Getting Closer to Departure

We're under the 12-hour threshold now.  Our team members are anxious to get to the airports and board flights that will ultimately land us in Nairobi. With less than 12 hours before boarding, that means checking in online.  That means some of us have driven to Chicago on Saturday in order to meet at 12 noon on Sunday.  That means we're carefully weighing the luggage we will check, as well as our carry-ons.  That means boxing bikes.  That means we're saying farewell to our loved ones and friends for a few weeks.

It's all part of a great adventure.

Recently, I learned that "safari" means "journey." Typically, I associate safari with a particular type of journey.  While our safari will not include hunting wild game (though we sure are hoping to SEE many!), it is a journey well beyond our familiar circles and comfort zones. Our safari crosses continents and cultures.  It sets us into a land known for its sweeping vistas, beautiful and strange animals and hospitable people. It puts us on bicycles to pedal across a country, inching our way along a route that will take us on a 600-mile loop.

So, these preparations and transitions are no small matter for our team members. For some, it is their first journey outside the United States.  For others, it is a new opportunity in a series of international volunteer service experiences.  For some, it is their first major cross-country bicycle ride. For others, it is a new place to explore as a seasoned international cyclist.  But we are all full of anticipation, hope, and positive anxiousness.  We can't wait to get into this journey.

I've been thinking of Michael Card's lyrics "Joy in the Journey":

There is a joy in the journey
There's a light we can love on the way
There is a wonder and wildness in life
And freedom for those who obey.

There is a distinct possibility that each day, each experience, each challenge along the way to reaching one's destination makes the ending or completion meaningful. It's not just about the completion (finish line, "mission accomplished," end product) itself.  Unless we embrace and live the smaller encounters--some apparently trivial or mundane experiences and sometimes difficult or apparently strange people--we may miss vital parts of the journey's impact and fullness.

So, here's to embracing every part of the journey--our safari--including all we've already experienced to get where we are right now--full of anxious anticipation.

-- John Franklin Hay