thinking

The past two days I have thought about where I was a week ago.

A week ago yesterday we celebrated my birthday in Moscow.

Yesterday I was celebrating in Huntington by myself. 

Not nearly as much fun.

A week ago today we were somewhere between Moscow, Russia 

and Grayson, KY USA. There were a lot of hours, miles, modes of transportation, situations and people in between. We saw and heard an array of actions and reactions. We rode a van alongside other travelers to get to the Moscow airport and to leave the airport in Pittsburgh to get my car to drive home.

At the airports:

We traveled on foot, down corridors, by escalator, up stairs, down stairs, on a conveyor belt, by plane, by tram. What a mixture.

We saw van drivers, taxi drivers, check-in agents, baggage handlers, police dogs and their handlers, security officers, transportation aides pushing wheel chairs or driving golf-cart type vehicles, caterers, restaurant workers, border control officers, passport control agents, "housekeeping" people, stewards and stewardesses, pilots and co-pilots. We even saw airplane maintenance workers on our plane. 
(A piece of trim above the overhead baggage compartment popped loose. It had to be repaired before we could fly.)

We saw travelers who were relaxed, confident. I don't know if it came from experience or other influences. When I saw some of them with their luggage, I guessed part of their assurance came from being seasoned travelers. Either that or the airline was extremely rough on their luggage. We saw some nervous travelers. Without talking to them there is no way to know if they don't like to travel, if it was a difficult or stressful time in their lives or if they were simply inexperienced. At different times I fit both categories.

We saw travelers strolling, sprinting, sitting, standing, sleeping, coddling dogs, cuddling children, pushing strollers, alone, couples, families, groups. People watchers. Electronic device players. Civilians. Military. Business persons. Vacationers. Browsers. Shoppers. Drinkers. Different nationalities. Varied personalities.

We heard laughter, babies crying, giggles, (these all sound the same in any language), quiet conversations, louder exchanges, languages we do not speak, English, the whine of engines and the whine of an unhappy traveler. She was sitting in the row behind us. The flight we shared with her was the "long flight" and it began with the trim issue. She wasn't pleased. Then we had to wait our turn on the take off runway. Thankfully the hum of the engines once we were in the air drowned out most of her negativity. I felt sorry for her traveling companion. I do not know what made her so unhappy, but when our flight ended and we were preparing to get off the plane in Chicago, I saw the face of her companion. He looked tired. Weary. Worn. I felt even more sympathy for him.

Thinking back over last weeks traveling experience has me thinking about how I travel through life. There is variety in the journey. It takes all kinds of people, doing all kinds of jobs to make life "work". I need to do my part and do it well. I hope my honesty, my confidence where I am experienced and my willingness to ask for help where I am inexperienced and when I am unsure will be an encouragement to my fellow travelers. I need to allow myself to sit, stand, rest, walk, run-whatever fits the need of the moment, and allow others to the same. Without judgement. Hearing languages I did not understand and listening to the complainer was a good reminder about the power of words. Our words impact not only on the one we are speaking to, but everyone who hears them as well. 

What is in our heart comes manifests itself in our life.

In our words,
In our attitudes,
In our actions.

Proverbs 4:23
"Keep your heart with all vigilance,
    for from it flow the springs of life."
(ESV)
"Watch over your heart with all diligence,
For from it flow the springs of life."
(NASB)
"Above all else, guard your heart,
    for everything you do flows from it."

What I do,
what you do,
how we do it,
matters.

What I say,

what you say,

how we say it,

matters.
Our lives have ripple effects.

There was a period in my life when I prayed Psalm 19:14 daily.

"Let the words of my mouth 

and the meditation of my heart

be acceptable in Your sight,

O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer."

Proverbs 15:4

"A gentle tongue is a tree of life,

but perverseness in it breaks the spirit."

(ESV)

"A soothing tongue is a tree of life,

but perversion in it crushes the spirit."

(NASB)

Ephesians 4:29

"Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth,

but only such a word as is good for edification

according to the need of the moment,

so that it will give grace to those who hear."

(NASB)

"Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths,

but only what is helpful for building others up

according to their needs, 

that it may benefit those who listen."
(NIV)

Our choices make a difference.