Landed in Philadelphia a couple of days ago, and starting to get back into the swing of things.
The last 3 weeks of my time in Israel have been the fastest 3 weeks of my life. I think I did nothing but spend time with friends and family, sleep, and eat breakfast (all other meals were shared). And I
still feel like I didn't get to see anyone nearly as much as I wanted.
I met a few new people during this trip: Two of my cousins and one of my best friends had babies within the last year, and that was the first time I met them. In the picture is the son of one of my cousins, along with my grandmother (his great-grandmother!), who turned 91 while I was in Israel.
Ninety one. Ho-ly moly.
And now, back in Phialdelphia, I am trying to embed myself back into this life where I don't have 10 close friends, with rich shared history, within 30 minutes or less from me. On the other hand, I do have the opportunity here to do
exactly what I want to be doing. Which, I'm realizing all the time, is a rare and precious gift.
Ah, but I do miss my people in Israel. My friends, my family. I often say "my friends" when I talk about the people in Israel, because the two categories blur in my mind. They're all friends. They're all family. In the U.S., too, I have people that are close friends, who have shaped my mind, opened my heart, and held my hand in difficult times, kept me whole when I thought I would fall apart.
I owe my Self to all of them. All of You. And love You very dearly. :-)
Well, more or less. One has a Blackberry, and the other has an iPhone. I asked one of them how many of her friends also have constant online access. "Oh, almost everyone," she said. "I see them walking down the street or around campus with their heads in the phones, typing away... They're on Email."
