reflections of summer

While we are not starting school until September, our time here in the US is coming to a close. Which for us means that summer is coming to a close. And this always brings about mixed reactions. We miss Andy and are ready to be united with him (we have been apart for 14 days, and have 9 more days until we see him). But will be sad to say goodbye to the friends and family here. It is hard to leave one home when you also want to return to another home.

I am amazed/amused each summer when I see our home country (or maybe for clarification, I should say, our passport country) through the eyes of our children. With each additional year we spend overseas, I see subtle ways where our kids are out of step with their peers here in America. [Just as an aside, this feeling of being out of step with their peers is not unique to our children. The term Third Culture Kids (or TCKs) describes this feeling that many children raised out of their passport country feel. Click here to read more about it.]

But even with our kids' cultural adjustment aside, there have been a few things that have stood out this summer. . .

Fascination with Commercials
We (Andy and I) are not big TV watchers. And when in China, we generally just watch movies or documentaries. And not even that many of those. For the last 2 weeks, Olympic fever has struck our house and our kids have loved watching. But since they really do not remember every seeing commercials, they are so intrigued by them. Maybe intrigued is not a strong enough word. They are entranced. They sing the jingles. They keep an eye out for each of the the stores. Then when we are driving around and they see one of the businesses that was featured on a commercial, they get really excited. They retell particularly funny ones (and not-so-funny ones). A side of watching the Olympics that I did not expect.

Road Trips
Our kids are used to traveling in many fashions: airplane, train, subway, and even boat. But for us it is rare that we take a driving trip that is longer that 2 hours. But this summer, we were all over the place! Ohio to Florida and back, Ohio to Michigan and Indiana. I was amazed by how much each of them just enjoyed watching out the windows, enjoying the scenery. T told anybody that would listen that she had taken a trip in a car that took 16 whole hours of driving, and that it was even longer that it took to get to China!

But each time we are back, I just want to soak up so much. The green, green grass. The amazing blue skies and white fluffy clouds. The relationships that go back so deep and remain strong. But with just over a week left, I am feeling the pull. Ready to go back home. To my home that is fast-paced, and teeming with people. To the crazy humidity, where my hair never looks that great. To the place that while it is and probably always will be a little strange and different, but at the same time grows more familiar daily. And this year, I am excited to go home and get organized to begin our homeschooling adventure.