My Own Adventure

Some people travel the world over on a regular basis.  They hop on a plane with their carry-on’s and end up in other countries.  They do it all the time while so many of us stay pretty close to home. They’re travel-weary from airports, luggage, and diet cokes and pretzels.

I, on the other hand, am a mom of 7 who has homeschooled for twenty years.  When my children were little, it was enough of an adventure to go to the grocery store and the library on the same day.  My husband and I have gone on some big trips together, but I’ve only flown by myself once.

So here I am at 50 years old planning “Mom’s Great Adventure!”  I was so excited when I booked my flight that my hands were shaking!  I decided my itinerary and researched inns, guest houses, and train schedules.  I was going to travel to another country all by myself. 
 
Unfortunately, my trip fell on the heels of Christmas celebrations. Cooking, cleaning, decorating, buying and wrapping presents, and spending quality family time had almost worn me out.  Following Christmas Day, I had a day and a half to get myself and my family ready for my 12 day absence.  I must admit that I spent very little time on the house, children, and meals.  But, I was packed and ready to go on time, even if I was shaking a bit in my boots.

How to Get to England

All my life I’ve wanted to go to England.  As a little girl I’d put on a fake British accent.  In college, as an English major, I devoured British novels and poetry.  Once at a thrift store I found a biography of Eleanor of Aquitaine by Alison Weir which set me on a long path of reading everything about the Tudor dynasty that she’s written.

When my daughter left to work on her Master’s degree at Durham University in England, I would ache whenever I saw her pictures.  I knew that this was finally my opportunity.  Whenever I tell my husband that I want to do something out of the ordinary that will cost a lot of money, he tells me that I should pray the money in.  So, I did.
   
I teach at a homeschool tutoring academy.  Since I get paid per student, I started praying for more students.  I wanted enough for another daughter’s college tuition AND a trip to England.  I started with only 20 students.  That wasn’t enough.  I prayed some more; I also gave some money as “seed.”  Voila!  I got 16 more students.  Just looking at the numbers, I had enough for both needs.  However, I forgot to figure in the tithe, but that didn’t bother me.  I knew that if God could bring in more students, He could also provide what I needed for the trip any way He wanted.

 My sisters and I had gotten vouchers after a trip last winter for $600 with US Airways.  They agreed that I should use it on this trip.  I found a flight, applied the voucher, and bought a round-trip ticket to England for $284.  When I checked my receipt, they had only charged my American Express card $128.  A dear friend gave me a hundred dollar bill for the trip, making this a $28 trip to England!  Now, isn’t God good?