My first mission trip was to Crisfield, Maryland, the crab capital of the world, in the summer of 2013. I was terrified to go. I only knew one person who would be on the trip, Becky from my church. Being the shy girl I was, I was really afraid they wouldn’t like me, I wouldn’t like them, or somehow I’d be too awkward to fit in. I was also the youngest member on the team. The close second was a man who just got out of college. The majority were in the 60-70 range.

I felt like I wasn’t going to fit in.

We began everyday waking up at 6:30am (I know, it sounded fatal to me too) and eating breakfast at 7:00am. We ate, talked, and then had a morning devotion before we left for work at 8am. Every day of the trip, my group worked at Allan’s home. It was this little blue house in Crisfield, and I loved it.

I loved getting to know Allan as the trip went on. He lost his wife to Leukemia six years before we came. When we were moving furniture back in, after all the repairs we made, he wanted everything to be put back the way his wife arranged it. I was touched that a man who lost his wife six years ago loved her so much to want the house to look just like it did when she was there. I fell in love with that.

Through the hard work of scraping, painting, learning how to paint with a roller, sanding, staining, sanitizing flooded furniture, and moving furniture, I never got tired of it. Sure, sometimes we would be tired, worn down, and in need of a break, but I never got tired of it. I loved all the work we did. I loved staining railing. I loved painting the mantle. I loved the struggle to find the exact shade of blue to match his walls. I loved every aching part of it.

It was hard work, no one on our team will deny that, but it was the best work. We showed love, generosity, and God to this man and got to share stories and laughs with him too. We also enjoyed our time together as a mission team too.

I think I loved that the most.

I loved coming down the stairs to sit at the breakfast table with a look that said “I don’t do mornings” and have Dairel tease me for it. I loved how energetic John was every morning and how he knew so certainly that today was a blessing. I loved working in the kitchen with Sharon, Cindy and some of the other ladies. I loved how conversation by conversation, I stepped more and more out of my shell.

I remember trying hushpuppies for the first time and when Dairel said, “at first we couldn’t get Abbey to talk, and now we can’t get her to shut up.” I don’t think I’ve smiled so much as I did when he said that. I was so quiet when I first came, but I fell in love with the work we did and the people there. I fell in love with service, saw how God shines in people’s lives, and found a second family.

I went from being a shy girl who was scared to talk to new people to a girl who understood what it felt like to be heard and understood.

I’ve taken that message throughout the rest of my life. When I meet people, make friends, go to gatherings, and even in my writing. That trip, that crab capital, was the first step to understanding my worth and the power of my own voice and the power of being understood.