Here I Go...

Wow, New Mexico is blowing my mind. I am an east coast girl! I grew up in New England and have (until now) spent all of my adult life in the South East. I’ve ridden and flown all up and down the east coast! Until now, I had only ridden in a car as far west as Louisiana (once to Jena, once to New Orleans), have had a brief visit with the mid-west (re: Jesus Radicals), and once, about 8 years ago, I flew to San Fransisco for a week. Oh, the southwest is unbelievable to me!

So much sand! And green! I’m not sure what i was expecting…

The Rio Grande runs through Taos, Santa Fe and Albuquerque. These little arroyos (is that what they’re called?) cut through neighborhoods and allow people living along them access to the water via these little gates that can be open or shut to flood backyards. This is how folks are able to grow things here.

And, OH the mountains!

Friends, I thought I’d seen some mountains… But these mountains here- OH MY! they are so bare and so close and, due to a lack of tall trees and greenery, one can see exactly where they start and see all the rocks and sand and… and… wow.

The buildings here are mighty different as well. Everything feels kind of unreal, like I’ve walked into a book or a movie or something. This land is so different from anything I’ve known and I feel as though I have to re-learn so much about how I move.

Getting settled into Trinity House is proving a challenge for me, as I could have easily guessed. I’m quite comfortable in my role as host, supervisor, do-er, organizer… yes, it’s quite obvious I’m one of those people who feels most comfortable when i have Everything-Under-Control. Now, here I am in a new region, new city, new house with new people, new rules, new unspoken assumptions and I feel totally lost. I’m trying to remember to be open, be humble and let God’s spirit move through me and those around me. The Quaker practice of prayer is helpful to remember… that we are in expectant waiting for The Spirit, but that does NOT mean we try to decide what the calling will be, what form it will take or how it will lead us. Have I mentioned I’m a rather impatient person? Yes, this takes time and the only job I have right now is to wait, listen and trust. Wait for things to come together (or apart), wait for a leading, listen to those around me, listen to myself, listen for God, trust those around me enough to be honest about my needs and understandings, trust that God has brought me here for a reason, even if I do not yet know what that reason is.

Chelsea and Marcus were so kind to lend us their car for a “weekend” getaway these past couple of days (our “weekend” here is Monday and Tuesday), so Hillary and I drove up to Taos for the night. I have all those pictures ready to share, but I don’t want to overwhelm this post, so I’ll make it separate.