8.21.2010

Goodbye and Hello

Goodbye Vermont.
Goodbye blueberries and fresh milk and maple syrup. Goodbye farmer's market and quiet streets and grassy yard and trampoline. Goodbye meals on the porch and large washer and dryer and oven. Goodbye cool nights and swimming in the creek and pastoral landscapes. Goodbye farms and cows and horses and driving to the grocery store. Goodbye home for 7 weeks, and goodbye new friends and old friends.
The problem with getting attached is that it's so hard to leave.

Hello Hong Kong.
Hello awesome playgrounds and trains and taxis. Hello foot massage and head massage and great hair cuts. Hello shaved ice cream and bubble tea and elevators and escalators. Hello Octopus card and pho and dumplings and air conditioning. Hello beach and mangoes and lychee and fresh juice. Hello malls and walkways and people and great cell phone coverage. Hello home for the next 10 months, and hello new friends and old friends.
The great thing about getting attached is that it's so nice to come home to.  

3 comments:

Christa said...

and hello to McDonalds green bean pies... and hello to a pretty great church called Union... and hello to YOU, I'm glad you're back and looking forward to seeing all 3 of you but esp. you in your blooming glory...

L. DeAne Lagerquist said...

Monte, If you don't know it, you must get your hands on the beautiful kid's book, Traveling Man.

Here are some lines from it:
"Traveling," I said to myself later. "It makes you lonely, then gives you a friend."

"Traveling--it offers you a hundred roads to adventure, and gives your heart wings!"

"Traveling--it leaves you speachless, then turns you into a storyteller."''

"Traveling--it gives you a home in a thousand strange places, then leaves you a stranger in your own land."

"Traveling--all you do is take the first step."

The illustrations are gorgeous and the text is based on the journals of Ibn Batta, a medieval traveler from North Africa who crossed Asia.

DeAne

Jacksons said...

Can't wait for that wonderful feeling of coming home to Asia. In our 6th week in Saigon, we're still struggling. It's wonderful to read your post and know we'll be in that place in a year, or two. (I miss Hong Kong--love your details.) Blessings in the home stretch of pregnancy and enjoy giving birth in HK.