Chocolates and a sweet card (in Spanish) were waiting for me on this beautiful Valentine’s Day. Jon and I will enjoy a special lunch today; our next chance will be well into March!

My bags are packed (and repacked) for tomorrow morning’s departure toward Chennai! Reading the Lonely Planet travel guide was a real help: There was a link to travel tips especially for women. You can get information about countries all over the world. Based on those tips, I changed out some of the clothes to take with me. Check out http://www.journeywoman.com

The trip to Chennai via Washington Dulles and Frankfurt will take about 25 hours of travel time each way, plus trips to and from airports and getting through security and customs. India is 13.5 hours ahead of Central Time. [Gee–I’ll just be 1.5 hours behind son Rob in Japan!] Other websites of note: http:/www.incredibleindia.org and http://www.mapsofindia.com.

Just a little bit of business today–trips to the bank and the grocery store and I’ll be nearly ready. In a way, the shorter my list gets, the more room there is for anxiety to fill in the gaps.

But it’s Valentine’s Day! A time for special attention to love in all its forms. We are sisters and brothers who share SO much in common. Love your neighbor, everyone! My neighborhood will soon get a lot bigger, halfway around the world. I’m expecting to see, hear, taste, smell, touch, and sense an entirely different world view. I send neighborly love to all of you–no matter where you live! What will you do today to show a little love?