It's winter. Crisp, cold February. And the northern bays of the lake are covered in a foot of ice; enough to drive on, more than enough for ice skating.

I haven't been ice skating in years. I used to, in another life, actually take lessons. But then, in keeping with Holub tradition, we moved. I think I may have been once or twice in the last twelve years, but skating circles in a rink with countless other people is not what I call skating. It's lemmings on ice. Needless to say I was thrilled to be out on the lake this past weekend. I was even more thrilled that I had enough balance left to stay standing.

If I had been keeping things updated this past year (I'm surprised at my recent blog deficiency) you (my collective reader) would have known that I was scheduled to be headed to Mali on a summer mission trip as part of my time on EDGE Corps. It has come about that I am no longer able to go.

There are a long lists of reasons. Official: Insufficient Funding. Rational: I'll be able to spend more time fund raising this summer; it takes a great deal of pressure off me and my limited contact list; and on and on...

But in typical Erika form, I don't like using any of these. My response doesn't seem to make much sense at all really. It makes me think of how beautiful God is. I have said I will trust God in all things, which means trusting where he leads, and where he doesn't. I trust him now as ever. How great his love, how much his care, for God provides even in saying no. And really, when I recognize God's hand in my life, how can I fail to praise him?