So like I was saying...

In case you were wondering about examples of how the last week often isn't that great, here's one. This is the evening after I wrote my blog post.

We were cooking dinner-pancakes and eggs. My mom was in the kitchen and the kids and I were in the dining room designing pancakes on the griddle. All of the sudden we heard lots of rustling of leaves and the snapping of roots. Since there was no storm, or even wind, it was a little hard to understand. I saw leaves coming toward the windows (that are under the tree at the front of the house) and my mom saw the leaves and limbs falling in the back of the house as she looked out the kitchen window.

Praise the Lord that the tree fell at an angle and not straight down as we would have been in its path. (Not to mention all my bags for leaving Tuesday were in the living room, the front room of the house, and would most likely have been destroyed.) The second level of the house blunted the damage as the tree was not able to fall on the first level. A (big) limb did go into the attic and the ceiling is slightly separated from the wall in the hallway. There is also some roof damage as well (not surprisingly). But overall, better than it could have been.

The tree changed our plans to say the least. My aunt and cousin and his family were supposed to come the next day. Didn't happen. I didn't say goodbye to my aunt when I saw her last. It was a "see you in a week" goodbye in the Target parking deck, not a "see you in a year or two, thanks for all you've done for us" goodbye that it should have been. I didn't get to meet my cousin's new baby. Now she'll be a year or two before we meet.

I have to go back to what I wrote. One more time doesn't change the past and the memories that have been made. My family knows I love them and I know they love me and we'll have to leave it at that.

People keep asking me if I feel safe to go back to Mali. The Lord always reminds me as we head back that safety is not in location but in His hands. We think the US is "safer" but this is where we've hit a bear and totaled the car, trees fall on your house, and cars come within two feet of hitting your son (not to mention you can go to a movie, grocery store, or church and someone can start shooting at you). I'm ready to head back to Mali where it is safe! :)