Better Together...

"To travel fast, go alone; to travel far, go together." African proverb

Ok, all you romantic saps. Here's the gushy post of the year. At least of the past 10 months. For those who read my blog for cool stories about Nigeria...this one might not interest you too much. Sorry about that. I have just returned from a near 4-week vacation to the US and UK and know if I don't write something now, life in Jos will take over and the ooey sentiments still swirling will fade.

Not terribly ooey, but crucial to this update, is that the first 2 weeks of my vacation were spent in North Carolina. Now, I REALLY like to post pictures when I update, but I'm still waiting for some dear siblings to send me them (ahem!). Thus, I'll wait to share about my time in the US until I can give you some visuals. Suffice it to say, I had a fabulous time connecting with people, getting quality time with my family, and rejoicing in the wedding of a dear friend of mine (Sarah Miller Schoen). The time was pregnant with people and errands so by the end I was like, "I need a vacation!" Off I was to Ireland...

I won't bore you with all the travel details because that's lame and you want the real scoop anyways. Basically, Andrew and I met up in London on June 13th, seeing each other for the first time in over 9 months. Those airport reunions are quality. This time it was me waiting at the gate for him to waltz out and don't you know i was so nervous my knees were shaking! I had all these fuzzies in my stomach, took my hands out of my pocket to look at them and they're just shaking away. Craziness. We stayed two nights in London with some cousins of his who were amazing hosts and graciously took care of us. I had never been to London so our first day together we set out and walked all over the freakin' city. Similar to Paris, every where you turn there's another famous building or historic landmark. Being on a missionary/Peace Corps budget, we didn't pay to go in anywhere (like the Globe or BUckingham Palace) and instead were content to walk by them, tip our hats, and keep going. In fact, this is the only picture I took, mostly to document that indeed, we were in London.
Then it was off to Northern Ireland for a week...woohoo! "Why N. Ireland?" some might ask. Basically, I had some connections there through some friends here in Nigeria and they offered us to say with their family for free, plus it was near England (which I had to fly through), and promised to offer plenty of free outdoor fun. Having been there, the question I have for you is, "Why have you NOT been to Ireland!?!?!" This place is absolutely GORGEOUS and it's all raw, God-made beauty. Even when it's drizzling, (which tends to happen) (although not too much for us) the views are still amazing. Of course, I don't have to waste time convincing you, the pictures will take care of that ;-) Our first set of Irish hosts (from now on, if I write “hosts” you can read “super wonderful people who fed, housed, loved, drove, and took care of us as if we were their own. “Angels” would be another adequate substitution), were Ruth and Terry Johnston (see adorable picture). They had served in Jos for 6 months so I got to know and love them there. Andrew and I really enjoyed being able to hang out and talk about couple-ly things with them. We voted and decided to be friends for a long time :)

Then we spent the majority of the week up on the North Coast, near Portrush and Bushmills (if you know the area) with the McCurdy family as our hosts. I’m good friends with Jayne McCurdy here in Jos and even though she wasn’t in Ireland when we were there, our welcome was totally warm. (Edith and John McCurdy pictures here on a long after-dinner walk they took us on)

There’s a saying/greeting in Gaelic, “A thousand welcomes” and I can see why. Using the McCurdy house as our base, we spent the week seeing all the beautiful things N. Ireland is known for, namely:

The "Giant’s Causeway" with it’s naturally-made hexagonal steps formed from volcanic rock...
Carrik-a-rede rope bridge which used to be used by fishermen to harvest fish as they migrated... Causeway coastal route which covers many miles of gorgeous coastline.... I think we walked almost all of it.

Caves... Castle remains... Long sunsets...
Because it stays light until 11 pm. Thus, it’d feel like 5 pm even though really it was 10. We took full advantage of this and would go for bike rides or walks after dinner and take naps in the afternoon when it tended to drizzle a “wee” bit.

Needless to say, Northern Ireland afforded us a perfect place and atmosphere for having the kind of long conversations that we had both been pining for. There was a little bit of anxiety in anticipation because, heck, we hadn’t seen each other in 9 MONTHS and so much as happened in our lives. Africa has happened to both of us. With much thanks to God, though, time together was incredibly natural, easy, and filled with laughter.

Now some of you undoubtedly expected a certain question to be asked while we were together. While that would have made this an extra gushy post, I’m actually content to say that Andrew and I have NOT moved into that next stage just yet. We both still have too much in front of us in our respective countries to launch into that phase of our relationship right now, where the focus and attention of our lives shifts dramatically towards marriage. It’s a great stage I’m sure, but not what’s supposed to be a high priority right now for us.

Ooo...this post is getting pretty long. I guess it wouldn’t be complete without a little excerpt from my heart on the inevitable separation that took place at the end. Tears were involved and while they rolled down my face, here’s the image that came to mind:
For 11 days it felt like I was flying across the open sea with wind filling my sails to the max. It was all I could do to hang on tight as I threw my head back and drank in the adventure. But right now, it feels like the wind's been knocked right out of my sails and I'm left to pick up the ore and begin paddling. I can see the shore way off in the distance and as I contemplate the arduous task of paddling, that shore does seem an EXTRA long way off. My faith is given strength in knowing that the Lord will fill the sails again when it's time. Until then, there are lessons to be learned in the paddling. Time to examine the boat, enjoy the view, and ensure I'm heading in the right direction. Sometimes it's hard to keep your bearing when gail-force winds are at your back. But we don’t move backward when the winds die down, just have a different sort of adventure.

There you have it. My fairly unedited, abbreviated account of our blissful reunion in Ireland. See my facebook profile (or my picassa account once I add them) for more pictures and drop me a line with inquiries.

Next post will have updates of time in the US and perhaps thoughts on re-entering Africa...