Pre-departure Jitters

It's a nerve-wracking thing, planning to leave the place you've lived in and around your whole life and moving to a country that seems so very different from what you've always known.  Don't get me wrong, I'm very excited for this adventure, but there are moments of panic that chew at my belly.  The panic usually comes more at the thought of leaving the life I know than entering the unknown.

My mom and I have a small stained glass business that's just now starting to gain some traction.  My dad and I used to go hunting a lot and I've been wanting to get back into that.  My brother and sister-in-law have monthly game nights at their house.  I have never not been with my family on Thanksgiving and Christmas. The guy at the corner gas station greets me with, "Good morning, teacher!" every time I come in the door.  My brother used to work at my bank and the people there still give my family special consideration.  I feel like a part of the community here, and I sometimes worry that I'll be just another foreigner after the move.

When I was younger I didn't really appreciate my home town.  I had no idea how much real culture we had in Columbus, Ohio.  Ironically, I didn't develop a real, deep appreciation for it until I studied abroad for a year in Paris.  I found myself being asked about where I was from, and the more I talked about it, the more I found to talk about.  When people were describing their cities I found myself nodding along and thinking to myself, "Hey!  We have that in Columbus, too!"

Our art gallery is pretty impressive and has a "hot shop" where you can take glass blowing lessons.  Once a month we have a Gallery Hop through the arts district.  We have multiple poetry slam groups in town which compete in a friendly, symbiotic kind of way.  We have one of the largest universities in the country.  We have a thriving LGBT community and a Pride Festival and Parade every summer.  My god, our summer festivals are enough to draw people to Columbus.  The Jazz and Rib Fest, Columbus Arts Festival, ComFest, Pride, The Asian Festival, The Greek Festival, Red White and Boom, The Doo Dah Parade, just off the top of my head.

I'm going to miss all of these things about my life here.  I'm going to miss knowing about all of the things that are going on around town.  I'm going to miss having my family around all the time, being able to call them anytime and have impromptu dinners with them.  In moments where the nerves are starting to gear up and I'm thinking about all the things I'm going to miss, I remind myself of the Arabian sunshine.  I think about the oasis at Al Ain and its 4000 years of continuous habitation.  I think about taking vacations to visit the pyramids in Giza and Slavic castles in Eastern Europe.  I remind myself that life is a journey and that I want to make it the journey of a lifetime!