Travel Lightly

It's my own fault.

I had hoped that there was some way to include the congregation on this journey. The truth is I'd really like them to experience it too. So I did the standard thing, describing the shape and form of my sabbatical, sharing a reading list and pertinent websites. I began having many conversations, some of them full of blessing-and-get-on-your-way, and others full of fear.

To be honest, the anxiety of others can rub off onto me sometimes, especially when it is expressed by someone that I admire. One of the ways I've learned to cope with my own anxiety is by planning carefully. So in preparation, I read through some of the details of my upcoming trip and found the suggestion to bring small gift items with me to give to the children and youth that I meet.

To be honest, I don't have stuff like that. But eureka! I'll bet my congregation does. So I asked them, about two weeks before I would leave, to give me small gifts and trinkets. Two weeks isn't a lot of time, but I hoped to be able to take enough with me to fill half of my medium size duffel bag.

To be honest, it's been a deluge of blessings:

The first one to offer gifts heard me talking about it at parenting support group. The second saw my note on Facebook. Another who is moving soon ordered a shipment of cars and animals from amazon. A high school youth gave me his matchbox car collection. A mom made bracelets with her daughters. Many, many shopping bags full of exactly what I asked for were left on my office table with little love notes and cards wishing me well.

So I've filled that duffel. And I've reconsidered packing personal non-essential items like a hair dryer to make more room. Do I really need two hats? Probably not. In the end, the church gave me about four times what I could carry, and eight times what I thought they would. Clark will ship the rest for me when I run out mid-term. Blessing upon blessing. And me? Grateful.