Feeling, ambivalent, again on the precipice of change. Excited to go back to Portland, aggrieved to leave. Less than one week left. Our definition of home has morphed and become very flexible. Home is anywhere we can unpack for more than a week. I am feeling anxious to gather and hoard Spanish words, and learn as much as I can before I am among English speakers again. I am nervous about culture shock once we arrive back in the States. Simultaneously I want to share all of our daily experiences with others and yet keep it a secret. Our simple walk across town to painting class, drinking Tejate on the way…our normal every day actions are sacred and numbered. At any moment our trip could be interrupted by a parade, protest or funeral procession. The unexpected as become expected, however it is still delightful.
We are shedding our belongings again, making piles to donate to the church across the street. We will give our yoga mat to the man who sleeps nightly on cardboard on the church steps. It is full cycle as we did the same before we left for this trip. Letting go of our belongings, saying goodbye to friends and experiences. The buddhist practice of sand painting, a metaphor for the profound beauty of the present and temporary nature of life. This idea has become real and tangible for us, stability and the future are only an illusion that we all indulge in.
It is surreal that our year has passed. Our experiences in Asia seem so far away, yet I remember clearly boarding the plane in NYC on route to Singapore. I have numerous blog entries about life in Oaxaca that are not complete and somehow our “normal” life here in Mexico makes blogging difficult. We go roller skating in the park, eat empanadas at the street stands, go to the Oaxaca Lending Library and look for real paper books to read (Addie is currently rereading the Hunger Games Trilogy), go to the dentist, school, do laundry…our days pass in a blur. I struggle to capture, retain and keep the sights, sounds and smells for later.
However, I know that time has a way of consuming and swallowing, and these experiences, while becoming apart of my physical and mental fabric, will move into the past. Through this forum I am able to gather my thoughts and photos, knowing that in the future I will be able to read these words and look at these photos to spark the memory of our life here.
Bochner Family Adventure 
I really resonate with the idea that life becomes normal and you don’t take in all the sights and sounds. Exciting things become ‘normal’ almost. Lovely post.
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