For our final trip during my renewal leave in August, Dolli & I intentionally unplugged. I know what you’re thinking, after 2 months on break, hadn’t I unplugged enough? Well… yes & no. While I haven’t had any work responsibilities, it seemed I had not fully disconnected to clear my mind. On our trip to the Med in June, Dolli & I had an agenda of places to see, sites to visit, history to learn & pictures to take for our blog. I was frequently thinking, how can I use this information in a sermon or what do the people at Trinity need to hear about this. Dolli also posted a lot of pics to FaceBook. On my motorcycle tour, I was mapping out the next day’s ride, reading, thinking about sermons & cataloging thoughts to include in a blog posts. It was also exhausting riding 250-350 miles per day in the strong winds of the West. Also, believe it or not, editing &uploading pictures takes a bit of time… it’s not just point, shoot & post, & creating a simple blog can take a couple of hours or more.
So, on our trip to Florida & the Caribbean, we decided to focus on reconnecting with each other & enjoying our family. While we still took a lot of pics, we didn’t really inventory or edit them to include on the blog. Also, I tried not to let my mind wander to thoughts of church work or even the next day… we just tried to live in the moment. Dolli wouldn’t even let me count down the days remaining on our trip. This was truly a restful trip escaping the responsibilities of normal everyday living.
And so, we set off Chasing The Sun!
For us, the sun provides much-needed vitamin D, the ship & beach provides a healthy dose of vitamin “sea,” sunsets remind us of our creator & sunrises signal a new day filled with possibilities. We visited FL, the Bahamas, Jamaica, Grand Cayman & Mexico. We relaxed enjoying the sound of waves crashing onto the shore as the ocean breeze filled our souls. This is indeed our “Happy Place!” We climbed Dunn’s River Falls in Jamaica for the second time… last time Dolli wasn’t as fit & at times she thought she wouldn’t finish. This time, she led our whole group up the Falls. In Grand Cayman, we visited the world-famous Seven Mile Beach & in Mexico, we spent a day on the ocean aboard a luxury catamaran & I snorkeled a bit along a barrier reef.
We spent a week in Marco Island, FL making precious memories with our 5 daughters & perfect granddaughter. Playing on the beach, swimming in the pool, reading to our granddaughter, snuggling with her on the couch, watching movies & boating on the waters of the inter coastal waterways of Southwest Florida. It was the first time we spent multiple days with all of our daughters in the same place in almost 2 years. As they grow up and build lives of their own, getting all 7 of us together in one place gets harder & harder.
We also indulged in some great food during the entire trip – lobster, shrimp, fish, clams, oysters, mussels, steak, lamb, veal, pork & more. Dolli & I also discovered that after 17 years of marriage & the business of life, we still enjoy each other’s company, conversations still come easily, laughter still abounds & there is no one else with whom we would rather travel with on this journey called life. I think I speak for the both of us when I say, we love each other more passionately & deeply than we did on our wedding day. It truly was a trip with a lifetime of memories.
Now it’s back to the real world, but we’re well-rested & ready to tackle the next season of ministry.
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One response to “Chasing the Sun”
Great memories you two have made along with your spiritual renewals. How blessed you were to have had these three months. I hated to say that I did miss you two 😜