Reflections from the summer: Suitcases and Silence

Traveling is such a good time for reflection. Sitting on 15 hour flights... sitting in terminals... lots of sitting and waiting. I'm sitting waiting to board my final leg of my journey to Okinawa. This step is uncharted territories. This new step brings new friends, new adventures, new challenges. I'm so excited and nervous all at the same time! But I also sit here and reflect on my last month in the states with 2 lessons.


Lesson 1: Suitcases


Prior to May, some would have called me a pack rat. I kept everything from empty yogurt containers to scraps of paper. Moving my life from Knoxville to Florida then to Japan was hard but a growing experience. After a grilling 3-4 days of packing and sorting I manages to cram my life into 2 suitcases weighing 50lbs each. Rest of the stuff was stored in my grandma's garage (thanks Nanny). It was a meticulous process to cram your life into a rectangular cloth-framed box, but it made me think of my material possessions allowing me to break free from the pack rat I was and lead me to need less in life. For the month in Florida, my family lived out of our suitcases. A suitcase becomes a closet, a dresser. A suitcase is the epitome of a traveler's life with thoughts of how much can you cram into the suitcase without going over the weight limit. It truly is a profession. Suitcases also make me think of a song I discovered by Dara Maclean called "Suitcases." The chorus goes, "You can't run when you're holding suitcases..." Oh how I have learned that both literally and metaphorically. Sweat poring down my back as I lunged my two suitcases across Narita airport going to the wrong floor and back to my original level before finding the right check in place... you sure can't run, barely can even walk! But it also mean baggage, our material possession, our junk in our lives. So as I start to unpack, I'll think of this lesson, and may I remember it for future travels.


Lesson 2: Silence


For the month of July I got to spend a lot of time with my brother Spencer. After graduating from HS 5 years ago, I felt like I had lost touch with my younger brothers. I didn't get to see them grow up in their HS years. Watching and learning from my brother was one of the neatest things I did all summer. He is very quiet. But when I say quiet it is not in a "I don't care what's going on around me" or "I don't know what to say so I won't say it". Instead is a calm quiet, a controlled, confident, quiet of one who's personality is just one to not say something even when it could be needed. For me, if I've got something to say, I'll say it. If I don't need to say it, I'll still say it. For me, it taught me the lesson of silence, of not having to be in control or a part of every situation around me. They say "silence speaks louder then words." In this case, his silence was loud, loud to show me, it's ok not to speak, calm down and let God talk to you instead of you ruining the silence or the chance for others to speak. Watch your tongue Sarah. Speak through your actions and your love.