Waiting for my luggage

At the time of this writing, it’s been 46 hours since we landed, exhausted from a flight that originated in Puerto Rico at 1:00 in the morning … to Newark … to San Francisco … to central Oregon.

My luggage didn’t land with us.

Photo by Jefferson Sees on Unsplash

My son and daughter-in-law live in Puerto Rico, and for this past week, Dan and I were on island time with them. Which meant leisurely paddling on stand-up boards around a large lagoon. Strolling the beaches and the parks.

It included a walking tour of historic Old San Juan …

Narrowest house in the Western hemisphere

… and a browse through El Morro, one of the forts as we learned about the rich history of this unique and beautiful place.

El Morro

Island time also meant slowing down to try local foods at fun, out-of-the-way places.

Cuban sandwiches. Pulled pork. Shrimp. French toast made from brioche stuffed with cream cheese and fruit. Mounds of crab served on top of rice. Mofongo. Red snapper brought whole to the table. Sliced and cooked sweet plantains. Rum chicken with rice and beans.

Rum chicken

As much as we enjoyed the unhurried pace, the history and architecture, and the food, I mostly enjoyed the time with my kids (yes, they’re still my kids no matter their age).

Sitting long over meals. Lingering on the back patio overlooking a coffee farm in the green, green mountains of the island as we waited out a deluge—deep in conversation over coffee and Chai with these kids I haven’t seen in two years.

Meanwhile, I’m still waiting for my luggage. The airline app first indicated it had landed at our local airport later that same day. And it would be delivered to me.

The next time we checked the status, my bag was supposedly in Denver. So I picked up the phone to speak to a customer service rep who said my bag was out for delivery that afternoon.

Yesterday afternoon came and went … and still no bag.

It was G.K. Chesterton, an English writer and philosopher, who said:

“An inconvenience is only an adventure wrongly considered. An adventure is an inconvenience rightly considered.”

G.K. CHESTERTON

Dan and I are on an adventure to get my luggage back.

But more important than that, we have memories of this latest adventure—exploring new places, learning new things, and bonding deeper with the people we love. While we can.

G.K. Chesterton also penned one of my all-time favorite quotes (warning: I’ve blogged about this one before):

“Here lies another day during which I have had eyes, ears, hands and the great world round me. And with tomorrow begins another. Why am I allowed two?”

G.K. CHESTERTON

These words speak to me of not asking, “Why me?” when painful or sorrowful things mess with my agenda, but instead, asking, “Why me?” when I wake up to another day of life and hope and opportunities, another day filled with priceless treasures—my eyesight and hearing, being able to work with my hands and touch the people I love.

Even though we live in a broken and desperate world, here lies another day filled with so much goodness showering down all around us. May we have eyes to see what we possess, and words to speak love and appreciation to our Creator. And to our people.

P.S. My luggage has since arrived safely and intact.