Welcome home

On my recent trip to Amerika, as it is called and spelled here, and back again, I made a few interesting observations.

First and most importantly, despite the long line you have to stand in at airport immigration, I love chatting with the immigration officer when it is my turn. I love it when the conversation is concluded and they say "Welcome home." I am sure they don't think much of saying that to each returning US citizen. And I am also sure it doesn't always mean very much to many of the people who are tired and just want to get home. But I am just a sappy person I guess. And being an expat now, it just sounds so wonderful to me. I am sure they wonder about me because I get this big ol' goofy grin on my face and tell them "Thanks. It is good to be here."

Secondly, I shopped for myself and honey bun and I also had promised our staff that I would bring something back for each of them. My housekeeper wanted a pink hooded sweatshirt jacket. I have been here almost a year and a sweatshirt jacket is still not on my list of things to wear six degrees below the equator. This continues to confirm the fact that I am not a native, besides the obvious things which I have commented on in previous posts.

She loves pink. I shopped for a pink "hoodie" and had no trouble finding one. The irony came in when I was looking at the size label. I was buying an article of clothing on US soil for my Indonesian housekeeper and that article was made in Indonesia. Wasn't sure if I should cut the label out or take a Sharpie marker and blacken it. Just another one of those odd things that you never really think about until it is put in a totally different context.

I bought Houston sports teams hats for the jagas (guards in case you forgot). I couldn't decide what to get so I bought two Houston Texan hats and two Houston Rockets hats. The Texans hats were the hands down favorite. The Rockets hats have an awesome logo, but they don't say Houston or Texas anywhere. Not as popular as something that has a US city on it. Note to self, buy all the same thing because they are like kids and they compare and get stuff that has some well known US city on it. Maaf Pumpkin Center, N.C.

After almost a year in Indonesia, it is starting to feel like home. I know this sounds contradictory to my very first observation but not really. I will always love "home", but true to many writers declarations, home is where you make it. I looked forward to seeing my husband and returning to our "new home" with our son. Maybe that is what kind of sealed the deal. The three of us together. Sharing all the mundane things that we like to do. Together, under one roof.

Two dear expat friends pointed out a couple of things about this kind of life. Laura told me up front - "It will take you a year to really settle in." I thought this seemed like an excessively long time frame. But by golly, she was right. My friend Leena asked me when we returned from a trip to Australia back in November, "Did it feel like home when you came back?" That was November and I didn't quite feel like I was there yet.

But this time upon my return, it did feel like home. It was so nice to see my husband and our driver waiting for my son and I as we came around the corner from customs. To see the jaga's familiar face and smile as he stepped out to slide the gate open for our car to pull in the drive. Our housekeeper and gardener waving hello and being totally amazed at how tall our son is and shaking hands with him and welcoming him to Indonesia. It was all very special to me.

It was just like our family back "home" welcoming us when we pull in the driveway of their home or seeing that first glimpse of their smiling faces when they greet us at the airport.

Part of feeling home too is seeing friends. That is a challenge when you are jet lagged, short on time and long on list. But, I did feel the warm embrace of friends in Texas and also upon my return to Jakarta. It is a blessing to have many people think of you and care about your well being. It is not so nice a feeling when you know you can't see everyone of them and catch up on their news. I guess that also makes you feel like you are home because you are disappointed in not seeing all the people you care about and find out what is going on in their lives.

So, before this gets any more mushy. Let me tell you all how very lucky I feel to have you as friends and part of my family (family being either through guilt by association or being born in to the same family as me and therefore not having a choice). This past year has been a very big challenge for honey bun and I. If it hadn't been for loving hearts to help cheer us along, I probably would not be sitting here at my desk in Indonesia typing this. I would have packed what few belongings I had with me at the Shangri-oo-la-la and headed back to the good ol' US of A. But you helped see sweetums and I through so I now serve as your explorer.

So, if and when you come to our home on this tropical island, we hope we can make you feel welcome and return that warm embrace we have so especially appreciated for the last 12 months.

Enjoy being home, where ever that might be, and know we are thinking of you.