Why Travel?

I’m taking two really sweet girls with me to Tunisia in October, and I think it’s going to change our lives. (I’m also taking my oldest daughter but more on that later!) Up to this point, Poppy and Loom has taken two young men to Vietnam, and two young ladies to Tanzania. Most people root for us and this endeavor, but every so often, people ask me why I want to take young people from my under-resourced community to other countries. I know I don’t need to explain myself, but because I want you to understand, here are a few reasons why…

Because I want to. Because I love to see the world more accessible to young people in my community. Because traveling makes you more aware of your place as a global citizen… it makes you quick to listen, and slow to judge. And because it really is just something I can and want to give away. My community of friends have this saying: “You can only give away what you have.” So why travel? Because this is something that I can give away… my connections and real life relationships to people around the world.

What do you have that you can give away?

Community

My parents are in their sixties and they down right “out-party” us. We can’t hang. They constantly teach me and my husband how to do community. Every time we visit, they’re up well past midnight laughing with their friends, or are out late somewhere with them. Last week, my dad was doing yard work, and his friends brought over two boxes of Detroit style pizza (his favorite) for lunch. It’s one of my greatest joys to see my parents, at this age, have such good relationships.

There’s a richness to putting down roots. When I was younger, there was something sexy about being a vagabond or a traveling wanderer. I’ve travelled a lot, and it is fun; you build your own kind of traveling community. But the older I get the more I’m thankful that John and I chose to put down roots. We got married, jumped into the deep end, and didn’t look back.

Community, in recent years, has become such an edgy term— Like, everyone wants to be a part of one. (As they should!) But the type of community I’m talking about isn’t about comfort. The community I'm talking about is one where you live out your life for something bigger than yourself. This kind of community always comes with discomfort. Deitrich Bonhoeffer says, “The person who loves their dream of community will destroy community, but the person who loves those around them will create community.” I have found that community is loving the person in front of you wholly, even when you don't want to. Being a part of this type of community has changed me.

Community rooted us. It told us the truth. It protected us, challenged us, grew us. It showed us what we lacked, and filled in the gaps where there was lack. 15 years in and I’m still learning how to live out this thing called community. I don’t think I’ll ever have the right answers… it’s more of a daily discovery practice.

If I wasn’t so convinced of my call to live life out in community, I’d be on a boat sailing across the world with my family. I’d be traveling, and enjoying the pleasures this world has to offer. Recently, I heard that love is a blended emotion of complete joy and trust. When you find that in a group of people, how can you give it up? I can't. I can say confidently though, that I love my community.

One day, I hope my kids look at me and John and say that their parents did community well. I hope they admire our relationships and acknowledge their own sincere love and need for community. I know there are things we don’t do perfectly, but I pray that one day my kids find themselves in a rich community of people who love unconditionally, and give themselves to something bigger than their own comfort.

5 Ways to use Poppy & Loom Tapestries

Let me introduce you to the most versatile piece we offer! The very first tapestry was one from Thailand. The lady who loomed the tapestry gifted it to my dad as a scarf for him to wear when he preached. (The average temp is 105 F.) Needless to say, he never wore it! This piece sparked dreams of a business, and the woman who made it eventually became my first artisan!

Here are 5 reasons people have fallen in love with these tapestries and 5 ways to use them!

1. They make great beach and pool towel! The cotton is soft and dries extremely fast. Plus, you can get sand out of them easier than regular towels. It doubles as a bathing suit cover up- Use it as a sarong by the poolside or beach.

2. Table cloths and picnic blankets. Look at how dreamy this is!

3. Use it as a scarf or shawl.

4. Throw blanket on your bed or couch. It’s been said, “It’s just the right amount of warmth to keep you comfortable!”

5. They make the cutest baby shower gift. In fact, the more you wash it, the softer it becomes!

If you have one, tell me what you use it for! Click below to get yours.

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