Today is the day I’ve been anticipating (and dreading) for months now. Jocelyn and I prayed and talked together in February after Julia got out of the hospital, and we agreed that I needed to think about re-connecting with our friends in India.
Back in early 2002, I was in the middle of my transition out of the auto industry when a friend invited me to go to India with him and meet Jaya Sankar, who was doing an awful lot of good in his community. He already had nearly a hundred kids that he had taken off the street and was working with my church to purchase a property for a more permanent campus. He has since expanded into dozens of initiatives and I’ve been going back pretty regularly ever since. I count Jaya and his staff among some of the best friends I have in the world.
Jocelyn went with me back in 2009 and caught the same vision. Even now, she’s packing several dozen of her famous cookies for me to take.
She and Julia are staying behind. That’s the dread part.
The farthest I’ve ever from my daughter in her young life has been a couple of miles when she was in the NICU right after she was born. Jocelyn has traveled briefly for a trade show, but Julia and I have always been together (even though she’s kinda biasing toward momma these days). A buddy of mine who just came back from a trip to Israel said that there is no way around it. Being away from your family is very, very hard. Great.
But here’s my hope: the last year has so completely altered my outlook that I can’t help but believe that I’m going to look at India through a new set of eyes. And anyone can benefit from a different perspective now and then.
There are some things you can do to help:
Pray for us! This is my first time being away from my girls after a very intense year and Jocelyn is going to be a single mom for a while; so we would love your prayers. You can also watch the team’s progress on our team blog and get some of my more personal thoughts right here.
Give to a good cause! Jocelyn is putting a team together to give back to a community that has done so much for us. Step Up for Down Syndrome, benefiting the Down Syndrome Guild of Southeastern Michigan, is happening this weekend and there’s still time to be on the team. Click here to donate or to join the team!
Well – here it is. I’m closing up my bags and making final preparations. We’re headed for the airport at 12:30. By the way, can you take really cute babies in your carry-on luggage?