19 Days - Departure

Nineteen days! This will be the longest I have ever been away from Sandy. As I sit in the plane starting the first leg of this trip, it all feels very odd, especially in light of so many other firsts that will be wrapped up in these nineteen days. My first time to Washington D.C., my first time to Europe, my first time to meet my cousin Marinus, my first time staying in the homes of strangers in another country. It all is very strange. I'm sure there are some unexpected firsts, as well, and lurking in the nineteen days will be twists and turns that will shape this adventure in surprising ways.


I am wearing a shirt today that says, "The journey is the destination." I like that. I like that as a motto for life and for faith. Since there is no final stopping point (other than getting back home), every one of the nineteen days will bring something new, something planned and something unanticipated. My goal is to embrace each of those and see none of them as bad, but just part of the experience. I have a tendency to stress over things when they don't go according to plan, so this is all just a goal at this point, stuff that sounds good as I write, but no doubt will be difficult when I am in the midst of a complication!

Fortunately, having Colby with me will help. There does not seem to be much that stresses him out. I would do well to be more like him in that regard. I had a chance to talk to him briefly last night, for a few minutes while he had wi-fi in Jamaica. He had just arrived in Montego Bay, preparing to fly out in the morning after spending two weeks helping with Vacation Bible Schools there. A couple days before he left he had a wart removed from the bottom of his foot. Running around with the children in Jamaica did not exactly help it heal. So last night, rather matter-of-fact, he told us that the area on his foot that had the wart had blistered and was causing him a bit of pain. Since it was a video chat he was even able to show it to us (much to the dismay of Sandy) and it was not pretty! But he said it all with laughs and smiles, still looking forward to our time together and cherishing the time spent with the children in Jamaica. For him it is just a minor bump along the way that adds interest to the whole adventure. I'm not sure how he developed that attitude, but I'm sure glad God saw fit to give it to him. I am hoping some of it will rub off on me as we travel together!