We left M-ville on June 1st – bags packed for one week in the capital city. A had meetings for a few days, we were staying with friends, planning to enjoy ice cream and life in the ‘big city’. The meetings went well. Time with friends was wonderful and relaxing.
Then we received word that my grandfather passed away. In the span of about 30 hours, we made the decision, bought tickets and were on a plane via Dubai back to the States to be with family during this time. We decided to use some vacation time so that we could have more time with family and friends and get some rest while in the States. The last month and a half has been a beautiful whirlwind full of fun and laughter and memories.
On Saturday, 40 days later than our planned return date, we landed in M-vile once again. It had been a crazy time, but we enjoyed every second. By every second, I mean every.single.one because we were SO busy during out time in the States. We took advantage of every opportunity we got – planned and spontaneous – to spend time with people we love. It was a challenge in some ways, to be honest. Like I have said before, life is very quiet here in M-ville. We spend time with people (teammates, friends, neighbors) but we don’t have all of the go go go of life in America. The pull of the restaurants and shopping and entertainment is a figment of our imagination in this place. And we kinda like it that way. Yes, we miss family and friends deeply, but the extras we find exhausting.
To make things even more exiting, we moved houses the day after we got back to M-ville. From one house in the yard to the other. Nothing was packed or ready, but we just got to work and made it happen. There are still things to unpack and put away, but the craziness is behind us.
My blog has been silent for a significant amount of time and I am okay with that. An unexpected trip back to the States for a month will do that to a blog, I guess…at least to my blog. During our time there, I found that I didn’t leave a lot of room for silence and reflection. I find myself craving that now more than ever – a chance to stop juggling, take a deep breath and savor where I am right now.
A and I both made the comment last night that we are ready to slow down a little bit now, settle back into our routine and dig in here again. Exercise, consistent devotions, making healthy meals, going to bed early, developing relationships, hanging out with Little t are all things that we are longing to make priorities again.
We are still glowing in the joy of seeing family again and we are so thankful for the ability to return to the States for such a special occasion. It was worth the extra 40 days that we added onto our trip!
thought of you a lot while you were there ... and still thinking of you! prayers and love.
ReplyDeleteWe feel like we made the most of those days too! Thanks for sharing them with us. We made some great memories! We miss you all....very much.
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