Edinburgh

Over the weekend we drove up to Edinburgh for a quick visit. Our friends Jon and Sarah Hays live there as Jon is going to school (studying theology). Jon was a regular attender of the original Wednesday Morning Coffee (WMC) back in SLC. As an added bonus, more friends from Salt Lake have just moved to Scotland. Paul and Amber Warhurst are staying with Jon and Sarah while looking for a place to live (Amber will be working on a PHD at St. Andrews University). Paul is one of my musical friends from SLC, although we never could convince him to get up for WMC. So the scene was set for a great weekend of exploring a new city with old friends.

note: Unfortunately, we forgot to take our digital camera with us, so I do not have pictures to post. Paul, Amber, Jon, and Sarah took pictures with their digital cameras, but they are slackers, and have not emailed the pictures to me yet. :)

Edinburgh is another stunning European city (unlike our local European city, Birmingham, which is just plain ugly). It is filled with history, and at the same time feels thoroughly modern. It is also a very artistic city, hosting the largest arts festival in Europe. Next week the Edinburgh book festival begins, and Heather almost wants to go back up to see several authors that she likes.

So we got to wander the streets of the city, see the sights and eat the food, which was all really good, but the best part was getting to spend some time with old friends. There is something special about gathering with people that you have a history with. You get to talk about old times, current times, and the future, and it is all somehow more meaningful because you know where the others are coming from.

And we all had something extra in common this time around. We were all foreigners in a strange country. You maybe thinking to yourselves, "what could be so strange about the UK." Trust me, it is amazing how different it can be (and I grew up here). It is not necessarily different in a bad way, but it does make you appreciate the good things about your home. So we all got to talk about our own struggles in this strange and wonderful land and it was nice to know that we were not alone. From Jon and Sarah having difficulty making friends with the locals, to Paul and Amber having difficulty opening a bank account (you won't believe what a nightmare that process is), we could relate.

I am going to take it a step further, and perhaps this is a bit cliche, and perhaps it is a bit obvious, but the bond I experienced with old friends in Scotland, is just like the bond I experience when I spend time with other believers. We are all strangers in a strange land. We experience the same struggles, and we take pleasure from the same triumphs. And although the journey can be fun and exciting, I really look forward to a time when we can all sit down together and know that we are home.

JE