There and Back Again

Up to now, going to Namibia had always been the visit. Whether for 2 weeks or 12 months, I knew I was coming home afterward. But this was the first time for me that going to the States was the visit.

This summer my mom was throwing my dad a big birthday party and invited a bunch of out-of-town friends and relatives, so she asked if I might be able to come back for it. It happened to land during our winter break in between semesters at NETS. So as soon as we wrapped up our semester I jumped on a plane to head home for 3 weeks.

I spent the first week in beautiful New Hampshire. It's been a looong time since I've experienced a good NH summer. People asked me if it was weird being back, any reverse culture shock, but what surprised me was how normal everything was. I walked into my church and it felt like I could've just been there last week. I visited with many friends and picked up right where we left off. I had no restaurants I needed to rush out to eat at. I wasn't overwhelmed at the incessant overabundance or wealth of America. It was all just . . . normal. Not that nothing's changed over the last year, but I wonder if I've just been back and forth so many times now that I've learned what to expect and to accept each culture for what it is.

In NH, I had opportunities to share with groups from a few churches about what I've been doing this past year. I got to visit my church small group and hit up the youth group pool party (they all grew up so much in the last year!). It was nice to be back helping lead worship and catching up with this community that has been my extended Christian family for so many years.

After a short week in NH, I flew down to North Carolina to spend time with the fam and visit with friends from my seminary days. I stopped in at the B&G Club where I used to work to see how much those kids have grown. I got to share with a few other churches and small groups. I know it's only been a year away, but it was so great to be able to reconnect with so many people who've helped make it possible for me to serve over here in Namibia.

Just like old times, except I didn't win	Visiting with friends in NC, who made many Cheerwine desserts!

By my last weekend, lots of extended fam had come into town to celebrate my dad. It was the first time in a long time that my whole immediate fam was together so naturally we had to take family photos. The rain held off all afternoon and we had a nice party out at the park, complete with pirate minstrels. That evening we took a little too long to make plans, so after rushing to get there we only caught the end of the fireworks show through some trees. But to make up for it we went for Cook Out milkshakes and saw some fireworks over the Family Dollar parking lot (classy!).

Helping my youngest nephew learn how to walk	Fun family photos

I wasn't joking about the pirate minstrels!	Family Dollar Fireworks

It was a whirlwind tour, but it was still great to see people again, even for such a short time. Hopefully next time when I come back it will be for a bit longer so I can spend more quality time and see more people than 3 weeks would allow.