Getting Ready to Go (Friday Five)

 

Denver Botanic Gardens

I haven't played a Friday Five in a long time, but today's is a fun one from Stephanie for those of us who love to travel:

Here in the Northern Hemisphere summer is upon us which for many means a season of more going and coming. As I child when my family was planning for vacation we knew we were getting close when my mom stopped by the bookstore to buy the Frommer’s and Fodor’s guides for our destination. It was how she got ready to go.  Today I’m in the final countdown to my sabbatical that begins in less than 48 hours.  My preparation has included lists, lists, and few more lists. Around the RevGals community some are planning for vacations, others continuing education, still others are changing appointments or seeking new calls.

Whatever your going may be, physical travel or taking a mental break, how will you get ready to for it? Are you a list maker, a blog reader, a book gatherer, a house cleaner? On your blog or in the comments tell us about five things you do to get ready to go. What do you do to prepare yourself physically, mentally, and spiritually to be away? Or what unique preparations have  you made for five different kinds of leave-taking, such as vacation, continuing education, changing calls, retirement, death of a loved one?

1. The cats -- the most important task.  Glinda could pretty much take care of herself, but now that we have Marti, a special-needs cat, the situation has grown more complicated.  We hired a fabulous pet sitter team for our last trip, but what with the bird who flew into the house, the raccoon who dug into the trash, and the gas that leaked into the house, I'm not sure they'll come back!  (The cats did great, though.)

2.  The church -- now that I'm the pastor, any absence requires me to arrange for back-up pastoral care, and Sunday preaching, if I'm gone for Sunday.  I've been really blessed by wonderful colleagues, so no worries there, once the recruiting is accomplished.  If I go away when I'm teaching, it's a lot harder to find someone.

3. The stuff -- I'm getting much better at packing for almost anything using nothing more than a carry-on suitcase and some sort of bag.  That ipad makes reading and writing such compact endeavors!

4. The guides and maps -- vacation or conference, I love to see something of my surroundings, and I try always to plan with that in mind.   I've been to Martin Luther King, Jr. sites and Olympic Park in Atlanta, thanks to the Older Adult Ministries Conference a couple of years ago; to a bit of St. Louis with friends, thanks to the Interim Ministry Training last fall; and to a few great places in Denver, thanks to the Festival of Homiletics.

5. I am an inveterate list maker, so all of the above is accomplished via detailed lists.

Next planned trip: Washington, D.C. in another ten days, to lobby for suicide prevention legislation.