sojourn

Sojourn – such a trip implies something different than a vacation and less than an adventure, a saunter into a new place or space where the trappings currently used to define one’s time and interactions are suspended, what is essential becomes most relevant. 

I’ve got a friend who is currently at Holden Village in the Cascade Mountains for a snowy sojourn.  She will be gone for close to two weeks, away from email and phone, living in a rustic but close knit community.

I’m not sure I’ve ever been on a “sojourn” in any climate or season.  But maybe I haven’t defined this word correctly for myself.  Maybe it isn’t about the amount of time dedicated to being away or the distance or the difference from the norm in the place visited. 

Maybe it’s all together about a state of mind and what one brings home.

Sojourn (to Transfiguration)

It is not about how far you(I) go to be in another time and space.
Nor is it about how long you(I) are away,
or the efforts you(I)go through to reset your/my priorities.
It is about the questions you(I) pose,
to the troll on the bridge, the dragon in the woods, the burning bush on the wayside.
And most of all,
it is about the gift of grace and compassion
you(I) bring home for your(my) self.

thank you Barbara Silversmith for your inspirational sermon today