Two weekends ago my sweet friend Maristela and I took some time and went down to Knoxville for a visit. It was a great time! We talked, we laughed! We were total girls!
It was the first time I had been back to Knoxville since I moved to Louisville in 2008. I was able to reconnect with sweet friends like Julia, Lisa, Barb and Luan. We visited some of my old haunts and enjoy some of my favorite places. We even went out dancing (shocking!). It was a blast.
One of the highlights of the trip was our visit to CAK (Christian Academy of Knoxville). I worked there for almost 3 years. My co-workers as well as the families who have students at CAK have had a profound impact on my life. CAK blessed me beyond words. It gave me direction, a sense of purpose, a sense of family and connection.
As I walked the familiar halls and saw all the growth and the changes I was so proud. And sad too. I no longer wanted to go to England. I wanted to stay here. And I realized something, something very special. When asked, "where are you from," I've always answered, "I'm from Brazil, but my parents are from Baton Rouge, Louisiana." Mostly because I did not feel there was a place here in the U.S. that I had lived long enough or that I had enough connections to really call "home." That is not true, after all. Knoxville is home for me here in the U.S. That is because of CAK and the special, special people God brought together there.
Thank you CAK staff, faculty, parents and students for being such a special chapter in my life. I love you SO, SO much. I am closing this post with a song - a song by Andrew Peterson. I was listening to it on my ipod the other day and it reminded me of CAK and what happens on that campus every single day.
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