in indiana and beyond, will see His glory through her life and her death, and come to know Jesus Christ as well....

here's something neat, and light........

the first field trip we went on this year was to an apple orchard..... i'm pretty sure the first time i've ever been to one..... and while we were there, we had a funeral for a caterpillar.... fuzzy wuzzy cindy..... and as arissa was very intricately building the gravesite, the conversation went like this :

arissa: "she was a great pet...."

emily: "why don't we go around and each say what we loved most about fuzzy wuzzy cindy..."

me: "fuzzy wuzzy cindy was a great caterpillar.... i'll really miss her.... that journey from indiana to east tennesse.... wow..... etc............"

i have a great picture of her sitting next to fuzzy wuzzy cindy's gravesite, and holding her microphone (or stick, which i also have in my room....)

the second time i went to an apple orchard was thursday morning... and there was a funeral there too..... because the cemetary that arissa was buried in is in the middle of an apple orchard! i can't wait to go back there, and use that same "microphone" and say what i loved most about her!

it was really great for me to go to indiana... there were a couple of negative things that came up, but they just made me happier for her that she doesn't have to live on this dangerous and scary earth ever again.... and i feel so much more at peace.... i'm still sad, because i loved that little girl so much, and i always will... day to day life will still be hard without her here, because everytime i walk by her door, i see an empty room, and i remember how much i miss her... i'm still gonna cry, and i'm still gonna feel a huge void... but i'm gaining strength everyday.... GOD is giving me more and more..... i'm gonna hold onto Him in this scary and hard time, just like arissa held onto His word in her last moments on this earth..... He took her from her fear and pain and into His arms, and I know He'll hold me too, and get me through this..... you guys are amazing, and i love you so much for praying for me and my ranch family and arissa's family.... this e-mail is incredibly long, but i'm so encouraged, and just wanted y'all to know that, and to know that you had a hand in that.... i can't thank you enough! keep prayin for us as we move into a normal schedule monday morning without arissa... and i'll keep prayin for y'all, and thanking my God for putting you each in my life!

His,

anna kathryn

"I thank my God everytime I remember you;

in all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy."

-Philippians 1:3

my arissa

hey y'all... we just got back from indiana a few minutes ago, and i should really be asleep in my bed already, but i wanted to share this pretty cool story with you....

arissa's grandmom, becky, told us she put arissa's bible in the bottom of her bag and put her bag in the trunk.... but the only way that the police officer could identify her when he got to the scene was because her name was written on the inside of her bible which was clasped in her hands! evidently she asked her jaja to get it for her somewhere along the way... praise the Lord! could He make it any more clear to us that she is resting in His arms right now!?

i have a lot to say, and i'll get to it in another e-mail, but that was definitely the most moving and comforting story i heard on the trip! we serve an amazing God, y'all, and my arissa is with Him right now! what a lucky girl!

i gotta quit typing and go to sleep before the tears start, but i love y'all so much, and THANK YOU for your prayers! i felt them so much the past 44 hours.... keep it up, and i'll pump another email out soon....

His,

anna kathryn

...she really is in my heart

"...and God, thank you for Miss Anna Kathryn,

because she really is in my heart...

and so are You!"

-Arissa

I don't have a lot to say in this e-mail but to just ask for your prayers.... for me, for my ranch family, and for Arissa's family. Arissa, our ten year old, got in a car with her grandfather Sunday to come back to the ranch, but didn't end up here, instead they drove all the way to heaven to be with their Father... How wonderful for both of them! PRAISE GOD that child will never have to suffer another day on this earth the way she did for 10 years! "God will wipe every tear from her eyes!" (Rev. 7:17) I couldn't be happier for her!

But I don't think I could be any sadder either..... The house is quiet... The whole ranch seems empty without her. She was, without a doubt, the joy of everyday for me, and for so many others here... I went into her room earlier and closed the door... I sat where I used to sit everynight when I tucked her in and prayed with her... and I cried...... I cried to God and asked Him to give me strength to live and work here without her..... strength to be able to encourage and comfort the other kids through this, even while I'm struggling so much.... I haven't found that strength yet, but please pray for me, with me, as I try to make it through this.....

