The travel begins.....

As we are all getting ready to depart this morning I thought I'd give you a taste of what is involved. First, you start by packing your suitcase and hope that everything you have decided to take will fit into it. You've thought about this day since the announcement came out letting you know you had been selected for a clinic. You then go into survival mode trying to figure out just how big a suitcase you can lay your hands on to ensure that when the day arrives you will have packed everything in your closet and then some! After all, once you've managed to cram your entire closet into a single suitcase you still need to have enough room for the trinkets and treasures that you will be gifting to the local volunteers, then there's the gifts for the children that come through the clinic everyday and then the all important.... can't survive without it ... snacks! At this point you're torn between beef jerky and chocolate....which shall it be? Heck - why not both - after all you bought the biggest suitcase known to man!

The trick is to start packing well in advance of your clinic so that by the time the day arrives you have it down to a science. One thing that works is to buy the space saver bags...that way you put your clothes into a giant ziploc bag and then squish all the air out so that your clothes now resemble a brick. Mission accomplished - you can now cram more things into the suitcase! As the day draws nearer you start having the clinic conference calls and are repeatedly reminded that you need to pack light. English translation....empty out the previously packed suitcase, downsize and start again.

Now you start re-thinking and wonder what you can possibly do without - hey I don't need that extra pair of socks...that will save some room. Again, the idea is to pack light. Okay, start again (after all they say that the third time is a charm). So do I really need 6 pairs of shoes? What about the clothes? Am I really gonna be able to wear something different every day??? Can't forget the makeup, hair products, various perfumes and lotions (after all, you don't know what you'll feel like wearing each day) and again you look at your pile of snacks. The reality is, is that you are not going to be a fashion maven and everyone will be in the same boat as you.... wrinkled and tired, but with a renewed understanding of what is truly important.

So as you are reminded once again to pack light you toss out half the clothes, half the shoes, nearly all the toiletries and fill the emptiness of your suitcase with more snacks (after all, who knows what the food will be like). You are now ready to start the adventure! You get to the airport and pray nothing goes wrong. You meet up with others who have also gone through the trials and tribulations of packing ... and you start chatting to find that commonality that will make this two week trip as easy and comfortable as possible. The excitement is a natural high and lasts throughout each leg of the journey.

This morning I will meet Wendi Dishman, Renee Reinhart, Tika Burton, and Scott Hamey at the Cincinnati airport to start the trip. We will land in Newark (NJ) and wait for the rest of the team to arrive before all 30 of us board the plane for Mumbai (India) and then proceed onto Goa. We hope you will enjoy the daily updates as we move into clinic mode and begin making majic! For anyone that would like to help us in our fundraising efforts, we have a fundraising page located at www.onesight.org. You can search by our team name "Team India" or by typing in the team captains name "Kathy Kozsely" (me).

We wish to thank you all for your support, well wishes, and encouragement! Feel free to leave us messages, questions or comments and we'll do our best to work them into our blogs.