Four days!

I’m sick and I have leprosy on my hand. Okay, it’s not really leprosy. It’s this gross blistery red disaster on my ring finger, left hand, right where my wedding ring usually sits. Apparently it’s some allergic reaction to something that got on the ring (a fungus perhaps–um, ew, ew, and ew). I had the rings cleaned and got a cream from my doctor (I went in because I was worried about it being a spider bite–it’s quite nasty looking), and it seems to be getting better.

The cold, however, is not. And here is what strikes me. I was having moments of panic last night regarding this cold. The only thing worse than going on three separate flights with a head cold is going on three separate flights with a head cold while on your way to a third-world country. I cannot be sick mere days before leaving for Congo. No way. But anyway, what I realized is this. I’ve been so worried about going to Africa and getting sick or getting some gross parasite or something. And now I’m here in America in my safe little world with a nasty head cold and a fungus on my finger. A fungus! So, I guess the message is pretty clear–stop worrying. Because look at what all my worry got me. Whoop de do.

In other news, I have actually started to get genuinely excited about the trip. Now that the logistics are starting to fall into place (of course, this would be easier without the sinus pressure), I am beginning to realize that I am going to be in Africa next week. And though this is not really a “vacation,” it’s still pretty awesome to go somewhere you’ve never been before and cannot imagine. I love hearing people all around me speaking a language I can’t understand. I love how grocery stores and markets sell such different foods and products. I love being out of my normal routine and my normal environment and trying on a different life for a set time. And I’m jazzed that I’ll be getting to do that in just a few days.

I’ve been thinking about China a lot as I prepare for this trip. It’s been almost a year since I went, and I had an amazing time on that adventure. Sure, I was nervous before that too, but once things were set into motion, once the first plane lifted off and real life faded just a bit, I was energized and thrilled with all the new–new, new, new. Everything. And while the preparation for this trip is more intense, the stakes a little higher, I am looking forward to that moment, the time when we are in the air and on our way, when everything that can be done has been done and all that’s left to do is keep my eyes open, my camera ready, and my heart willing.