a unique and humbling adventure in the
The to do list and packing list for this trip are unlike my lists in October when I traveled to Ireland for a wedding in Belfast. Last time, my to do list entailed having my hair done, having a pedicure, buying a wedding gift and card, and making and freezing meals for my husband and our youngest daughter so they wouldn't eat pasta or pizza every night. The packing list included warm sweaters, a dress for the wedding, heels, makeup, perfume, phone, charger, other vanity items, and always -- always -- my camera.
This time, my to do list does include making and freezing meals for 12 nights, but it also includes buying travel toilet paper for 12 days (apparently there is none in the Philippines...?), buying an extra camera battery (because who knows if there will be electricity to recharge), buying a compact inflatable life vest for our bamboo boat voyage to one location, buying a insect-repelling sleeping sack so I'm not bitten by anything sketchy at night, being injected with travel vaccines for Hepatitis A and Typhoid (I was a little late to get the Yellow Fever vaccine, but the risk is low this time of year), hearing my travel doctor explain the litany of things to avoid doing while traveling to a 3rd world location (don't drink or brush your teeth with the water, don't even allow the water in your mouth while showering, don't eat any fruit that doesn't have a peel or a shell or that was washed with unboiled water, don't eat shellfish, salads, buffet foods exposed to flies, under-cooked foods and unpasteurized dairy products, don't wear shorts and short sleeved shirts to avoid deadly bug bites unless I can't stand the heat ... the list is too long to include it all here). In addition to the items listed above, I will not be packing much makeup (but let's be real -- I am packing some). I will be packing a solar phone charger, lots and lots of hand sanitizer and wipes, not many clothes (can't have too big of a suitcase), laundry detergent pods (to wash and rewash those few clothes), small loom rubber bands to hand out to children for bracelet making, a wifi hot spot that I hope works in the Philippines, a Bluetooth keyboard to write this blog on my phone, and -- no surprise -- my camera. The potential hazards don't frighten me much, because I know I'll use caution, but I'll also be with people who have done this trip four times before and know what they're doing. However, the details are a little overwhelming and have already ignited the sleeplessness that comes for me when my my brain has an overload of new information. My usual mantra of "letting go and letting God" won't come in handy if God isn't willing to make lists and run errands for me, but maybe He'll help slow down my brain at night when I offer up my mind in prayer and thanksgiving for the gift of this opportunity.
6 Comments
|
meredith rilley
i'm told this little section is supposed to describe me. so here it is: i'm a right-brained life devourer. archives
|