'Tis the Night Before Departure

‘Tis the night before departure, and all ‘round the room,

The things taking place are all hitting too soon. 

The fridge is near empty, the bedroom so bare;

The floors are too tidy (like we really do care). 

Copies of passports, Photo ID,

All tucked away as things we could need.

My old purple backpack (which has served me so long)

Well, suffice it to say, may the stitches be strong! 

It’s full near to bursting, but that’s nothing new;

Our giant black duffels, yikes...I don’t envy you. 

And speaking of bursting, while we’re on such a spiel, 

Our bellies have stretched to fit in our “last meals.” 

The laundry, I wish I could call it all clean,

But when packing like we are, not in my best dream.

My shirt will smell strongly of what I ate today,

And Todd’s dirty socks...we just threw those away. 

But all this will fade in a few hours time, 

As other thoughts start to fill up my mind. 

Like what life will be like in our new foreign town,

And how fast babies grow up when you aren’t around. 

Does driving on the left really mess with your head?

And will Christmas in summer be a joy or a dread?

Will money conversions come quickly or slow, 

And will saying “Goodbye” hurt more than I know?

I will say it, I will, though I’m still not sure how. 

I’m just trusting the Lord for that later, not now. 

He knows all our days, though I don’t have a clue,

He’s ordained them from old, they’re none of them new. 

And it is a comfort to have understood, 

That for those who love him, he does all for their good.

-Meredith Overbeek