Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Wandering and wondering ...

I've got a great walk to campus most days, now, with our new home just blocks from my office. It's a little cold at the moment, but it's a fresh, 15-minute hike through a quiet neighborhood.

I've been thinking about wandering, lately, and the paths that lead us to different places and spaces. Seemingly small, insignificant decisions can lead to long-term changes in our lives. A decision to join the student paper instead of a choir in college led me here. Smaller decisions--like visiting friends in Stevens Point, Wis., for New Year's 14 years ago, during which visit I met my spouse--have consequences we can't imagine at the time.

I'm a fan of saying, and believing, that everything happens for a reason. I have faith that the road I'm on is the right one, and I feel the presence of the Divine in my footsteps. Some days it's tough; over the last months, my family has lost several dear members, with long lives behind them, and challenging circumstances in other areas have made it difficult for us to remember the path.

But as I wander, I no longer wonder if I'm doing the right thing. I know it.