Susan LaffertyIn the midst of the move, fears slip in. Without permission. A thin thread of doubt weaves its way through my mind. Second guesses undermine trust.
Trust in the One who leads us.
“Be sober-minded, be alert,” Peter says (1 Peter 5:8). Somedays I’m catching my breath and need this reminder. Front and center.
The early 1960s in Indonesia were years of political upheaval. The Communist party was strong and growing in power. There were protest marches in our city against Malaysia and against the British.
I remember the air raid drills in Surabaya when I was 4 or 5 years old. The siren would blow and every light had to be turned off. We sat in the dark until the siren blew again. If it happened during dinner time, Mom put a sock over a flashlight and fed my baby brother by its faint glow.
“Be strong and courageous.” The message is repeated over and over to Joshua. And to me.
We stepped off the train from Jaipur at 11 p.m. in New Delhi and joined a moving river of fellow travelers. It was August 2009. The air was thick with heat and dust. The stench of garbage and urine hit full force.
I struggled to breathe.
All of us were streaming through and around various groups camped out in the train station, walking past dusty forms of men, women, and children asleep on the ground or on benches. The masses flowed up metal stairs and crossed the tracks on a walkway overhead.
Our family of five tried to keep up, pulling and lifting our suitcases, attempting to stay together.