I had never taken the train any long distance in my recorded memory. Making plans, I was excited about the adventure of a long train ride into the mountains. But, as our departure day neared, I became a little nervous. Because of flooding in western North Dakota, the train lines were shut down for the 3 weeks before our departure date. Will we be able to go? Will the trains be up and running by the time we need to leave?
Funny how I wasn't thinking too much about the people and towns actually being affected by the flooding. Nope, just about whether our travel plans would be secure...
Then we got the news that the tracks were open and that the trains were running again. We were on the first train heading west from Fargo. As the trip began, I was shocked by what I saw: water, water, everywhere... Church's Ferry, Devil's Lake... swallowed in water. And the farther west we went, the worse it got.
At times, all we could see in any direction was water. It was like the train was gliding on the water. In some places the tracks had been raised up from the water, and in others, dikes had been built up to protect the tracks. But there were moments when I looked down out the window, and I couldn't see anything but the water. The watery tracks plus the heavy train traffic (after it'd been shut down so long) caused us extensive delays. We lost a day because of it.
Days later, as we were readying ourselves to come back home, eastbound, we got the news that again the tracks were shut down. The levee in Minot was breached. Half the town was evacuated. Waters were over-taking much of the city and neighboring towns. Our first thoughts, though, were not: "Poor Minot; what will they do?" Instead they were, "How are we going to get home? What are we going to do?" The trains would only take us part-way through Montana, then what would we do?
Finally it hit me-- it really isn't that big of a mess. Not for us. Yes, an inconvenience. But, it could've been worse. Much worse. We could be in Minot. Our homes, schools, churches, parks, libraries, favorite restaurants... all in danger of being washed away in a tide of muddy waters.
Our drive home through eastern Montana and North Dakota was punctured by news stories from Minot and vistas of standing water all around. Water, water, everywhere...
I pray that in these devastating waters, peace can be found. That the waters of life and opportunity flow in and through these towns and peoples...
When I talk with my friends who are in their first calls, they are often startled to learn about the many "perks" my position has. The TiM program at Trinity allows me lots of additional continuing ed, learning, and support opportunities. Many of my friends barely get continuing ed, much less have a strong peer group and intentional monies and resources devoted to pastoral development and personal growth.
