That’s what my angelic colleague Colleen Hughes will begin bugging me about today, even though my book tour doesn’t start until next Tuesday.
I usually pack on my way to the airport and for years Colleen has been trying (in vain) to reform me. She, on the other hand, starts packing for a trip weeks in advance, from what I can tell. OK, so she has kids, and that makes a difference. But Colleen was hyper-prepared even before she was a mom. I think she spends more time packing than actually traveling.
For the record, though, I am not as bad as my wife, Julee, who—I’m not kidding—doesn’t start packing for a monthlong singing tour in Europe until about the time the car service arrives to take her to the airport. Even then she’ll look at me and ask, “Do you think I have time to take a shower?” Meanwhile I’m hurling her clothes into a colossal suitcase and jumping up and down on it, trying to get it to close. I’ve come close to having a nervous breakdown on several of these occasions, but that’s another story.
So I like to think I’m somewhere in the middle, not over-prepared but not totally last-minute. It’s all about balance. The best spiritual take I ever heard about packing was from my aunt Cass, a real old-school Irish Catholic. After she went to confession and Mass, she’d say, “Well, I’m all packed for heaven now!”
I’m not packing for heaven quite yet, though Cass was right about keeping oneself prepared spiritually. Salvation is a journey and not just a destination, and Cass was always ready for the next leg.
The book tour will take me to some great cities and I can’t wait to meet some of you and sign a book. You can find the full schedule at EdwardGrinnan.com. Meanwhile on Monday, May 2, I’m going to do a live chat on the Promise of Hope Facebook page at 10 a.m. EST. I really hope you can join me. I’d love to answer your questions.
Well, I better get packing. See you on the road. By the way, what kind of packer are you?
