Things Change

It has been less than a week since I arrived back Stateside from Liberia, and it is unbelievable to me how quickly life has swept me back up into the frenzied pace I can't seem to get away from in America.  After over 30 hours of travel, I finally arrived home on Saturday night.  For all those who are wondering, my first meal was at a local Mexican restaurant: nachos for an appetizer, then a burrito with beans and rice for the meal (which I could barely even put a dent in after all those nachos!). 

Sunday my family and I went to my church in Tampa where I was greeted with the "surprise, you're speaking this morning!"  I suspected this might be the case though, and I don't at all mind impromptu talks about Liberia :)  It was great to see some familiar faces and be back in my church for the morning.  After church, the random errands began, from beginning looking for a car to getting a cell phone.  Monday the fast-pace persisted as I looked for a car, got my dress altered for my sister's wedding, and tried in vain to get a loan for said car at the bank.  Fortunately some of the car dealers think they might be able to make something work, so I'm holding out hope that I will find some means of transportation for the summer (and beyond)!

Tuesday morning I went to the airport super early to catch a flight to Nashville, TN, my new hometown... you can bet I was reluctant to get on an airplane again!!  The next day and a half in Nashville were nuts!  I think I looked at 9 different housing locations, met 3 prospective roommates, 3 students and a couple professors from my program, and got to spend time with my friend from Passport and host for the weekend, Klem-Mari.  At the end of it all, I have housing narrowed down to 3 options and will hopefully make a decision in the next few days and be able to check "find a place to live in August" off my list. 

I'm currently milling around the Cincinnati, Ohio airport after some flight misadventures.  Thankfully, I will make it back to Tampa tonight, with one minute to spare - 11:59pm. 

So I guess the pressing question of the moment is, "what's it like to be back in the States?"  This is a tough question to answer with any completeness, so I'll give you the summary response:
- It is good to see family and friends.
- It's nice to have the AC (even though it's blazing hot!), familiar food, showers, etc.
- It's not good to leave yourself zero time to re-adjust.  I'm exhausted in every sense of the word.
- America is a strange, strange place, and no matter how much anyone tries, no one knows my experiences from the last year (just like I will never fully know your experiences either).  I want people to look at me and recognize that I'm a white Liberian trying to get used to America, but they don't.  I want to talk about Liberia all the time, but it turns out that other people have other things they want to talk about as well...

With all that said, I am OK.  I'm slowly re-learning how to drive with speed limits and lines on the road, how to wear make-up or blow-dry my hair, how to carry a purse, how to send text messages, and all the little things I didn't realize I had almost forgotten how to do.

I think the strangest part of it all is not my surroundings - it's me.  I'm suddenly back in a place where I'm supposed to feel comfortable and familiar, but I don't.  In an indescribable way, I am uncomfortable.  I've changed, in ways I don't even know yet, and because of that my experience of the world around me is changing as well. 

It will all even out, and one day soon I will get at least 8 hours of sleep and slowly begin to figure out how to be an American again.  Until then, I'm just taking it one day at a time!