17 May 2005

a preview

this morning was a preview into what it will be like to say some pretty serious goodbyes. some "see you in a little over 2 years," rather than "see you soon."

saying goodbye to dave and mary was much harder than i expected. i suppose it's never easy, but it's just downright sad to think we won't see these incredible friends for quite some time.

of course it's reassuring knowing that we will see them again. perhaps sooner than we know, somewhere in eastern europe or south asia, mid-adventure.

until then we will go about our respective business, our own separate adventures, until the lines connecting the dots cross. perhaps we will all end up right back where we started, playing doubles, drinking margaritas and singing karaoke on the peninsula. until then i'm thankful for the memories and looking forward to the stories we will be sharing next time we get together.

14 May 2005

serendipity

I guess life has normalized; we've come off of our information junk-food diet and have rejoined our normal lives. I've got no new information to report aside from the fact that Karen and I finally submitted our aspiration statements and resumes to our host country.

Today was the graduation at MIIS. I would have been walking across the stage, receiving my degree, if I had no interest in going to Peace Corps. As it were, I was a flag-bearer. Originally I was an alternate, unworthy of first choice of flag. Then I received an email saying, "Lawrence, we've got to have you step in and carry a flag. Will Ukraine be okay?"

Serendipity.

It's nice to sometimes receive signs in your life that things are okay, that you did make the right choice.

Holding the Ukrainian flag today was an interesting experience because it was really the first time I was able to hold that powder blue and sunflower yellow field in my hands. I felt a strange, nostalgic attachment to it. Not nostalgia for the past, but some sort of anticipatory nostalgia. A glimpse into the future, and a longing for it. Holding that flag, for the first time, I knew I'd be coming back to MIIS holding that flag in my heart, feeling emotions for that flag that I cannot even understand now. It was a strange--and I cannot think of a better word than anticipatory--emotion.