It felt strange to say goodbye to the neighbors and friends that we’ve gotten used to seeing every day (some of them multiple times per day): a mixture of sadness and anticipation and plain old relief. The truth is that I’m tired. I’m tired of seeing so much suffering and pain, tired of struggling so much against unjust systems that have no heart and no mind; of being drawn into the chaos of other people’s lives, often able to offer no real solutions or help other than to be along for the ride with them. I’m looking forward to some silence and some open space and some rest.
But that time is not yet. For now I’m enjoying the relief of some time away from all of the noise and activity to be refreshed and to reflect on all that’s happened and all that is ahead. To relax in the knowledge that it is God who brings justice and transformation, and not me. To remind myself that God is still at work in my absence, just as He was before my arrival.