While living in Morocco, exotic travel opportunities were steps away – watching the pinkish-purple sunset off the breezy Essaouiran ramparts, trudging upwards through the pebble-laden landscape of the second highest mountain in Africa, lounging with modern-day nomads over mint tea in a small pocket of the great Sahara Desert… and now, after stops in St. Louis, Washington D.C. and New Orleans, I’m happy to remember how much excitement is available within our own country.

Returning to the states in late December, I was comforted by love and support from family and friends who were excited to have me back stateside.  Out-of-town friends were home for the holidays and the season’s traditions carried me through the periods of “who am I now” questioning that come from, among other things, going through puberty and leaving a country (city, neighborhood, work) where you have invested two years of your life.

Through it all, I’ve been convinced of continuing the adventure.  There is definite merit in setting up a sustainable life somewhere, developing routines, and settling into mortgage payments and marriage.  Most times these are adventures in their own right.  Yet, at this point in the game, my vision and images of happiness simply differ from these conventions.  After living outside of my own country for a significant period I feel compelled to continue working cross-culturally.  Rather than stumping for the protection of “my values”, I desire to find commonalities among divergent groups of people and nurture understanding of differences.  Rather than decrying the addition of Spanish on signage as an erosion of English, our national language, I empathize with the Iraqis at O’Hare searching hopelessly for their flight, and wonder why we stopped at Spanish.

The transitioning process is always difficult and eternally a reality of the human experience.  As January slid to February I found myself in a new situation – no school, no work – but I’m hopeful (and certain) that this time of soul-searching and exploration will serve me well.    

-Bart-