It's finally time for me to come home!!
But I thought you should know I'm not the same as I was when I left.
I'm a bit taller, no longer sporting dreads, my skin has tanned, and there's a tuft of hair on the left side of my head that's still growing out from experimenting with a half shave. (I did a lot of soul searching out here)
But it's not only my physical appearance that's changed…
…I have an entirely new skill set you should know about.
I can build a fire
And then cook my meals on that fire
Dad, I can mix concrete with a shovel and build you a wall
I can demolish a pool but I can't rebuild it
Have corn ready for the pickings? I'll come harvest it by hand
I can entertain a group of at least 100 kids with the words, "Oh Lay Lay Tiki Tanga"
I can get a bunch of eighty-something's to fight over candy from a piñata or bust out their awesome dance moves
I can preach a sermon
I've learned to lead bible study
I have the confidence to tell strangers about Jesus Christ
I've had to learn to laugh in the back of a truck even though it's pouring down icy cold rain and I'm getting drenched
I know how to love people that are hard to love
But beyond these skills that have thoroughly improved my character you should also know I might do some things that could appear…strange to you
I might drive on the wrong side of the street
or forget how to drive altogether.
I'll more than likely get very excited about having milk that isn't in powdered form.
I will set my tent up in the back yard and live there for awhile.
If you see me around a gas stove it might be a similar experience as if you were seeing a caveman discover fire for the first time.
I will try to shower with a bucket of water in the backyard.
I promise you I've lost all my table manners.
I have no clue what a napkin is.
I might walk up to random people and try to start a conversation with them
And then try to take their babies.
I will hoard all my goodies because I don't know the next time the ferry will take me into town.
I might try to wear the same outfit everyday.
Me no remember how to talk proper English.
I'm going to be very uncomfortable sleeping by myself.
I'll more than likely carry anything and everything on my head.
I will greet every person I pass.
Mom, I'm going to wash all our dishes by hand.
But on a serious note…
I don't even know if I'm ready to come home.
My perspective on the world has improved.
I'm not coming back the same person.
Different people in different places have pieces of my heart.
My faith has changed and grown.
The road has been my home for months now and it feels right.
I'm used to toting all my belongings in a backpack.
I'm used to arriving in a new place and immediately making it my home.
I'm not used to having a routine or schedule to go through the day with.
As my good friend Chris Easter wrote,
"I used to think a seasoned traveler was the person who has seen it all. The person who has the passport full of stamps. The collection of wild stories, and the photos to back them up. The person who's home was the road. But looking back on these past 6 months, I have come to understand that although a seasoned traveler has most of those, they are just the surface to a deeper meaning. A seasoned traveler is the man whose heart is left around the globe. Who has listened to a call to "just go". Who has experienced the heartbreak of leaving not knowing when or if he will ever be back and the process of turning that weight into faith. A seasoned traveler is the person who will someday close his eyes and look back at each season of life and just be flooded by the faces of those who have a part of his heart. He carries this extra weight in his pack wherever he goes, and he smiles every time it gets a little heavier, because then he remembers all over again just how valuable it is."
Like I said, I don't even know if I'm ready to come home.
I'm feeling about a hundred conflicting feelings.
But here I come, so consider yourself warned.
