Reason #2: the creation of or rekindling of relationships in the Pennsylvania, Ohio, and West Virginia area
Reason #3: I filed my taxes. It's only February. I'm getting $1 from the US government.
Reason #4: I am confident that I'm supposed to be where I am
Reason #5: some espresso
The past 2 months of life have been pretty crazy...
2 weeks in Georgia - family, friends, learning, coffee, Christmas, New Years, new news
less than 48 hours in California - repacking my bags, details, friends
3 weeks in Ecuador - friends (new & not so new), mountain climbing, summiting, partnering, learning, loving, exploring
1 week in California - packing in tons of friend-time, details, working overtime, repacking my bags
1 week in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Ohio - relationship building, exploring, driving, smiling, coffee, learning, new things, new people, new places, connections
I spent a lot of time looking out windows like this :)
Those short descriptions don't describe the experiences fully, but they give you an idea.
I can honestly say that I enjoy traveling. Sure, it makes me tired sometimes and I miss whatever home I'm not at, but it's good for my soul. In my mind, traveling means relying on other people (and Google maps), making new friends, rekindling relationships, surprises (which I love), long days of conversation followed by quiet drives heading towards hospitable homes waiting to embrace me (when traveling for work), and wearing the same pants everyday without hesitation because I hardly see the same person twice! Travel means opportunity. I became overwhelmed by the realization of what great opportunity sits at my doorstep every day (no matter whose doorstep that is). With that realization comes great thankfulness and eagerness to share opportunity with others.
If you've ever talked to me about what we do at Summit Adventure (the non-profit, adventure and service-based ministry that I work for) I can assure you that my excitement is always genuine, that my passion is never fabricated, and that my eagerness to hear more about you and your life is because I really want to know.
A friend and I were chatting the other day (go figure) and I was telling him about my new found excitement for what we call 'recruiting.' It's all about relationship. My desire is to build relationships with people. I want to know who they are, what are their desires and needs, where do they want to be in their next season of life, and what kind of experiences they want to have? If I can learn about them, I'm more capable of talking to them about the kind of experiences that we provide at Summit and where those could fit in their future.
You probably could've guessed it - I'm understanding that this relates to my life overall. Again, I desire to build relationships with people. I desire to connect people. I desire to see people's lives enriched. I desire to grow and see others grow. I desire to learn and see others learn.
Soon I'll walk out of this coffee shop, into the brisk February air of the Sierra Nevada foothills, and take my quiet drive to my quiet house to complete a quiet evening of reflecting on what the Lord has to teach me in this beautiful season he has me in. My mind is all but quiet.
