Hello friends and family,
Most of you already know, but to some others this may be news. Sabrina, Phoebe and I (Lisa) will be on an adventure during third term this year.
Depart Melbourne Sunday, 8th. July
Arrive Paris Monday, 9th. July
Depart Paris Friday, 13th. July
Arrive Berlin Friday, 13th. July
Staying in Quedlinburg Friday, 13th. July to Sunday, 12th. August
Staying in Luebeck Sunday 12th. August to Monday, 3rd.
September
Stockholm Wednesday, 22nd. August to
Copenhagen Tuesday, 29th. August to Friday 1st.
September
Visiting various people as we make our way south Monday, 3rd.
September to
Monday, 10th.
September
Staying in Miesbach Monday, 10th. September to Monday, 24th.
September
Depart Muenchen Monday, 24th. September
Arrive Melbourne Wednesday, 26th. September(at 4:45am if
anyone is interested in picking us upJ)
This weblog is how we are going to keep in touch with you all; this first one is a trial to see if I’ve set-up my web-mail address book right (thanks heaps, Ferde!!).
If this is news to you – we really must catch up when we get home!!! So, why are we going? I really don’t know!! It doesn’t feel like a decision that I made, but more something that is just happening at this point in our life. It is a ‘living’ experience more than a ‘tourist’ experience and we’ll just have to see what it entails.
Last week I spoke with my friend, Ines. She and her partner, Rob, are veteran Santiago di Compostela pilgrims. Ines spoke of the 7 stages of a pilgrimage, the first 4 being before you even start! They sounded so familiar.
The first stage is the yearning. The longing for something to happen or to be in a certain place. Sometimes not even knowing what it is that you are yearning for, and if even if you do, not comprehending how it can occur or how you could possibly move beyond the fears that keep the yearning so distant and painful. I remember a conversation with Gitesha a while ago, my conclusion being that, that deep yearning, when aligned, is not a hankering for something in the future to happen but instead, an intuition of what is already unfolding right now – the yearning is the slow revealing of something that already is.
The second stage is the commitment to manifest that yearning. To let the dream hit the earth. I remember clearly the day that it dawned on me that I was actually going to do this, that I really didn’t seem to have any choice – it was like a bull-dozer bearing down on me. In that moment of overwhelming doubt, Glyn knocked on the back door! In a quiet and aligned space, what I actually already knew was confirmed – the yearning was now a reality. There had been a crash landingJ.
The third stage is the planning. I have slowly and progressively moved through this stage. Perhaps it is more true to say I have watched this stage slowly and progressively occur, without much effort on my part at all! However, this week I can feel the tentacles of anxiety and ‘last-minuteness’ attempting to worm their way in – attempting to disturb my peace!
The fourth stage is the departure. We are nestled snugly between the third and fourth. A couple of weeks ago my focus was abruptly brought back to the present. Some things are not finalized, but we are not in the planning stage anymore so I’ll be interested to see how they are going to organize themselvesJ. With that withdrawing back into the now, all possibility of building expectations has been sharply eliminated. The closer departure comes, the further away it seems to get. I remember a very similar experience in the weeks before leaving for Israel. The willingness for all potentials to reveal themselves in good time – without ME in the Way. Having said that though, the most essential item to be packed in an accessible place in my backpack is Resuce RemedyJ.
Au Revoir and Aufwiedersehen!!
Lisa, Sabrina and Phoebe
