Sitting in my Airbnb bed around 2:30am, I got a text from my mom, the first of many to update me on the European travel ban. My initial response was, “Are you sure? That sounds extreme…”⁣
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And that’s pretty much been my reaction ever since. I took the first train out of Versailles to catch a flight home from Paris that morning, after one full day in France. Belgium, Switzerland and Spain were postponed.

Regardless of the loss of vacation and expenses, I kept thinking on the plane ride home what a gift a day in Versailles is – twelve hours to walk the palace, drink espresso, and eat a French crepe. Things are good when accepted one gift, not as one entitlement at a time. With so much anxiety circulating on what the next several months will hold, I’m holding tight to that lesson. The gratitude game gets harder to play in isolation, but I’m working to accept one meal, phone call, wedding postponement at a time.

I think these pictures will always be special to me, because they remind me how powerful thanks is in face of anxiety and disappointment, how it changes every narrative.

Praying constantly for everyone physically, emotionally, and economically affected by corona. 🖤