Looking Back One Year...

Lately, I have been reminiscing about the past few years. Maybe it has to do with my finishing up my Master's at Fuller, maybe it has to do with friends moving away, or maybe it has to do with me entering a new stage of life where school will never be a part of it again. Definitely, some of the reminiscing has been due to the anniversary of my jailing and deportation from the UK. If you're not familiar with that story, click here. The one year anniversary of that crazy and unbelievable experience was just a few weeks ago. It feel almost like a lifetime ago and at the same time, it almost feel like it was just a dream. I've had over a year now to process through this and try to understand what happened that day. Much of it I will probably never fully understand, but there are some things that have come out of it that I feel are invaluable times, experiences and relationships.

One very important thing I think about in relation to this experience is that I have been called by my God to live my life as a bridge between two cultures - Westerners and Muslims. How this connects is that many non-white, non-American, non-Western people experience a great deal of undeserved hardships when travelling abroad. In no way do I compare my experience in London with that of many people, but it is a rather unique experience for a white, U.S. passport holder to be jailed and deported (especially from a country like the UK). I hope that having experienced this will aid my work in bringing about transformation, learning and growth both for Muslims and for Westerners.

Secondly, in returning to LA after my day and a half in London, I decided to return to Fuller and take a full load of classes. One of the classes I took was called Spiritual Formation in College and Young Adult Settings. One of the reasons I took this class at this time was I knew it would open up a lot of time for discernment and seeking after the Lord for understanding. I thought that it would provide clarity for going through the experience in London, but instead it opened up my heart for some significant and needed healing over the loss of my mom years before. If you want, you can read the following three articles for more information on her passing (One, Two, and Three). I look back now and see how important and valuable this time was for me personally. Would I have had this if I had been in London? Also, I was able to write my final paper on something that did provide some aid in my processing through the experience in London. I did my research and wrote on the use of spiritual practices in times of trauma, which was very helpful in the end.

Finally, one relationship started out of this time that never would have started if I had of been in London for the expected two months. For those that know me will know that I am speaking of the relationship with my girlfriend, Amal. When I returned from my short stay in London, I moved back into the house I was living in in LA. Amal was living there at the time. Shortly after returning, Amal and I started hanging out more and more and getting to know each other. A few months later, we decided to start dating. Now, we are coming up quickly on being together a year. This (as anyone in love knows) has been the most amazing thing ever! - Excuse my mushy, ultra-sentimental talk here please ;) - I am truly blessed to be together with Amal and look forward to continuing travelling through life with her. 

Through all of this, I still have no idea why the immigration officer in London lied and actively worked to get me deported, but I echo Joseph in saying:

"Even though you intended to do harm to me, God intended it for good" (Genesis 50:20, NRSV).

p.s. here are a couple of pics of Amal and I from our June trip to Portland and my graduation from Fuller.