Whammo!

 

The funny thing about expat life is that there is a constant reset button being pushed on your life.  You think you have your feet firmly under you and then Whammo! Things change:  Small things, big things, good things, bad things, homecomings, departures, friends coming, friends going.  I've been philosophically thinking that this kind of life is going to offer me a lesson in rolling with the punches....and generally speaking, I've never been very good at that.  I like to plan and prepare, and the surprise aspect of Whammo! doesn't leave a lot of room for either of those things.   It's important to note that I  don't always handle change with grace and dignity.  Crying and screaming and sulking aren't particularly graceful, are they?  So.  Life lesson for this fall: Learning to not look too far ahead and enjoying the life that exists right now.
Part of this post comes from the fact that we went home to America for the summer and came home to (in some ways) a very different landscape.  We see empty spaces where dear friends were, and we watch as other friends prepare to say goodbye.  On the other hand we see welcome new faces coming in and see a new beginning unfolding.  As I say, the expat life is one that is built on the unifying force of transition.
Transition is a word used often over here - it describes the in-between state of change that you live in as you move your headspace, literally and figuratively, from one place to another.  Jetlag Transition. We have been home for two weeks and I think we are finally turned around.  To go from a body time of 12am to 12pm in 36 hours of travelling and expecting to cope with it comes with very real physical drawbacks.  Though we were normalizing after a few days, it takes nearly two weeks to work out all the kinks.   Culture clash Transition.  We are putting on our Indonesian eyes (as opposed to the American eyes that we wore all summer), and it can be hard to shift from one to the other easily.  You have to adjust expectations and remember the things that you love most from each place (and believe me this goes for transition to and from both countries) so you don't end up angry and irritated all the time.  End of summer Transition.  As I write this - we are grappling with the end of our summer freedom.  School has started and it looks quite different from last year.  There are positives and negatives and we just have to wait out the introductory weeks, accustom ourselves to a new schedule and new expectations, and fall into the school routine.
Hmmmm.... the whole reason I started writing this post was to talk about how the expat life is one of constant change but honestly, I suppose that's true across the board.  I've had a lot of conversations lately, with people in every situation from America to Indonesia and all places in between about one's ability to "control" the circumstances of your life.  Illusion.  Damned comforting illusion, but still illusion.  So you open your eyes and are aware of all the lurking changes that have come, and will come, and you get on with it.  Getting on with it means doing things for the joy of it.   Enjoying the moments you have without thinking about what next. Making sure you explore the opportunities today has, because tomorrow can look very different.