When You Come- Lisa Gungor

     I said goodbye to my mother, auntie, and cousin six hours ago. And I'm exhausted. Saying Goodbye is really hard. And in the midst of realizing I was saying goodbye to my mother, my heart noticed that in a short time I will be saying goodbye, not to three people who I will see again in a few months, but to a nation that i have grown to love. and friends that have forever marked my heart.
     It was in the midst of all of these wonderings that this update emerged. Sometimes it's easier for me to write this way, as opposed to a formal letter. So, forgive me if you hate to read poetry. Know that my week with my family was such a beautiful and eternally signifcant time for my heart. We enjoyed museums, coastlines, wildlife, and of course, delicious food. It was difficult to come back to the Pa'us after dropping them off at the airport because it looked like my mom should still be here: the cake we baked together on the counter, her favorite crumpets in the fridge, the last bit of perfume still lingering in my room...
Goodbyes are so difficult! So this is what I'm sharing with you all now. i love you!

Standing on the Brink of Goodbye
Like a handsome cliff that descends into beauty
How can I leave?
The perils and preparation that led me up this mountain,
have all been reimbursed
by the giver of every good and perfect thing.
Atop this place I have learned new heights
and seen new understandings,
and even a new river has been formed
from my heart’s bursts of joy
and cries of sorrow.
I have walked new soil,
breathed new wind,
and heard new songs carried from afar.
Yet, How can I not go back?
This Land of the Long White Cloud is not my home,
nor was it intended to be.
I’ve known this was just a season

Why were we created with so much capacity for longing?
More strain on each beat,
as I keep giving pieces through tears, laughs, and sharing stories.
My heart no longer resides in me, but in the people of
Bolivia. Kenya. USA. New Zealand.
Given life to share it,
Your love poured out so that  we may pour ours out.
Help me, Jesus.

Standing on the Brink of Goodbye
able to see
what I am leaving
and
what lies ahead.
God, will you show me where to tread?
This life before Eternity, these transitional phases, these moments of Goodbye-
Make me hungry
for the day
of Eternal Hello’s
and the reunion of souls.