Coming to America [an update]

The ever-observant duo Alison and Gill have written the following:

Glad to hear you got back sort of safely. Did your luggage ever reach you - was it completely ruined? Do let us know. Have a great Christmas!

I apologize for not completing the story of our luggage; here is how that tale progresses:

I was told in Columbus that our bags had been isolated from the rest of the luggage and should’ve been on our plane, but it had somehow not made our flight. So on Friday afternoon a representative from Continental Airlines delivered my six bags to my father’s house in Canton, OH. Four of our bags were fairly ruined, with the contents of three of those likewise violated by the offending oily substance. Somehow the other two suitcases seemed to have escaped relatively unscathed. Continental has given us two small, very nice rolling suitcases and two large rolling duffel bags to replace our damaged luggage. There is yet another bag that requires replacing. As for the items contained therein, Andrea and I will spend the rest of this afternoon going through the damaged bags, salvaging what can be saved and finding replacement values for each item that was irreparably soiled. Continental is being fantastically gracious in dealing with this problem (as illustrated by the four nice bags they’ve already given us to replace the ones we’ve lost). It is, nevertheless, a hassle to have to go through this at all.

A word should be made here about WIS's content and the subject matter of the posts that find themselves published on this site. The rationale behind WIS is to provide a forum for me (and Andrea) to ponder out loud about what matters most to us. This post, then, is a bit out of place. At the end of our flight, when we landed in Columbus, it was a relief to find myself safe with my beautiful wife and daughter and greeted by our loving families. Sure, it’s nice to have all our items replaced by the airline with whom we entrusted them. But (and this will definitely sound a bit cheesy) if I were left poor and hungry and yet still had my family with me, I would be more blessed than I deserve.