Kim Wilbanks

We all have things we would like to do in our lives. It could be a career we aspire to or a special place we want to visit. It could be a daring activity or a relationship status. Sometimes, we experience things we never in our wildest dreams we imagined we would do. I’m experiencing such a thing right now. It’s just another in an unexpected but treasured string of events in my life.

Amazon Adventure

In 2004, I traveled to Brazil for the first time. I was a chaperone on a youth mission trip to Santarem, a small town on the Amazon River. My teenage son was part of a praise band, taking part in a youth event in the city. The mission team also helped build a small church. In 2005, my husband joined us on the annual mission trip, and the following year, our daughter came, making it a family trip. On that trip twenty years ago, I experienced the most amazing thing I have ever experienced. We slept in hammocks on a boat traveling down the Amazon River. The night sky was breathtaking. It was like a bowl of black velvet with millions of tiny points of light suspended above us. I will never forget that sight. I have locked it in my memory forever.

African Experience

I never really thought about going to Africa. It wasn’t on my “bucket list.” Probably because it seemed very wild and outdoorsy but also because I knew it would require many hours on an airplane. Things I am not super fond of. But, in 2015, the president of One More Child and his wife, a dear friend, invited me and my husband to join them in Uganda for their ministry’s annual Christmas celebration. Another friend joined her husband, the trip photographer, so it was a mission/friend/birthday trip.

Like the Amazon River in Brazil, Africa was nothing like I had ever experienced. Carrying on with the river theme, we saw the beginning of the Nile River.

During our week in Uganda, we worked with Hines Ugandan Ministries. We had a tea and gave gifts to the women and had a Bible School-type event for children where my husband and I supervised craft-making for 1,500 children. Yikes! The highlight was the huge Christmas party at the school for several hundred children. We ended the week on a small safari where we saw the amazing animals in Africa.

Three years later, my husband and I went with this same organization to South Africa. It is the farthest I have ever traveled, but it was definitely worth the trip. If you want to support an excellent ministry, I suggest you check out One More Child. Their mission is to provide Christ-centered services to vulnerable children and struggling families both here and around the globe. You can sign up for a mission trip on their website and visit the amazing places they serve.

Northern Exposure

I am fascinated by things in the night sky. I love star-gazing, and I have a moon friend who is as obsessed with the moon as I am. If a meteor shower is in the forecast, you can bet I’ll have my alarm set. Living in central Florida, I can often see the launches from Cape Canaveral, especially if it’s a clear night. So, when my husband’s sister, brother-in-law, cousins, and their spouses asked us if we wanted to join them on a cruise to see the northern lights in Norway, it took us about half a second to say yes! It was a very cold, very dark trip. It was probably the coldest weather this native Floridian has ever experienced, and the average four to six hours of daylight was surreal. We saw the northern lights several times on the trip. They weren’t as vivid as I expected them to be, but I can say I have seen the northern lights.

Just Call Me Grams

This is by far my favorite title ever. I don’t know why, but I never pictured myself as a grandmother. I knew I always wanted to be a mom, but I never thought beyond that. Perhaps it’s because grandmothers are usually old, and I didn’t want to think about that. However, during the last twenty-eight months, I have relished this new role. Everything you hear about being a grandparent is true! It’s the best, even when you don’t see your grandkids as much as you would like. I love being Grams to my two grandsons. They are the cutest, cleverest, most adorable, and most precious creatures ever born. Grandmothers can say things like that.

Blogger, Writer, Author

I started writing this blog about ten years ago, August 2014. Two years later, I agreed to write a friend’s story for her. Her family escaped from Poland during WWII as the Russian army was approaching the eastern border. It took much longer than I expected, but after many hours of interviews, writing, and rewriting, I finally published the book around Christmas. This past weekend, we celebrated the launch of the book with a book signing and launch party. It was surreal.

I never imagined I would write a book. It wasn’t anything I thought about doing. I’ve written many short pieces, but never a book. It was more difficult than I thought it would be, and at times, I wanted to give up. It feels so good to have finished such an extensive project. And the icing on the cake was to have so many friends come to help celebrate the accomplishment. On my next birthday, I will officially be a senior citizen. I’m a testament to the phrase, “It’s never too late to start.”

How about you? What is something you have done or experienced in your life that you never thought you would do? I would love to hear.