It’s autumn here - the leaves are falling, “buy new winter tyres” is on my to-do list, and my desire to have heating is growing bigger than my lack of desire to learn how to use my new thermostat. This is my fifth autumn here and that feels strange because time seems to go by so quickly and so slowly at the same time. I’m currently also gearing up for my second home assignment, and being in Northern Ireland for November and December.
On Thursday someone asked me where I call home - as I plan on heading back to NI am I saying I’m going home? The truth is that yes - Northern Ireland is where I grew up, and where my family live. I have twenty-four years of memories living there and, although my accent doesn’t always betray it, it’s home.
But the other truth is here is also home. I fly home whether I’m on an Easyjet flight heading east or west. Czech is home in both deeper and shallower ways than Northern Ireland is home. Northern Ireland is home because that’s where I was born and grew up. Northern Ireland has shaped me in deep ways, ways I can’t even communicate and sometimes don’t even know. Czech is home because I chose and choose to obey God and His deep and beautiful call on my life that has me here. Czech is my home not because I understand everything that happens but even though I decidedly don’t understand everything.
Yesterday I ran some errands around town. I bumped into someone from church. And the lady who works at the car insurance place greeted me when she saw me through the window. I was able to accomplish all my errands - and even some not on today’s list - all in a second language, and even solving problems met along the way.
I bought a beautiful bunch of flowers and I carried them home upside down. I didn’t even have to think about it - here flowers are carried by gripping the stem and carrying them upside down. I’d never done it that way before I moved here but now it makes sense.
None of this is remarkable or weird or scary any more. Sure, the post office still drives me a little crazy but that’s only because there is no observable, obvious, queuing system. But going to the post office no longer an errand that freaks me out or I need to psych myself up for.
So, I’m excited for this month of soaking up autumn in Czech, at home with lots of my normal rhythms and routines. And I’m excited to head home at the end of the month to catch up with dear people and share the stories of what God is doing in this place.
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