Hello World,

Before this blog becomes updates and memories of my mission trip, I first wanted to go a little bit more in depth about myself. My name is Hannah Sandberg but most of my friends call me Sandy. I am 22yrs old but honestly I feel a lot older than that… Now that we got the introduction out of the way, we can get to the juicy stuff. The tea if you will :) I’m going to give you the long version so this will take a couple of parts. Now let's start from the beginning.

Once upon a time, in a galaxy far far away there lived a girl in a bubble. Growing up my life was pretty simple. I went to a tiny school that was connected to my fathers church. My world was very small. I knew everyone and everyone knew me. Through my adolescent eyes, I was a celebrity. Which worked in my favor because there is nothing I wanted more than the approval of others. I wanted to be the smartest, the fastest, the prettiest, and the biggest Jesus freak. So I filled my life with ways to gain approval. I wanted everyone to like me and I wanted to be the best. For the most part I got away with it. It's really not that hard to excel when your world is small and protected. I was the star and the church my stage. The world revolved around me because I thought myself, the sun. Then unexpectedly my world got a little bigger. My bubble moved south to Costa Rica.

My father felt called to pack up our family and move to Costa Rica for a year. I was six years old. I remember our time there very clearly even though I was young. I absolutely loved Costa Rica. One might think moving to a different country where you know no one and don’t even speak the language might put a damper on your attention seeking but boy would you be wrong. My bubble had not popped. It simply changed scenery. In fact, as a little blonde white girl in a sea of Ticos it was quite the opposite. My life was still pretty simple. I went to school as a normal kid. I went to church every Sunday determined to show off my “vast” knowledge of the bible. I acclimated very easily to our new way of life but I was not oblivious. I noticed the bars on every window and the large gate surrounding our property. I realized the boys of the barrio (the neighborhood kids) wore the same two pairs of clothes in rotation. I looked out my window as we traveled and saw neighborhoods built out of cardboard boxes and scrap metal. For the first time in my life I realized that I was blessed. Why was I born in the US? Why did I have two present parents? Why did I always have something to eat? But here's what really puzzled me. The people in Costa Rica (Ticos) seemed happy. I’d dare say happier than the people I knew back home. They lived relatively the same lives. Adults went to work. Kids went to school. We all went to church. However the Ticos had to work harder for less. Yet they were happier…why?

You’re going to have to wait to find out the answer. I didn’t solve that riddle until much later. Our year in Costa Rica is coming to a close. Why do we have to leave? Dad said we had completed our calling and it was time to go home. But there were still people in Costa Rica that needed help. The work didn’t feel complete. People are still living in boxes. People are still hungry. I didn’t know it at the yet but our time in Central America ignited something in me. I buried it deep down because I had to keep going. I had to move back to the US with my family. I left as a 7yr old with my superiority complex intact. Except now I didn’t feel as superior as I acted. My bubble had become transparent. I could see the world around me. I saw the struggle and the pain. Yet, I couldn’t figure out why those things seemed not to touch me. Why was I special? What did I do to deserve my privilege? Where does God fit into all this? He loves all of the little children equally but doesn’t give them equal lives? I was stumped. 

Unfortunately I stopped asking those questions after we got back to the states. Not all at once. I was too enlightened for that. At first American consumerism disgusted me. I would cry at Walmart. All I wanted to eat was beans and rice and other Costa Rican dishes. Mom and dad had a real struggle though…trying to get me to wear shoes :) Soon I forgot though. Surrounded by convenience and the American dream I settled back into building my ego. But the flame was lit inside me still. Buried…but still lit. 

(Present Day PSA) I have a busy two weeks ahead of me as I work two full time jobs before I settle into only waitressing until I leave for my trip. I will continue my testimony blogging afterwards and my posting will become more frequent. Thank you for reading!