(the before)
Let’s cut right to the chase, shall we? This week I was Instagramming photos of a $2,000 handbag, next week I’m traveling to a country that doesn’t have clean water, where many don’t have the basic necessities to live.
I am not unaware of this jarring juxtaposition.
I’ve been worried for weeks about how to frame this, for myself and for my readers. I’m not going to stop posting about beauty and fashion, even though it’s frivolous and Not What Matters. I knew that it was frivolous and Not What Matters before I fell into World Vision’s orbit. But it’s still one of my interests, something I enjoy reading about and writing about.
I’m not going to start posting about Jesus, either. Well, at least not regularly. Earlier this year I wrote about my faith. I have been mildly open about my struggles within that faith, but I’ve learned the hard way that that’s what faith is: believing something to be true when you have no assurance of the end of the story. This fuels me, and will certainly be a comfort as I travel to the other side of the world.
The truth is this IS my truth. For better or worse, the designer excess of Los Angeles is a part of our regular life. And, though you’ll have to take me on my word, I believe my husband and I are good stewards of our finances. The Gorilla has traveled all over the world many times, and he has walked me through his perspective as I grapple. I do wonder how I’m going to respond to this trip, not just here on the blog, but within myself, within our family. I feel lucky to have a partner who has already taken this journey, so to speak, and is so encouraging to mine.
I’m not going to swear that HH won’t change, but I’m not making any big proclamations of change, either. I’m taking this one hour at a time, one small story at a time.
As I was writing this post, an email advertisement came through for Louis Vuitton. I deleted it. Not symbolically.
photo by VindothChandar
