Seven years ago, Silva, some friends, and myself founded the Operando Society. We packed out bags and went on a trip around the world. Our three-year trip took us through Europe, Asia, and South America. Some of you may still remember this.
Many of you started following us somewhere along the way. Some of you joined Operando later when we were already at home in Slovenia and we took a (forced) break from the trip. It was a time when we no longer actively published contributions to our travel experiences.
For all of you who missed this stage in our journey, we have prepared a special page in Operando with all the posts from our trip, organized by continents and countries. If you’re interested, you can start reading on this link.
After we got home from South America, we were surprised by the coronavirus pandemic and put our lives on pause for almost two years. At least that’s what I thought.
Two years of “paused” life is not a little bit, but I still feel like that time has passed so fast. It’s like someone pressed the fast-forward button and I suddenly found myself two years ahead. Where did the time go?
Of course, our plans for future travel were upside down at the time. At Operando, we adapted to the circumstances and, despite a different rhythm, tried to maintain a relationship with you.
First, through the voluntary work of various therapists, we relieved the concerns and uncertainties associated with the pandemic.
We published articles about relationships and personal and spiritual growth. We organized four charitable campaigns for four different purposes: for missionaries in Colombia, for a school in Calcutta, for the missionary in Madagascar, and for the people of Ukraine.
In addition, we have put a lot of work into the English-language website and set up a network of volunteers who regularly take care of its content, write morning prayers, and work on Operando’s Youtube channel.
After all this time without writing updates from our travels, my fingers felt idle. So I decided to continue writing no matter where we are – at home in Slovenia, or abroad.
Every week (at least that’s the plan), I’ll share my thoughts and experiences on the site. I will probably occasionally return to other parts of the world that have marked my life so much. Perhaps I will share my recollections of some interesting experiences that I didn’t write about at the time.
With the tales from the journey (somewhat) collected and organized, I notice that there is some kind of change in me. I am sure that writing will help me to reflect on this growth, at least to some extent. I hope that it will be a rich experience for you as well.
Silva and I are in Slovenia at the moment. This May, we returned from Colombia, where we were perfecting our Spanish in contact with various charities. After six months of paperwork, lawyers, and officials, it wasn’t arranged in time to get a long-term visa. We had to leave the country because our usual tourist visa had expired after six months.
I believe God will show us the way forward, in one direction or another. If Silva and I have learned anything from the journey, it is a letting go of control and offering it to Him – who knows us to the core, who knows our insides, past, and future.
So next week, I’ll come back with a new contribution.