The ranch is not empty, and I know that, because the Holy Spirit fills every inch and every crevace here! and PRAISE GOD that He gave us three months to spend with Arissa, and for her to grow to know Him and to love Him more! There's a void in my heart right now, but the void would be greater had I never known her, and I'm so blessed to have had that opportunity! It's amazing the impact that tiny, hyperactive 10 year old had on my life after only 3 months, but I loved her so much! And she is in my heart too, even though it's broken and hurting right now... But I'm certain that she's walking with the Lord right now.... giving Him high grabs, saying "blu blu"** and singing 'down at the beach' to Him, and that brings me so much joy!

Many of us at the ranch are leaving Wednesday morning at 6 to make the 9 hour bus drive to Indiana to see Arissa one last time on this earth. Please keep us in your prayers as we make this trip, and as we mourn the loss of our angel. This is Camile's second funeral in 9 days... She got home last week to the news that a friend of hers died at 14 years old, and when she got back here, she found out about this.

Y'all, I know you do, but especially now, please just pray for us without ceasing... I don't know how to be here without her... She was my everyday, she was what I did, my constant happiness, and she's gone..... As great as I know this is for her, the HUGE selfish part of me misses her so much and wants to shut down... but I've GOT TO FIND THE STRENGTH to keep going, if not for me, for these amazing kids! And they've got to find it too, and see it in the people surrounding them...

All I planned to do in this e-mail was ask for your prayers, but I ended up pouring my heart out.... Once I get goin.......... I love you guys so much! Thank you for praying for me and my girls, and all of these great kids! It's gonna be a hard few weeks before Christmas break, but I know that God can get us through it.....

His,

Anna Kathryn

"I thank my God everytime I remember you.

In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy."

-Philippians 1:3-4

Arissa: "Do you think God cares if we repeat things sometimes when we pray?"

Me: "Not at all..."

Arissa: "Good... Because everytime we pray together I'm always gonna start like 'Dear God, thank you that we get to spend this time together.'"

Thank you, God, that we got to spend so much time together!

** our secret language for "I love you!"

change is a positive thing...

"I pray that out of His glorious riches, He may strengthen you with power through His spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge - that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God."

Ephesians 3:16-19

wow! it's been a while! i'll be sure to make this a long one to make up for lost time....

i knew that things were gonna change when I got here, but, WOW! i didn't realize the extent to which they would! this is crazy! no, i'm still not using correct punctuation, but here's a list of some major changes God has made in my life in the past 10 weeks:

i cook!!!! but i can clearly see why i shouldn't...... but i do, at least once a week! so that is a step forward!

i'm considering botany as a career option... (JK!)

my room has been clean (by my standards) for 10 consecutive weeks!

as opposed to sleeping or something else that requires no movement, in my spare time (which is RARE) i crochet and memorize scripture (current project: scarf for a secret person and sermon on the mount)... and let me tell you, that requires ALOT of attention span! BIG change!

my 1:00 hour no longer revolves around Days of Our Lives! It revolves around REST TIME! that one hour of rest that we have every day... wow! definitely still the best 60 minutes of the day!

i no longer get an average of 3-4 hours of sleep every night and 3-4 hours of sleep every day.... i get a solid 8-9 hours every night! i'm in bed between 10:30 and 11:30 and up between 7 and 8! wow! who knew that such a drastic change was even possible!

movement is great! i do it ALL DAY LONG!

and more than anything else, God has made me realize how intricate and presice His plan is, and i have grown to trust Him and His every move so much more, and continue to every day.... i was sitting in this Bible study all of the interns are doing and we were going around talking about why we decided to come here.... and i sat there listening and just totally taking in how each of us were brought here, all from different circumstances and parts of the country, all at the very same moment, and for different reasons, and some of the same reasons.... it amazes me how God worked differently in each of our lives to gather us all here at the same time, with each of the particular kids in the houses that they were placed in with the house parents they were given... He is doing amazing things here.... i constantly thank Him for blessing me by putting these kids in my life, for whatever reason... one of my girls led devotions tonight, and it's just so awesome to see the change in her from when she got here about 7 weeks ago, and was crying every night and didn't understand why she had to be here away from her mom, to where she is now, totally leaning on God and trusting Him! wow! You are so amazing, God! So... while i don't know, or always understand what's going on and why, i've learned to just close my eyes and remember, God has a plan, trust Him and wait.........

