a tangible reminder

Yesterday I was able to meet up with a friend from my past, Mary Hendershot. She is a missionary in Burkina Faso. She works with SIL and heads the musicology department. I'm sure I am not doing justice to what she does, but from what I understand, she learns the techniques, rhythms, styles, etc. of music unique to various tribes and groups of people and then helps create songs based off of scripture that incorporate those elements. Fascinating! She plays a number of instruments. She gave me flute lessons for a while and helped me with my keyboarding during worship evenings that we had called, Edge.

A church here in town supports her, and hearing that she was around, I miraculously got in touch with her and we met up for some coffee. The first thing she said to me was, "So, tell me all that you've been up to these past 7 years!"

In those 30 minutes that we were able to visit, time stood still. I could once again talk about places, people, and events that were once (and still are) so dear to me without having to add a 3-minute explanation. Having a tangible reminder of where I came from and grew up is precious encouragement to my heart and soul. She understands a part of me that most people don't even know exist.