Wednesday, November 5, 2008

The journey has begun

The pilgrims are now in London as we await the continuation of our fight to Cape Town, South Africa. We're filled with anticipation and great hope for the opportunities before us. Over dinner, before departure, we talked about how much we have to learn from leaders in various social justice causes: from Truth and Reconciliation leaders, from HIV-AIDS activists, from LGBT leaders and many others. We reflected on the gratitude we feel for the chance to develop closer relationships with our Unitarian and Unitarian Universalist colleagues here. And, we began to explore the complex thoughts and feelings that are present for each of us at the prospect of visiting Goree Island. Our hearts are full, and our excitement is great

The flight out of Boston was somewhat delayed, which meant we had the good fortune to hear some very early election results before we boarded the plane. The outcome was still far from certain, however, until the pilot announced that Barack Obama had been elected our next President just before we touched down in London. The passengers offered a round of applause at the news.

After arrival, I saw the President of Kenya, Mwai Kibaki , on television offering his poignant congratulations saying, "We the Kenyan people are immensely proud of your Kenyan roots. Your victory is not only an inspiration to millions of people all over the world, but it has special resonance with us here in Kenya." I'm sure that the results of the US election will add a special quality to our visits during this journey, especially those in Kenya.

So, its on to Cape Town shortly. We'll post more to the blog after we've arrived. Please continue to hold us in your warm thoughts and prayers.