Soldiers, diplomats, aid workers and some business people have to be away for long stints. I know how great the sacrifice is for those who are truly attached who must go forth for long and uncertain times.
Virginia is cold and gray, but it is good to be home. Good to have hugs...good to share smiles. My home is no place, not even the US...which is varied and problematic in so many ways. My home is people and context. Context is our shared experiences...sometimes deeply rooted experiences and sometimes those that are new and totally exploratory.
Without a partner like Kate, this would be impossible. I feel that the boys are as safe as they can be and thriving as they should be. School is good, birthday parties roll on, and neighbor kids knock on the door. Change is hard. We prefer to settle into rhythms that feel comfortable to us. And the rhythms here in Virginia are good ones.
I have asked my family to undertake considerable change. The burden I place on them is also a further burden of responsibility on me. People have always struck out for new shores, new ideas and new ways. I am a pitiful sort of explorer in some ways, but I recognize the wanderlust of the Scots-Irish is in my blood. The world is out there for me...but not for everyone...perhaps not for those I love most. So like all people who love, I bend and ask that they bend.
It is hard...change is hard. Planning is a salve, but the burn is no less present.
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