Home Again

Rested from hours and hours of travel with one bag unpacked and one still fragrant with the colors of indian spices waiting to be incorporated into this American home. Morning chai consumed and here I sit with a whirl of thoughts in my heart and mind, yet the numbness of jetlag requires an added effort to form them into comprehensive statements.

We arrived at our final destination and took rest. A short time later we watched the littlest ones practice writing letters and numbers. Then evening brought the next wave of kids home and we were once again all reunited. The following day was filled with more rest, chai, coffee, tasty kabobs and belated Christmas presents of coloring books, stickers and various small toys. In the days following we took lunch to a leper colony, went to the grocery store, drank chai, played with kids, sat on rooftops, drank chai, ate corn... yummy yummy chili lemon corn, talked, watched silly indian shows on tv, drank chai, ate good food, rested, drank chai, visited the kids preschool, ate more good food, fasted and prayed, celebrated, colored, drank coffee, laughed, played, drank chai, tickled, read, wished good mornings, afternoons and evenings, studied for exams, watched movies, drank chai, lived.

The tough part about going to a place like india is it's not always easy to communicate exactly what it's like. once you've been, well then you understand. almost like camping. imagine you've never been camping so someone tries to explain to you how it's like regular life, but different. you still cook, but by different means and with different tools and an altered menu. you have shelter but it's different than a house. it's simplified living really. you only take what's necessary. you dont have all the conveniences you might have at home, like a normal toilet or a printer, but you have everything you need. and you'll do stuff you don't normally do, like walk through woods, or swim in rivers, or fish, etc... or simply hang in a hammock or watch birds. it's just different. but it's not so different.

Of course one might simply call it a vacation. I've heard this said of short term missions trips. folks questions the benefits. I dont call it a short term missions trip. I call it stepping out of my normal context and learning abroad. learning other ways to live. other ways to love. other ways to pray. other ways to rest. other ways to eat. other ways to play. other ways to rely on God. other ways to see the world. other ways to see my world. and what I've learned comes with me, changes me, inspires me, motivates me... it helps me pause to think, it helps me question the status quo, and it gives me courage.

now to process what's next... what adjustments should be made... what things should be pursued. and not necessarily for years to come, but simply for the next few moments.

I'd like to extend many thanks to you if you were a part of this journey whether through prayer, finances, time, energy or encouragement. You all played an important part and I appreciate it.