Interrupted Journeys

Life has a way of tossing an alternate route along our journeys on days we least expect it.  Yesterday was just such a day.

I was headed home to lunch when a car flying at warp speed crashed into me, broadsiding me and spinning me violently around, crashing into me again.  Fortunately, I am banged up but otherwise pretty much okay.  I have lots of bruises and aches, but I also feel like God and the angels were protecting me.  The car is totaled and the car payment is due today (of course -- that's a rule, isn't it?).  Still, I am happily alive and can feel the aches and pains, which beats the alternative!

Today's journey, then, is just to rest, ponder, meditate, and get well.  I know there is a lesson or two to be had, and I will surely find it today.  Shalom for now.

People often talk about their bucket lists.  I have one of sorts.  It's chiefly in my mind.  One of the things I've always wanted to see is the Mediterranean Sea -- the Med, I call it to myself. 

On the flight from Atlanta to Tel Aviv, we crossed over the Med.  Looking out the window of the plane, I could see the Med and the islands of Greece, including Mykonos, all of which are also on my mental bucket list.

The day after we arrived in Tiberias, Israel, on the bankis of the Sea of Galilee, we headed to Caesarea on the Med.  It lived up to my every expectation.

This is the old city of Caesarea by the sea.  The sparkling blue waters of the Med surround these ancient Roman ruins.

To the right of the photo is the Hippodome, where chariot races and horse races took place.  In the far left background is the former palace.  This was such a lovely spot that it was hard to imagine how many people and animals might have been sacrificed here in the name of Rome.

After walking around the site for quite a while and learning more about the history of the place, we got to go up the road a short distance to Pontius Pilate's Aqueduct, an engineering marvel in its own way.  Transporting potable water to this city was hard work and the aqueduct made it easier.  At that site, I finally got to dip my toes in the Med.  We waded in the crystal clear, and very cool, waters for a while.  It was perfect.

What a spectacular start to my pilgrimage to the Holy Lands of Israel!  Getting to see the Med, wade in it, and enjoy the beautiful sights and colors, while also visiting ancient biblical sites.  Wow! 

The air smelled better, the water was clearer, and the atmosphere was perfect.  Even the journey to get there from Tiberias was a good journey, through fields of ripening vegetables, by trees sporting almonds and olives, bananas and oranges.  And all the while, seeing people working in the fields, herding sheep or cows, and living off the land.  And this was only the first half of the first day.  My pilgrimage had only begun and already I was content, inspired and expectant.

Beginnings

Having just returned from a trip -- make that a pilgrimage -- to Israel's Holy Land sites, I am convinced that all of life is a pilgrimage of one sort or the other. I plan to share some of those life-pilgrimage experiences here, starting with the trip to Israel, and then jumping around a bit. The order of things doesn't matter; it's what I've learned from them that does.

I hope that I'm not the only one still learning from life's pilgrimages and that others might enjoy some of these thoughts as well. Stay tuned!