Failure to Launch

Well, I was hoping to be writing this post on the flight from Dayton to Newark. The rest of the team arrived there safely and are awaiting their flight to Berlin later this evening. Me, I’m at home waiting to hear back from the travel agent.

I wasn’t permitted to board because my passport is set to expire on July 13, which I thought would be fine, even advantageous since I wouldn’t have needed to pay for a new one. I was unaware of the policy of most European countries that a return to the U.S. must happen 90 days before a passport expires. So an expiration date of September 29 would be fine, since that’s when the team returns. Richard Dietrich (the organizer of the trip) wasn’t aware of this either. The travel agency they worked with didn’t indicate as such.

So, I have an appointment at a regional passport agency in Detroit tomorrow morning. The plan is to get things squared away with a new passport and to get on a flight out of Detroit in the afternoon. Or I may need to return to fly out of Dayton on Friday.

The band is drawing up a set of music they can do without me. Thankfully, Olivia sings about half the songs and she could easily sing a few of mine — just a shift of the key. They’re in high spirits, convinced that God is in control and I’ll miss just one, maybe two concerts. Me, I’m deeply disappointed that I couldn’t make the journey with them, but I’m hopeful I’ll be on the flight from Berlin back home.

On a good note, the folks at the counter didn’t think to measure Brian’s bass and the keyboard we were taking along. Both were certainly oversized and should have cost an additional $200 each (one way). So we saved a little money there. But there’ll be some additional expense with getting me on different flights. How much I don’t know yet.

Please pray that flight arrangements can be worked out and that the meeting at the passport agency goes as planned (and happens quickly). 

(The picture featured was us before we knew I wouldn’t be making the journey with the others.)

Thanks to Amanda Harpold and Becky Duncan for driving us and all our baggage and instruments.

The next time I post, I hope to do so from the airport gate.