I Quickly Go to Scotland - Part I

It all happened so fast — we had an amazing several weeks with Yasmin and Alexandra teaching knitting and seeing the Dallas sights back in November, and now it’s February, and here I am…. in Scotland.

The ladies were just home a week or two, maybe three, when Yasmin messaged me that the air fares were unbelievably low from Dallas to Inverness in February, and I needed to come over for two weeks and stay with them on Skye, just to relax—with no responsibility. It’s hard for me to even conceive of a world where I don’t have responsibility, but I thought it might be fun to give it a go, anyway. I knew after our first visit that I would NEED to find a way to return to Scotland, but there didn’t seem to be a particular reason to go back so soon. And February was not very far away at all! So after a talk with Mr. Ted and a plan to see that my work/church responsibilities were squared away during my absence, I committed to the trip.

And now, here I am, sitting on my bed in the upstairs guest room, looking out of a dormer window onto a sunny Scottish day. If I open that window, which is hinged at the top, I’m hit with fresh sea air and a gentle breeze, listening to the soft calls of sea birds. I keep pinching myself for assurance that I’m awake and that this is real. I know Yasmin wants me to just relax, but the Puritan Work Ethic dies hard and I do want to make myself as useful as I can while I’m here. I think there are some farm chores I can help with this morning to help me feel worthy of this amazing blessing.

My window opens out onto a fairytale landscape. We’re looking at the “sea loch,” Loch Greshornish, which is really just an extension inland of the Atlantic Ocean.

Peep out the window and look to the north and see the nearest neighbors. And look — the tide’s out.