Coming Home.....well, sort of

Yesterday I arrived back to one of the most beautiful places in the world, and with the exception of four important things (Jim, Abby, Becky, and David), I felt like I had come home. By the time I'd been in Paekakariki just an hour or two yesterday, it was as though I'd never left. Melissa told me that when she walked into the house and saw me for the first time, she almost didn't feel like she had to say more than "hello" because...why should she? She just saw me yesterday, right?

Although I'm mostly here because of a really cool piece of work I'm doing with my dear friend and colleague, Jennifer (who is lucky and/or smart enough to live here), I built in a few extra days. Today was mostly about getting over jet lag, but luckily, I don't suffer from jet lag too much, and so....I had a fabulously wonderful day. When I visit places I've been before and loved dearly, what I mostly like to do is go on a little revisiting tour of places that were part of my life. So I woke up, hung laundry, went for a run in Queen Elizabeth Park with Melissa, ended up in the Village for a cup of latte, came home and took a shower, went to Paraparaumu to the Pac 'n Sav, where I bought the store out of my favorite yogurt mix, came back, did a little work, walked into the village to look for fizzies fort the kids, came back, cleaned up the kitchen, and went to pick kids (not mine, but very familiar ones) up at the Paekakariki School, came home, made snacks, went for a swim, and began to fix dinner. It was a whirlwind version of my typical days here a year ago when we were living those blessedly wonderful months of our lives.

People at the school recognized me, some said hi, some looked at me funny as if to say "you're not supposed to be here," others hugged me and said "welcome home." A few kids asked where Becky, David, and/or Abby were. It was familiar. And I longed to have my family with me.

I miss you, family. Everywhere I turn, I think of you. You were supposed to be with me today when I swam. When I went to the village to look for fizzies. I was supposed to pick you up from school. Jim and I were supposed to go for a bike ride in QE park. Here is so beautiful, but you are my home. Hey....any chance my home could take a detour over here???? Just kidding.