A Vacation Back Home

It's only been quite recently that I've understood the relativity of the term: vacation. I've grown up thinking that it's not a break from routine until you drive multiple hours on the highway, usually in a general north direction. This summer was the first time that my vacation took me back home and not farther away. I grew up using summers to get away from home but now I see that in the real world, one uses vacation days to get back there.

Everyone, myself included, was a little nervous about my return to America, land of the plenty, land of running water, land of “HOLY CRAP it smells good here!” Much to my surprise, things were....well oddly natural. It was like I was hyper sensitive to noticing the little luxuries that make a typical day in the States darn near magical. But at the end of the day, it's still my home. It's getting back to normal and that's always easy. Seeing my family wasn't movie epic and I didn't have to reintroduce myself to my friends. I was home, we hugged tight, we fell into old habits. I'd make a pop culture reference (albeit a bit obsolete) and my sister's would roll their eyes and my attempt at wit. I'd make stupid joke (sometimes Africa specific) and my friends would still high five me with sarcastic enthusiasm. Getting home and seeing that things don't change all that dramatically was quite comforting.

Looking back it's a bit remarkable at how much I fit into a 20 day vacation. Starting at home my friend's wasted no time in keeping me up past my bedtime as I staved off jet lag. The arrival of my older sister, her then-soon-to-be-husband, and a large portion of the San Marinese kept the pace moving. The third night was highlighted by an amazing dinner with our best friend family. The next stop on this tour of awesome was my parent's gorgeous cottage and more family time. We took a little time to be real tourists with the visiting family, and I was so happy I got to spend time with my little cousin who I'm convinced could actually grow up to be Spider-Man.

Welcome to the family sir!

It took awhile but we finally got to the real reason for the expensive trip home: my big sister's big day. I know I'm young and I haven't attended too many weddings yet but the bar was set high by this one and the rest can try to keep up. My sister's wedding was so fun and full of love that I'm considering not getting married now. I don't want to handle the pressure of having to follow that up! So many friends and family that came from so far. The whole weekend was just perfect. I couldn't be happier to have a new brother-in-law along with a larger extended family, and I can't wait to see them all again!

The past month has given me a second chance that I'd never really considered: I left for the Peace Corps......again. If you've been following my blog since the beginning, or at least read the first one, you'll know that leaving the first time around was beyond tough and grossly emotional. I unintentionally skipped over that part this time around because I wasn't leaving my mom, dad, and sister at the airport, I just got on the “L” and said goodbye to a good friend where the paths to our terminals diverged. Sitting in the airport waiting to start 16 hours of flying, I thought about how much easier it was than the first time. It's not because my dad's semi-teary eyes weren't there to watch me go, it was easy because I knew where I was going. I left the first time only able to comprehend the next ten steps in front of me. This time I knew where I was going, who waited for my return, what I was going to do, and why I wanted to continue.

This has been going on a long time.

I can't thank you enough. My amazingly, large and supportive family. My best friends who know that 2 years is a drop in the bucket that will get washed away after the first beer. My sister for perfectly timing her wedding (partial credit to her husband of course). From the distance I write this at, I can only hope that these few words can help to express my gratitude for an unforgettable vacation and for all the support.