Ok, so I’ve already shared with you how wonderful it’s been to be back in Prague this last week and how reassured I feel that this is where we are suppose to be. But, today I also wanted to share another aspect of my week. There have been a few moments this past week when I have felt the fact that we have been away for 3 months. Felt the distance of relationship… or maybe more than that just was reminded that our relationship here are still in progress – they aren’t there yet – there’s still new and developing. There have been a lot of moments where I haven’t felt this – where I have felt that things have picked up right where they had left off and where I felt like this is exactly where I should be and exactly the people I should be with, but then there are other moments when I still feel awkward here and not at home. Prague is awesome – it is for sure home for me – but it’s not perfect and it’s still new and foreign and sometimes I feel that.

Tonight we had a gathering at Craig and Sarah’s. I had been looking forward to being back at their house “storying” with this group for 3 months and tonight I got to be there. In many ways it was great. It was so wonderful to be back in a place where I could contribute to the conversation and grow in community instead of just sitting in a seat listening to one person interpreting scripture (preach). But, tonight was also different then I had expected. It was messy. People didn’t always agree and sometimes they weren’t able to communicate their thoughts well – it was messy and a lot of things weren’t settled or “ironed out”. There were things that I wanted to say that I wasn’t able to. I felt unsettled afterwards. It was different than I expected or wanted. It wasn’t neat and tidy and perfect, but it was GOOD. It’s in progress. Just like I’m in progress, just like my relationships here are in progress. We’re not there yet… but we’re walking the journey.  And I’m glad to be back in Prague walking the journey with each of these uniquely beautiful people again.

Rejoicing in the journey - Beth Stedman

Photograph by Beth Stedman