What a trip...

I wanted to write this post, like I most often do when I am writing about something I really feel deeply, listening to music that inspires. Then I heard sirens outside our hotel window. Siren after siren and I thought, "Nope, no fluff today, I am just going to listen to the sirens while I write." Our hotel is nice (especially compared to the $20 room we stayed in while traveling through Las Vegas!:), but when you look out the window you see the LAPD headquarters. So, lots of sirens . Amazingly, we are also just blocks away from Skid Row, so lots more sirens.

The trip has been good. I felt a bit anxious as we drove away from our babes. I think being away for five days wasn't the issue, it was imagining all of the tragic situations that could happen while we are away that made my heart ache and head spin. Thankfully, having Joel captive in the car so that I could ask him questions like, "So, where do you see our family in five years? How do you like the current state of Jenny? No really, what's your favorite thing about me? What could I improve on? Do you feel like you can never get all big pieces of your life lined up? Are you excited about homeschooling? Which of these three curriculums do you think fit our family best? Remember Sam and Amelia? Aren't they adorable? What's your favorite thing about them? Let's talk about Ethiopia. Let's talk about adoption. The hard stuff. The stuff no one wants to talk about. Wait what? You don't want to talk about it either?!" Just kidding. He loves all of my questions and I really didn't ask all of those questions. Or maybe I did. It was a long car ride! Anyway, having Joel all to myself was a treat and soon the anxiety of leaving our precious little ones started to lessen.

We stayed in Las Vegas for a night (got there at 12 am, left at 8 am), and let me just say that it is NOT the place for me! It made me want to run to a mountain river or something to get away from all of the flashing lights, practically nude women on billboards and signs everywhere, and throngs of people. No thanks.

On we journeyed to LA where we found our hotel in Little Tokyo. Joel went straight to some seminars while I jumped on the fluffy white blankets and settled in to read. Oh, and I got to watch Ellen! So fun and something usually reserved for when I'm in TX visiting family with TV!

We went for a long walk to stretch our legs in the early evening and it was fun to see everything around us. So many people! So busy, and so much more intimidating than Salt Lake City! But, it is so diverse and so interesting and so full of life and I love that. We found a fun little place to eat and I got the Farmers Market Plate full of vegetable goodness and rustic bread.

We went to a reception after that and met some interesting folks who are doing street medicine in their cities. One guy we met was named Mike. He was quite a character. He said something, though, that stuck with me. We were talking about his fellow Native Americans who live in SLC and are homeless. He was so interested in the situation and so full of compassion towards them, that he hopes to come visit and see what he can do to help. Anyway, while we were talking he said, "There's an awful lot of hope out there. There's a awful lot of hope."

It's what I went to bed thinking about that night, which was a good thing as we woke up the next morning to tour the homeless outreaches going on in the heart of Skid Row. I have never in my life experienced anything like it.

I'll write about it soon, but now I'm going to try and get some more reading and thinking done. Two things that are hard to do with two 3.5 year olds around (but boy do I miss them!), Jen