Thirty-four days

A friend asked me recently what I would miss the most being gone for a year. At first consideration all the little things come to mind...I'll miss watching my Patriots tear through the postseason and win their 4th championship in 7 years. I'll miss having easy access to the internet where I can chat with friends or check my email whenever I want. And like I said before, I'll miss my friends here and all the things that will happen in their lives over the course of the year. But I think more than anything I'll miss people that understand me. In past trips to Namibia I've always been with teams of other Americans. This time around I won't have people who share my American perspective to sit and debrief with around a campfire. I won't have friends who understand my frustrations or know what I'm thinking simply by my facial expression. There's something to be said for investing 5 years in relationships and having people surrounding you who can challenge you and laugh with you because they understand you. So in reflecting on what it really means to be gone for an entire year, that's probably what I'll miss the most. But I trust that God will bring new people into my life while I'm there...in fact, I'm counting on it.

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We purchased my plane ticket last week. So now I have an official departure date, which makes it seem that much more real. December 2nd will be my last Sunday at Christ's Church, then I'll fly out the next day. I'll fly from Boston to Washington D.C. then straight to Joburg before catching the short flight up to Windhoek. I'm not sure of the exact times yet or how long my layovers are but that's the gist. So if you don't have plans come help me caravan down to Boston on Monday, Dec 3rd. :)

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Packing has officially begun, another thing that makes it seem that much more real. No, not packing for the trip, but packing up my stuff here. I don't have all that much stuff in the first place (as those who helped me move can attest), but most of what I do have I've been progressively tossing or giving away. The few remaining crates of personal memorabilia, irreplaceables, and junk that's special to me will end up packed away at my parent's house.

I love the discipline of simplicity. I love that for an entire year everything I'll have can be packed in a suitcase. Truth is I think we all know we can live on much less than we have. Even much of what we think we need is simply periphery, we're just not willing to part with it. The demands of discipleship often come into conflict with our greedy, materialistic, consumerist culture, and this area of 'stuff' is no exception. So like I said, I'm excited about the opportunity to take this rant of mine to another level of practicality.