Road Trip to San Diego:Day 1

Today could be called Day One, Toll Day, the Parable of the Seed Growing, the mystery of the Lost Credit Card, and an Emotional Rollercoaster Ride.  We traveled through five states today, beginning in Pennsylvania, and going through Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and arriving in Wisconsin.  We are now settling into a home graciously opened to us by a seminarian couple at Nashotah House Episcopal Seminary.

Day One began with leaving Ambridge.  We closed up the last boxes, packed up the car (using the Tetris theme song for inspiration), and hit the road.

As we drove down the alley way one last time we waved goodbye to our home, our neighbors, and our town.  As we left each room of our apartment we thanked God for the blessings he poured out on us during our time in seminary.  We said "goodbye" as well as "see you later" to our goddaughter and her parents, our best friends and partners in crime. So many memories of this time will be cherished for a lifetime.

 


Today was also Toll Day.  Not only did it take a toll on us emotionally, but also financially! I'm not going to add it up ($14.75+$7.50+$1.50+$1.50+$3.50+$10 for parking), but we paid a ridiculous amount to drive on the road today.  I hope that money goes to fix some potholes...

These are the state signs for each of the states which we passed through today.  Unfortunately, Illinois does not have a sign as you pass into Chicago from Indiana, so we missed that one.

#1 Pennsylvania (not pictured)
#2 Ohio

#3 Indiana

#4 Illinois (not pictured)
#5 Wisconsin (in the dark on the side of the freeway, not in the safest conditions...definitely wins for the scariest picture ever taken...)

At the suggestion of some Chicagan friends of ours, we took a little detour into Chicago for some deep dish pizza.  The place was called Lou Malnati's and everything was great: great salad, great pizza, great atmosphere, and the great mystery of what happened to our credit card (we will never know this side of Heaven).  However, by God's grace we were able to be a Christian witness to our server and those watching us as we learned that that particular piece of plastic would never slide into our wallet again.

One of the things we are hoping to do throughout our trip is reflect on how God reveals himself around us as we drive.  Seeing all the fields today reminded us of Sunday's Gospel reading, in which Jesus talked about the seed which grows, and man knows not how.  The excellent sermon which we heard on Sunday focused on the assurance this gives us that God's kingdom is growing, even though we may not understand it.  It was a delightful reminder of God's care and providence.

We drove through three thunderstorms today; another reminder of how powerful God is.  We're thankful to have made it safely, and to have witnessed some amazing lightning displays.







Day one has been a long day and we're eager to get to bed.  Tomorrow promises to be another adventure in 'America's Heartland.'  Stay tuned, faithful subscribers....