home for the holidays

i'm back in the US. after an exhausting and complicated series of flights, i'm in austin. i returned just in time to unpack, repack and fly to ohio tomorrow. whew!

life is a whirlwind right now... it seems surreal. returning to the instantly familiar US feels bittersweet. i'm only here for a few weeks... long enough to see my family, my advisors, my friends, my boyfriend, my new mamma friends and meet their little babies ... and then i'm off to south america. culture shock? it's seems that i dont have time.

i'll miss deutschland... the friends who now feel like my oldest and dearest... the beer... the museums... the language... the U-bahn... the efficiency... the espresso... the relaxed pace of life... the soccer... the winter... it's an amazing experience to live in a different culture long enough to watch how the people change with the seasons. i have to figure out the traditions thru observation and then asking about what i cant understand. like at the beginning of december all the sudden in every store appeared these wreaths... like you would set as a centerpiece for a table.. and they have four fat candles evenly spaced, sticking up....

the four days of advent.... you light one candle on the first sunday of december... then two candles on the second sunday... etc... so these wreaths flood all the stores for about week and then they linger for the lazy. a very quaint tradition!

the craziest part is that despite all the differences, germany harbors a western and very modern culture. it's intuitive for me eventhough new challenges popped up for me everyday! i wonder how much intuition i'll discover in the southern hemisphere... where i've never been! my curiosity peaks with anticipation!

... but right here and now, in the present moment... i will enjoy the company of those dear to me who i've missed over the last several months. i feel luckily to receive such support from my friends and family. thank you. i look forward to laughing and talking and sharing!