Messy All Glorious

 

The first few days home are always about unpacking and putting things away. A tidy space helps me with the basics - where's my toothbrush? - when my head is a bit spinny from jet lag. It helps to normalize and reorient and more fully bring me 'home.'

And. Usually when I get back, and Advent is just around the corner, it's calming and warming to begin the journey into the season by bringing out the visual reminders that, for me, enhance the spiritual engagement with the deeper reflections of the season.

This time?

Exciting things are happening right outside the back door. Our not-so-tiny home is coming together in ways that make our vision more and more a reality every day. And it's all a big, fat, glorious mess.

There's no place for my toothbrush there yet. We are staying with our son who has generously and sacrificially made space for us in this rather messy time until we get the key and are all clear to move in.

It's not nearly the squishy arrangement I had imagined, and it didn't take me all that long yesterday to unpack into the spaces he and Ken worked together to provide to make sure I could settle in. This includes a whole drawer in the bathroom, so yes, I know where my toothbrush is.

Ken somehow even found the small Christmas tree that used to adorn my office space, and set it up and plugged it in so as to welcome me into our room upon my return. If you could see our storage unit, you'd know that that's a little Christmas miracle all on its own.

And also, we're not there yet.

So I'm grateful for a few days with little to no expectations.
I'm still basking in all the goodness of this last visit.

And I'm hopeful in the midst of the mess.
Which is probably a more accurate Christmas 'feel' than anything else still hiding away in storage.

Thank you again to all who prayed for us, and supported us in any way for this most recent time of connection and love with our Thai family. Oh the stories that will follow!