Going Home.

Winnipeg. Vancouver. Sydney. Perth.

Bangkok. Kathmandu.

Bangkok. Poi Pet.

Bangkok. Perth.

Kuala Lumpur. Perth.

Bangkok. Nairobi.

Dar Es Salaam.

Nairobi. Bangkok. Perth.

Kuala Lumpur. Hyderabad.

Kuala Lumpur. Manila.

Olongapo City. Manila.

Kuala Lumpur. Perth.

Perth. Sydney. Honolulu. Vancouver.

June 6th.

An excerpt from my journal in Honolulu:

Took my sweet time since I had 9 1/2 hours.

Got my luggage on a cart and went to the bathroom and washed my face, changed my clothes, and washed my hair.

The temperature was perfect. With nice gentle breezes. It was wonderful! You were just warm enough in a sun dress, but not sweating either.

Anyway, I started to to get pretty sleepy around the middle of the afternoon...

I think it was the middle of the night for me.

I managed to sleep for an hour,

sleeping with my arms draped over my bags.

I leisurely checked in, and leisurely perused the small amount of shops...

I walked the spacious, open corridors to our gate,

the sun was setting and the sky was now a pale, dusky blue.

And there she was.

The Air Canada plane.

I stopped pushing my cart and just stood there,

soaking in the moment.

An Air Canada plane.

I'm going home.

I leaned up against the railings and thanked God for the various things that were on my heart, and if I were a little more sleep deprived

or aware of the meaning of this moment,

I would have cried.

The sentiment was there,

and it was welling up inside of me,

and then as I continued to walk down that hallway,

watching the palms rustle above me,

a strong wind came and blew up my skirt.

Well, sentimental moment over.

But seriously, the Honolulu to Vancouver flight was so emotional for me.

First, hearing your accent spoken by others.

Seeing all the Canadians sitting waiting for their flight,

knowing that I could speak to each one of them if I wanted!

I felt such a connection with them!

And then reading the Air Canada's inflight magazine there was an article describing Manitoba's Whiteshell landscape....

a small area in Southern Canada where I spent my summers growing up.

I'm coming home!

Wow.

It has been a long time.

****

"Ladies and Gentlemen: this is your captain speaking.

The time is 4:20 am and we are 20 miles from Vancouver Island.

We'll be in Vancouver before 5."

I looked down and I could see the dark tops of forests and mountains covered with trees.

Canadian land. Oh how I've missed you.

I crumpled in sobs with my face to the glass,

this dark and early dawn of June 6th, 2010.

And to think that I will see Aisha in a matter of moments!!

Graduation

Perth.

Travelling by plane gets me every time.

You pack your bags, walk down a few aisles,

sit in a seat, watch some movies,

and then boom,

you come out on the other side in a new continent.

So, we arrived back in Perth.

Familiar setting, familiar parking lot, familiar people.

But it was chilly!

The air was clear and bright,

and the sun shone to light the sky,

but the wind still managed to kiss your cheeks into a rosy red.

We had a week together as a team in Perth.

It was marked with joy and reunion.

There were many opportunities to tell stories of our latest travels,

and space to reminisce about our days together in Africa and India, and in seperate teams in Philippines and A-stan.

It was so good to see the A-stan team,

and hear all their colourful stories, finally, in person.

We didn’t hear much from them while they were there... emails had to be vague.

It was so good to be all together again,

to have a week to adjust and scavenge for winter clothes

(June is cold in Australia, and the houses don’t have insulation or heating!),

and the leaders of our school were really good about finishing up loose ends well.

We had time to reflect and express

what we’ve learned,

how we’ve grown,

and what God did in our lives over this past year.

We shared with each other our plans for the future, where we felt God was leading us,

and each one of us was prayed for.

We finally graduated, recieved our certificate, and enjoyed the exquisite handmade desserts full of chocolate and almonds.

The days were a little surreal,

but we savoured what we could of being together, even though the days were numbered.

But how do you really prepare for a life onward,

without the ones you’ve been with for the last year?