I have tons to catch up on… Z’s birthday dune bashing, the kids dealing with the death of Sophie, Abby’s amazing Atlantis/ dolphin meeting birthday weekend, getting our visa’s… and so on. But, while this is fresh in my head I just wanted to get it down so I don’t forget how I feel in this moment.
Last year this time, the kids were settling in to school… I was neck deep in three college classes trying to get transferred over to the Accelerated College… John was working crazy hours and frequently getting home after the kids were in bed. We wanted to do something different with our lives but couldn’t quite figure out what. John was looking into overseas opportunities with his company and then all of a sudden this project in the UAE came up. On Halloween we found out that we were going to be making this trip for sure. I was nervous, excited, sad and thrilled simultaneously. Abby was really upset to leave her friends and Zach, Mr. NO change, was surprisingly on board!! John hoped he was doing the right thing for our family.
I have been all over the place with whether or not I like the UAE. It’s a place that is inconvenient and convenient at the same time depending on what you are trying to do (i.e. visas= not convenient, inexpensive/ one of a kind weekend trips= convenient). I am not going to say that suddenly I love it. What I will say is that on this trip to Paris I have realized that I love that we were willing to run with the opportunity presented to us. I know some may think we were crazy (Maureen and Yvonne, hehe) but maybe it takes a touch of crazy to get the most out of life. Can you stay in one place your whole life and still have a great life? Absolutely, I am sure! But for us, it has been an amazing life-enhancing journey and we’ve only just begun! Actually, the craziest thing of all is that Paris is half way between US and UAE. So why did we never think to take a trip here before?? We are suddenly tuned into the world outside North America. Some Americans are just that way to begin with but I was definitely not. It took moving to Abu Dhabi to learn that I could be comfortable with foreign language, cultural differences, not always knowing exactly how to get somewhere, etc. Surprisingly, I have been able to communicate with French only speakers really well here considering my last French class was in 1991 (well, everyone except for the metro ticket guy but I am sure he was already grumpy before I arrived!) Prior to moving, I think I would have been too intimidated, too insecure to pick up the kids and head off to a non-English speaking country! I admire Americans who just naturally have the confidence to travel abroad without thinking twice! I am getting there.
I miss my family, my friends and my home so, so much… On the other hand, I am not ready to come back. I do not know if or when we will come back. If I have learned nothing else it is that as I was writing a paper for my fine arts class, I could have never imagined I would be watching my children’s eyes wide with wonder as we walked through the Louvre one year later. I can not wait to see what’s next…
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