It was liberating {& relieving} to be out of the city for a few days. As our bus slowly drove through rush hour traffic, down the dark highways, & into the small rainy village of Borovice, I think we were all ready for a real getaway. A deep slow inhale of rest & restoration.
There were about ninety of us total staying at the little campground. We bunked together in a large wooden lodge, sang songs of worship in the lower basement, & ate our meals of hot Czech dishes in the camp cafeteria. We stayed up far too late, playing games & telling jokes, & everyone that I met during those two days was warm & welcoming. There was something about this intimate, woodsy setting that formed the fall retreat into a tender experience. It was in the simple walk we took in the countryside & in the small conversations had over crowded dinner tables that did wonders much larger than I realized. I emerged out of the forest with a renewed heart, with new friendships, grateful for the provision of a community that will shape my time here in the Czech Republic.