Across the globe

Sunday the 7th I leave on a business trip to China until the 19th. The purpose is to determine at what point in the future will Nike's distribution partner in China (iDS) be unable to continue to meet volume and service demands. Secondarily, it is to verify that iDS will be able to meet Nike's needs for the 2008 Olympics. It's essentially an audit, and I'm going to delve into the hardware and software infrastructure.

I am anxious right now. I don't pack early. In fact, I haven't packed one thing yet. My wonderful wife is busy ironing my shirts and pants while chatting on the phone. I'll pack later tonight. Not exactly Practing Preparing, eh? I'm not anxious about packing or the meetings themselves, but just air and international travel in general. I know the facts about air safety, etc., but it's just one of those things that plops you out there, being less in control and feeling more vulnerable. I've spent some time this last week quieting my anxiety with more bible reading than normal, which isn't a whole lot anyway, but more than is usual for me. But also just sitting in some quiet moments, asking for God to grace me with calm and understanding, and another reminder that I'm really not all that in control anyway, business trip or not.

In some ways, I wish the trip had a more ... meaningful purpose. Something beyond work. I think about missions trips and whether they may be in our future. We talk about things like that from time-to-time, but, at least to me, the time doesn't seem quite right. I'm pretty sure He'll make me fully aware of when it is time. Practicing ...Waiting.