Pillows are Important

Hello again!

Today, I would like to tell you about pillows, because they are important. 

If you were ever to peek inside a Schaffner vehicle packed (to the gills) for vacation, all you would really see is pillows everywhere. Each seat will have a pillow and most will have more than one. There will also be blankets. 

Some of you are laughing because you know how very true it is!

Why do we like pillows? Well, most people do, but it would seem we are somewhat in the extreme. I look at it this way: If I have a pillow that bunches in just the right way and is familiar and is comfortable and is mostly made of air so it can be squished to fit in small places when not being used and is extremely light...why wouldn't I bring it with me? Why leave to "fate" the state of an unknown pillow at my next stop? Why arrive at vacation only to find I don't sleep exactly well the whole time simply because my pillow (and don't neglect the pillow case, either, but that's another rant) doesn't have the right sort of squishitude? Twould be silly, would it not? Yes, twould. (I knew you would agree with me, you are very nice.)

With my pillow on hand, I can sleep pretty much anywhere.

Now, I do admit that I take this common sense a step further and I typically carry TWO pillows wherever I go. I have good reason: I'm in a different place every three weeks (or more frequently) and it's good to have something that stays the same everywhere I go. The second pillow is just the right squishitude that my neck is used to under the perfect squishitude of the first. It's not quite as crucial, but it is desirable and makes my nomadic life less "foreign." I know some people may find this excessive, so I usually arrive at a host home with only one pillow and then I retrieve the second one from my closet on the truck if it seems I won't be able to sleep well without it. 

I also carry a blanket...

and a small bean pillow to curl around when I sleep... 

Little bits of home and goodness. 

I am not ashamed. = )

So, with this family habit and personal background in mind, I would like to tell you of my recent adventures through the airports as I traveled home from Wisconsin.

First, I would have you know that I was using forethought and knew I could not walk through an airport with two regular pillows, a small pillow and a blanket, so I left the second pillow behind and decided to carry one regular pillow and another pillowcase with the blanket and small pillow in it. I thought this was reasonable: I was going home for a month and a half and I wanted all the familiar, good, things about me.

Sadly, none of this could fit in my suitcases. 

Nothing wrong with carrying pillows on a plane. 

Or so I thought. 

Did I get in trouble? No. 

Was I slightly embarrassed? Very slightly.

You see, it seemed my pillows were conspicuous. I was traveling with Steven and Christy Canfield (she is a.k.a. the "Female 1 + 1") and they may have laughed at me, but at least they were used to my pillowy ways. But the people at the airport were different. I got lots of strange looks, according to Christy, and several comments. 

The looks are easy to ignore: 

I can't see them. 

But the comments...

The first couple commented on them while standing in line to get on the plane. Something along the lines of "well, you look comfy"... I also got a few "why didn't we think of that" type comments. These all seemed complimentary, and perhaps they were, but they also seemed to be saying "well, you stand out and I'm glad I don't"

Then there was the kicker: Christy and I had just gotten off the plane and were waiting about 20 feet back from the door for Steven (who had kindly taken my seat next to two big guys way in the back.) to disembark. So, we're standing outside the gate in Savannah, - Christy with her 1+1-ness and me with my pillows - and I'm completely zoned out due to foggy naps when I foggily hear (over the intercom, mind you) a very official voice saying "...and I will count pillows as carry-on..." I didn't quite catch it at first, so the Female 1+1 nudged me while the official voice repeated "...I repeat, pillows will be counted...yes, I'm talking to you ma'am." This is the part where the fog cleared and I realized the woman at the desk near the door had decided to point out my pillows too. 

This is also the part where I was infinitely glad that I couldn't actually SEE all those people I could FEEL staring at me. 

So. I smiled at the official voice and ignored them and thought "silly lady, we're not flying any more today so your pointing me out was unnecessary." 

Then Steven came and we went home and I was happy to have my pillows that night.

Though I do still miss the second one. 

All this silliness aside, I really do enjoy having the constancy of the same pillow(s) and whatnot wherever I go. Life on the road is always changing and never quite what you expect. It's exciting to meet new people and see new places, but it is also good to have those things that never change. 

Far more important than my pillows: God never changes. 

If ever I caved to self-consciousness and left the familiar things at home, I would still have the ever-present, never-changing, awe-inspiring, mind-blowing, familiar-yet-incomprehensible love of God in my life. This knowledge is what keeps me going and is what led me to sign up for another year on the road. This Goodness is what fuels my desire to see this country on its knees in worship of Him. I want people to see me and comment on God in my life. I want people to see HIM and know that it is good to need and allow Him wherever they go and whatever they do. God is good and He is faithful and He loves us beyond all imagination. And we need Him oh so desperately.

That's definitely more important than pillows. 

Love,

Anna