It's A Small World Afterall...

Wow, I feel like it has been forever since I've written; but I really have not had a chance this past week. It has been non-stop action!!

I have a lot of thoughts to share but only a few will come out tonight...

...I went down to TN and to NC this weekend with some friends to celebrate & honor my good friend, Joe Marlo. Joe is getting married in January and this weekend was a quasi bachelor party. We had a blast going down a couple rivers...one river on a funyak, the other river we went white water rafting. Pictures of the adventure will come soon. If it is not already solidified in your mind, these pictures will prove how amazing studs we are! :-)

...On this manly weekend trip, I was introduced to a friend of Joe's, who quickly became a friend of mine as well. Ibrahim is from Bosnia and has been in the States for about 10 years now. It was intriguing to listen to him talk about certain experiences he has had as an Eastern European.

Tonight, I also had a surprise reunion with a friend I had not seen in almost 15 years. About 15 years ago, I joined my friend, Jeremiah, and his family on a month long visit to France, where all of Jeremiah's mother's family lives. That was where I first met Auralie. Auralie is a cousin to Jeremiah, which we naturally connected with because of our similarity in age. Today, I found out that Auralie is here in Southern Illinois visiting family (her first trip to America)! I immediately made plans to see her tonight. It was a little overwhelming...so much to catch up on...and still somewhat of a language barrier...but nonetheless, it was a great time catching up!!

A couple thoughts here...

1. Superficial thought...but I believe there may be more to it if given further reflection: I was reminded tonight of how much I love how the French greet one another. I love the whole cheek-to-cheek kiss the air greeting...especially when you are greeting a beautiful woman!!

2. In reading some books this summer & being reminded of the places I've visited plus the places my friends have visited/or currently live, the fact of how small the world really is continues to make itself more vivid in my mind.

My encouragement to all that may read this is to travel as much as you can. Make it a goal to visit as many continents as possible. As I think of it, I currently have friends...or friends of friends...on 5 of the 7 continents. As a member of the 21st Century and even more so as a Christ Follower, it is imperative to continuously expand one's point-of-view. I am a patriot in that I love my country; but I am a global citizen. Here is to taking the world by storm!