Thursday, June 19, 2008

"Ghosts appear and fade away..."

Okay, I'm going to admit something. The overwhelming majority of the time, I have no desire at all to ever go back to Michigan, for anything. Ever. That's not what I'm admitting, though, as I already consider it pretty common knowledge. What I am admitting is that, after taking the time to check in on some blogs this morning, I find myself wanting to go back to Michigan. There, I said it. I want to visit Michigan. I want to eat a #18 (whole on white, cold, with everything) from Intermission Deli in Bay City, then grab some Superman ice cream and take a stroll on the Riverwalk. I want service with a smile (or at least not a scowl) from wherever I go. I want to not have to knife-fight with enormous bugs in order to walk through my home. I want to hear english spoken in public by someone other than me or Jenny. I want to get caught out in a nice, warm rain. I want to see water when I'm out and about, without going two hours out of my way to see it. I want to hang out in a mall I can't walk the entire length of in 2 minutes. I want to know for sure where I'm going to church on a Sunday, without having to consider drive-time, sermon quality, or the fact that no one will talk to us while we're there. I want to be excited about telling something to a friend, without immediately afterward realizing I don't have any friends around to tell. I want to see green grass and smell it being cut. I want Bob Barker to host The Price is Right again (okay, that one's not really Michigan related). I just want to get out of here for a while. I think I might even NEED to get out of here for a while.

I know we technically haven't even left the United States yet, but I'm afraid I'm already experiencing the first hints of missionary burn-out. Or maybe it's just a mood.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

You and Jenny should come visit me in Canada. *nods* Sounds like a plan!

Pam ('Lex)

Kara said...

It's probably just a mood. I sometimes think, "I need to get out of Michigan- just for a day!"

Instead of potted plants you could grow grass seed in pots and cut it every so often so you can get a whiff... I would miss that, too.

Kelly Glupker said...

I hope today you're feeling better, Josh. But I can totally understand why you miss the things you do. I'm in MI right now and my sister and I went for a walk tonight. I stopped her and said, "Just smell that! There is nothing like the smell of Michigan on a summer evening." I really miss that in Kentucky!
I thought you guys had found a church?

Josh said...

Kelly,
Let me explain about the church situation. Imagine if you went to church on any given Sunday, and there was no one there your age. NO ONE. I realize that's not the end of the world, but when you've been living somewhere for 2 years and haven't really managed to make ANY Christian friends, it gets a little trying. Now imagine that you walk in, find a seat, and just sit there while people (most of whom find it easiest just to ignore you) talk and laugh and have pleasant little conversations all around you. And you just sit there, feeling like you don't belong, but knowing that there aren't really any other church options out there, because you've tried just about all of them, and they're all just like this. That's where we're at. Plus, the church we've been going to is almost an hour away from the house we just moved into. The only churches that aren't an hour away from us (minimum) are churches in Douglas that we've already tried, and Valley Bible Church in McNeal, which is only about 30 minutes away. We tried Valley this past Sunday, and aren't opposed to going back for another try this weekend. So that's something, I guess.