Day 1 Alaska

Well today went how I might expect my first day in Alaska to go, at least when one is in Alaska with Stevie Bailey. For starters, slept maybe an hour in the airport, woken up by Clay who brought me coffee (what is with all these free drinks???).   I thought that was very sweet but the coffee was not sweet enough for my taste.   Perhaps, if I had had more sleep the coffee would have been more appealing. In the moment, I only wanted to curl up and continue using my backpack as a pillow, letting the sound of the early morning news keep me conscious in blanketed sleep. We flew in to Kodiak at 7:30am on a very empty flight.  Scaling over the Alaskan waters, rows of trees, snow-capped mountain, I felt a longing to be here. To be. To stay. To rest. A sweet woman picked us up and drove us in a crimson van to the Kodiak Baptist Mission.  Now I can tell that I will come to love this place. The communal kitchen, the throw your shoes off at the door mentality, the dry off with a questionably clean towel...all of it says things are okay to not be perfectly okay. Everyone plays a part. There's a chore chart. I will like completing some chore and checking an x beside my name. I like to washing dishes, especially with someone else, because it asks us to take the time to put our minds on something insignificant, allowing us to give our attention to one another.  This morning, Clay made everyone eggs (my idea) with onion and mozzarella cheese.  Having eaten Hummus Chips and chocolate covered almonds for dinner, these hearty eggs filled my need for nutrients.  So strange how from the getgo I can begin invading a fridge and help make breakfast for strangers. I like that. It reminds me of Lord of the Rings, those moments in the story when the crew is cared for in Rivendel (The Last Homely House!) meats, cheese, fruit, music, song-all company with food to spare! If only the whole world was like this. If only our lives were one continuous celebration in which we welcome anyone and everyone to join us. A world without poverty, hunger, disease.  Well in this environment, I feel a sense of welcome. Even though I don't even know the names of the counselors living with me.  Yet it's strange to me to be meeting all new people who have existing relationships and ways of interacting (many of the counselors have been here awhile).  I'm always fascinated by the Catherine I present to people when I first meet them. I reacted in a surprising way tonight. One of the staff members, a jolly seeming fella with a hearty sense of humor, asked me about myself. I replied, "Can I tell you about myself tomorrow? I'm just too tired to talk." Pure honesty right there. We went to dinner at one of the staff members' homes, and I just wanted to curl up with the big otter pelts! They were so soft. But I'm just feeling too tired to entertain and talk and present who I am. All I want is to be quiet. To look at the water and the trees and hear the air move. I did hike the highest mountain on Kodiak Island today, so I think I can give myself a break. Unknowingly I agreed to hike this mountain...Stevie.....anyway, hiking the mountain was a lovely experience. Stevie and I, exhausted from having no sleep and eating little food, traversed up the mountain like hippos (I believe hippos move slowly).  Yet this was good. It was good to go at the pace a friend needed to go. Or for her to go at the pace I needed to go. We stopped often. We talked. We looked at the flowers and petted the dogs of other hikers. Then Clay came back down the mountain to motivate us to keep going Jimmy Cricket style. With his prompting, "No don't stop. just keep going" I made it to the top of the hike, out of breath, wanting water, but to the top!   There happened to be a small mound of snow at the top, and I ate some. Dirty water snow. But refreshing to the thirsty throat. Going down the mountain was the worst. Painstakingly slow trying not to trip and fling down down down. But I had the company of Jake, a high schooler, who wants to work in inner-city ministry someday. He agreed to go before me to fall first if needed.  The best part was sliding down the dirt parts of the path on our shoes. It's amazing how hiking shoes can be like sleds! Laughter. And we talked of books--Ender's Game, The Stranger, Picture of Dorian Gray. And I thought about whether I would like to teach Literature to high schoolers. I can't see the path ahead but God knows. Trust. I can trust him to lead. I just have to love this day. And there were many moments to make this day loveable. Ending the evening with fresh cooked, fresh caught salmon! What could be better?  I also spoke with a girl from Germany who is working at the mission. She talked about how great it is to be living and working in a totally different culture...learning to adjust to the language, being alone, figuring out the place...and I remember the yearning I have to do the same. But where? India, Thailand, Indonesia, Costa Rica, Peru, Ghana, South Africa, Israel, Greece...there are so many places I would love to know. I pray I develop a desire to serve in some place. But the good thing is, I can serve exactly where I am.