Ireland

I had the amazing opportunity to study abroad at the University of Limerick in Ireland at the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance. Irish traditional music was my first introduction to music and getting to study with Karan Casey was an unbelievable experience. But living in Ireland was hard. As always, there are a few exceptions but as a rule, Irish culture is very non-confrontational and passive aggressive. Even my Southern charm was considered loud and abrasive. I had to change the way I talked and interacted at every level in order to fit in with the culture.

Slowly, I started to get the hang of it (never reaching perfection); and I wanted to do this for the rest of my life. Adjusting to a new culture is challenging and uncomfortable but so rewarding. I love observing and imitating conversation styles and body language and the butterflies before starting a conversation in a secondary language. My time in Ireland was a period of growth musically and personally and confirmation that I wanted to do cross-cultural ministry.

When I returned from Ireland, I looked for opportunities to build my skills for Bible translation and teaching abroad. I attended the Summer Institute of Linguistics, a graduate program in North Dakota, and met friends and teachers that encouraged me to continue in linguistics.