With #1 son here for a few Spring Break days, I was allowed to "forget" that I will be heading to the Dominican Republic this next week. I get to help my friend, Connie Rock, as she leads a team in Santa Domingo.
Monday, I realized that my prayers for the trip & my colleagues had been supplanted by feeble-hearted "please don't let me screw up" bleatings.
Tuesday, I learned how to ask for and receive help when my tire blew on the way home towards Kenan.
Wednesday, I learned again to pray, "Thank You", and laugh and laugh as smack talk flipped a kayak.
Thursday, as Kenan moved through airport security, I remembered how to release both him and his sister to a God I cannot see.
Friday, following a midnight premiere, I prayed for enough strength and lucidity to keep moving.
It's Saturday as I write this and my prayers are scattered like my packing list.
What I'll be packing
clothes
hope
shampoo
a pillow
my bible
a peace that ebbs and flows
wonder
a few skirts & tee shirts
girly gizeh birkenstocks
a few pesos i purchased from a friend just back from the D.R.
a too loud laugh
hands open to what just might happen in that island nation
What I will leave behind
blind one-eyed cat
worry
shorts
my books
my kids and friends who are like family
sweet new yoga mat
foggy commute & the Biscuit Shoppe on Cleveland HWY
the 7th ring of hell that is Atlanta traffic
my Americanized expectations
the freshly planted pansies & herbs on my patio
a need to know everything before i go
legacy-building
what i think i know
& what i think i'm worth to you, to the folks i love, to a kingdom where the first become last and last become first
Join me will you?
As always, I have a special talent for international incidents and shenanigans so your prayers, good wishes, and bacon-fueled thoughts are more than gold to me. I'll be skimming back over the water Friday, April 6…Good Friday. Friends have reminded me that my life may be headed for a 10-day spin cycle of wringing out the excess and feeling a bit tipsy from the needs presented and the needs we drag behind us.
We will be dealing with the real hunger games – poverty, despair, lack. As Americans, we will be dealing with our own lack – loneliness, disconnection, and an assumption of what the Unseen God is all about.
I'll sometime have access to the blog as I'll update the team blog (they'll be writing, I'll be posting about this adventure) at http://dr.myadventures.org/.
Much love and Thanks for you,
Allie
Trip FAQ:
- The Dominican Republic shares an island with Haiti (Hispanola)
- We'll be in Santa Domingo for the most part
- Our team originates from a High School in Virginia
- We'll be helping to build/repair homes in the morning & hanging out with the kids in the afternoon
- I know…DON'T DRINK THE WATER
The Stateless people of the Dominican Republic:
http://pulitzercenter.org/reporting/dominican-republic-haitians-stateless-legal-documents-citizenship-human-rights-crisis
Wikipedia's Dominican Republic page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dominican_Republic
I think we should change the AIM packing list – and send this instead! Thank you for your honesty…and allowing so many to be a part of your journey.
I don’t usually think about my packing list till the day before…this needs to change. 🙂
Take hope. Leave worry! Great packing list! (and I smile, rush to my purse and double check my departure time for Brazil…a dear friend taught me to do that ….). Enjoy the journey.
Yay!! I am excited for you and will be praying for your journey. Your “special talent for international incidents” are glorified as God uses our incidences to perform miracles. Love you Lady!
PS. Best packing list ever.
You inspire me, Allie. Your talent, your desire to make a change in the world, your zest for life. I will pray for you on your journey, my friend. Best of wishes!
Allie – You will be fine and do fine – anyone with a “too loud laugh” can survive anywhere! LOL
Praying for you.
Chris
remember: God is bigger!
love you much!