I Left a Suitcase in Berlin.....

I'm home!  I made good time!  When Jessica gave me her car, she told me that whatever time the GPS gave her for arrival to the destination, "that was the time to beat!"  Well, I beat my time by more than 1/2 hour.  And, that's all I'll say about that!  :D

On the way home, I stopped by the church to gather the mail and then I stopped at the eye doctor to pick up my new glasses!  What a difference!  I could actually read signs while driving again!  I'm curious to see if the new, stronger prescription allows me to see better at night, too!

Ilene says I look like I did in my school pictures now.  :D  It is so wonderful to see her again!

It was really cold this morning!  It didn't warm up until I got past the mountains of Tennessee and western North Carolina!  There was either snow or ice on the trees on the top of the mountains!  Maybe both!  On the tops of the mountains in these photos where the mountains are lighter is where the ice/snow was.  It is hard to see.

 

I had a wonderful week plus (9 days) at Michael's, but it was so nice to get home, too!  I was listening to BBN Christian radio on the way home to Stephen Davey, who is a pastor in Cary, NC where Tim and I attended the Shepherds 360 Conference for two years.  He mentioned a saying that I thought fit me perfectly.  "I left a suitcase in Berlin."  You can listen to the message here, "Leaving a Suitcase in Israel."

A man from Germany told him about this saying.  It means to keep some sort of tie to the people, things, etc there.  A place of fond memory.  You live "here," but you've left a suitcase in Berlin.  Well, I live here, but I've left several suitcases around....one in Ohio, one in Alabama, one in NC, one in WV, one in KY, one in heaven.....I have so many fond memories that I hold in my heart when I come back home from visiting my children, when I remember growing up in KY, when I remember the years of child rearing and when I remember those loved ones who have gone to heaven.  Bittersweet memories of times that won't ever cross my path again.

And that is the cycle of life.  We all leave suitcases somewhere else.  I'll be glad when I've packed that final suitcase and the Lord calls me home to heaven, too!

That made me think of a song I always liked the tune to:

Peter, Paul & Mary – Leaving On A Jet Plane Lyrics

All my bags are packed, I'm ready to go
I'm standing here outside your door
I hate to wake you up to say goodbye
But the dawn is breakin', it's early morn
The taxi's waiting, he's blowin' his horn
Already I'm so lonesome I could cry.

Chorus:
So kiss me and smile for me
Tell me that you'll wait for me
Hold me like you'll never let me go.
(oh, baby, don't let me go!)
I'm leavin' on a jet plane
I don't know when I'll be back again
Oh, babe, I hate to go.

There's so many times I've let you down
So many times I've played around
I tell you now, they don't mean a thing
Every place I go, I think of you
Every song I sing, I sing for you
When I come back, I'll wear your wedding ring.

[Chorus:]

Now the time has come to leave you
One more time let me kiss you
Then close your eyes, and I'll be on my way.
Dream about the days to come
When I won't have to leave alone
About the times, I won't have to say,

[Chorus:]

You're welcome!  :D  Have a great Tuesday!