and in the midst of all of these good changes, there is but one sad change: the time has come to say goodbye to an old anna kathrynism... the goal is to completely delete "I know right" from my vocabulary by..... tomorrow.... SAD, i know..... but it's all i hear anymore.... the mockery is too much to handle, and really, i'm just sorta tired of hearing it... it doesn't really make sense anyways.... i know, right.... what does that mean? if vu were here i'd ask him, since he started it all those years ago in mr. emery's classroom... probably in the midst of making that terrifying 2 foot tall vase thing, or that nice jewelry set..... wow... those were the days.... "i know right"... you'll be missed...

anyways...... i love you guys! i really have some amazing people in my life! i cannot believe how truly blessed i am! thank you for your prayers, and as always, if you need anything, i'm happy to pray for you, with you, or talk to you anytime on the weekends or between 1 and 2 on weekdays... your support and prayers mean so much to me! thank you!!! i love y'all!!

here are some prayers requests..... just 2: next tuesday my house is driving to florida for 4 days..... safety! and when i return, i'll have a new roommate.... goodbye emily #4... she'll be at the ranch, just not at laurel ridge (my house) so pray that i'll be accepting and excited about this change of roommates, and not sad about the loss of one..... the good news is that i'll no longer be the only intern at laurel ridge, which will be extremely helpful! thank you, God!

is this email shorter? wow! (probably not... you know they just keep going....) keep sendin me letters, y'all! 3601 lyon springs rd. sevierville, tn 37862 (hint hint) i know i'm not too quick to respond, but give it time....

God bless you all!

--anna kathryn

"I thank my God every time I remember you.

In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy."

Philippians 1:3-4

ps- thank you, rachel doss, for extending the life of my earring changing to 6 more days instead of 3! excluding saturdays and sundays, i still have not yet worn the same pair of earrings twice since i've been here!! i love you, b, you rock my face off! (in the ghetto...... in the ghetto!!)

2 pictures this time!:

my beautiful back yard....

on a hike...... first row to last row, left to right: 1- zachary(7), peter(9), arissa(10), laura(18) -2- shakia(11), quavi(9), cory(9) -3- shabre(10), me(21), zach(12), tara(13) -4- emily (intern), lensa(19) -5- ben (intern), camile(13), ashley(13) -6- elizabeth(13)

and speaking of pictures, the intern picture is definitely on the webpage now!! how exciting!!

http://www.wvr.org/pages/interns.html

and you guys should also click here

http://www.wvr.org/pages/oct_nwsltr.pdf

and look at the newsletter for october/november!! so great!

this email is never ending.... here are some more great quotes......:

*"Do you do any jazz or interpretive dancing?" -elizabeth... HA!

*"So... i'm on the internet the other day, checkin up on what webpages the girls are lookin at... and i run across this 'marlena.com'....." -james (my house dad)

*tucking arissa in one night after we prayed: arissa: "do you think God is amazing?" me: "yeah, i do..." arissa: "i do too.... and miss anna kathryn?" me: "yeah?" arissa: "i think you're amazing too..." aaawwwwwww!! i think i'm gonna cry!!

*"I almost bought you a birthday card the other day that had an hourglass on the inside that had actual sand in it! i could just see you opening it and saying 'like sands through the hourglass!!'" -marilee (house mom at oak rise)

*"Today's church! I have to study E-fusions!" -arissa

*in an email i got from camile tonight: "YOU SO TOTALLY ROCK MY FACE OFF!!!"

*"You are not allowed to eat your Bible!" -me... in complete seriousness...

*"I havent been watching long enough to know if i should want belle and philip together or belle and shawn, so you just tell me...." -marliee... hahaha!!! emily b., i know you're upset....