As I sit in my garden, in sunny West Berkshire, where there isn't a cloud in the sky and the only sound to be heard is a bird rustling in the bushes I wonder to myself quite why I'd want to swap this and move to America for a year.
Am I going as an explorer - to discover new lands, experience new cultures and ways of life, taste new foods and see new sights? My time could be spent meeting people, planning trips to make sure I see as much of the land as I can. I could attempt to learn the rules for sports played there but less popular here and hope to return with treasures - either real or metaphorical which will be of value to me and others in the years to come. I may return feeling enriched by the friends I have made and the different lifestyles I have experienced and learnt from.
Or am I going to be a representative of Britain and British Methodism, ready to share my experiences with those I meet, offering a different viewpoint which can only be gained by originating from a different culture. I could spend my time meeting people with the aim of bringing a flavour of Britain, of a smaller country and a different society to those encounters. I may return feeling as though, because of my visit, people have more of an understanding of Britain and Methodism in this country.
Maybe I'm going as a student, ready to sit and learn from others. I could use this year to have an extra year of full time study which I could not do in Britain. Studying academic subjects which may not be on offer here, studying church polity and aims of mission. I could return feeling as though I have a broader knowledge than I had when I started.
I am actually going expecting it to be a mixture of all three and hopefully much more. I hope there will be times to explore, to see new sights and experience new things. But if that is all I do, it is no more than a gap year. So I do also go hoping to learn, but also to share; to gain new insights, but also to bring them; to discover new ways of organising church and focusses for mission, but also to offer them as well. This is an exciting time, but also a daunting one. Travelling out into the unknown (I don't mean to make Atlanta sound like some uncivilised, uncharted wilderness!) trusting in God and those who wait to meet me. It is a journey I hope not to make on my own, so please do journey with me by sharing in this blog where I will post regular reflections and feel free to comment along the way.
The journey starts now...
