I had the COOLEST partner for my trip! He was truly such a joy to be around, and I could not have asked for a better teammate, and now friend.
He was probably my hardest goodbye because by the end of our trip I considered him like a brother to me. And brother isn't a term I use lightly, due to my own brothers' hard to live up to standards. A fair amount of people we met along the way even would comment on the fact that we acted like brother and sister. I shared the most words, the most laughs, and the most inside jokes (that people will more then likely never fully understand) with Matt on the trip, and will hold on to those memories for a long time.
The more I got to know him, the more impressed and inspired I was by him. I admired Matt's intelligence. He didn't always have the most to say, but when he did speak, his words held weight. There were a lot of things we did that he had never done, so watching him try new things with an adventurous spirit and a willing heart was so fun to be a part of; and encouraged me to not be afraid to try new things. It warmed my heart to see how good he was with the kids, how patient, kind, and encouraging he was toward them. The youth was a little daunting to me because I had mostly dealt with littles, but Matt was always good with the reminder to be comfortable being uncomfortable. I got to see him grow relationships with a few young men, and even see them come out of their shell and seek a relationship with the Lord. Being able to witness seeds that Matt had sewn actually grow, was so encouraging. One of the guys he had poured into had previously gone through a difficult, life threatening surgery, and we got to watch him open up to Matt, to tell jokes again, smile, and really be comfortable being himself in the church. I think the coolest thing about all of this was the fact that we were discipling one another without really knowing it. We grew in our faith, and pushed one another to further grow, seek, and expand the Kingdom.
I have a million and twelve funny stories I could share... but I don't think I could pick just one, so for now I am going to hold them in my heart. Being so busy with school, I don't get to spend a whole lot of time with my brothers anymore; so being able to spend my summer serving the Lord alongside someone who I thought of in that light, was so sweet. None of my words could ever express my gratitude towards Matt, or ever do justice the things that I learned from him this summer. I look forward to the day our paths cross again.