A Little Piece Of Home

A Little Piece of Home

Travel used to seem so glamorous to me. Sometimes, depending on where I’m headed and why, it still is. But more often, travel is simply work—and I’m as eager to get back to my home as some folks are to leave theirs. I miss my own bed. I miss my routine. And I miss the solid comfort of old, familiar things.

Every now and then, though, I’m given a little piece of home in a faraway place. Like the southern accent of a stranger or a familiar tune in an elevator or lobby. (Thanks, Lyle Lovett. I sure did enjoy the sweet surprise of those few bars from “The Road to Ensenada” heard in midtown Manhattan.)

Even better was the long lunch with one not-often-seen friend and a short road trip with another. (Joys really are multiplied when shared.) And tonight, more miles from home, I spent an evening with yet another precious friend who made room for me at the end of a very full day—the only time either of us could carve out for a visit. My surroundings might have been unfamiliar, but the company was not. Being with people I love never fails to make me feel at home.

Repacking my bags again, I’m almost certain that wherever I go, I’ll discover reminders of home. And not just my God-bless-Texas home. My real, forever one. Every day, I feel the persistent tug of eternity. Of friends and family who have slipped off beyond time, of fleeting glimpses of supernatural beauty or blazing love or improbable peace. These are winsome postcards from another world—one my heart is tuned for but my eyes have not yet seen. And they confirm for me that my traveling will one day come to an end.

I’ll finally arrive. I will be known. And I will perceive in full what today are only short, momentary fragments of recognition. My Savior has gone to prepare a place for me. How could I long for less? The best roads are filled with familiar signposts, and they always lead you home.

They desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God; for He has prepared a city for them.

Hebrews 11:16, NASB