Home and Family

The last chapter of this journey was joining up with my family in Munich, where we joined a tour group to hike and adventure through the alps of Germany and Austria. Afterwards, my parents and I spent an extra week in Salzburg, Vienna and a day in Bratislava before flying home.

I couldn’t begin to account for all of the fun things we did. So rather than say what we did, I’ll say how it was:

So nice to be with my people.

I love the moments between moments. Sitting next to my mom on the bus, and playing cards with my dad, and laughing with my sister in law, and noticing how grown up my brother is.

I guess sometimes you have to go far away to do the things that feel most like home.

***

To answer the frequently asked question, being back is not so strange. Spending my last few weeks in the western world with the people I was most eager to see made for a very smooth transition.

Maybe it’s also easy because I have adjusted my expectations for who will be interested in hearing my stories, and to what extent. It is easier to ask for updates about other people’s lives in the past six months than to try to summarize my own. We have short attention spans for stories that depart from already-known people and places.

This is not to sound disparaging - It’s true for me too, and I think most people.

So credit goes to Grandpa B for having so many genuine and detailed questions when I first saw him and Grandma. It means a lot to know that he has been invested and interested in every step of my journey. Thanks, Grandma and Grandpa. I love you.

***

Friends, I am home. I have been home. It feels like I’ve been carrying home around with me this whole time.

My heart has grown with new friends and passion and understanding. But there is still a deep longing for my cousin that I know will always be there. Five and fifty years from now, it will be there.

Everything is changed, and nothing is changed. And that feels about right.

Ode to Ireland

Ode to Ireland,

Where we walked the Wicklow Way

Glendalough to Glenmalure to Kyle to Shillelagh

Meeting Irish day hikers

Each one commenting on the lovely weather, without fail

Where we wandered over hill of timber and steps of schist, through farm gates and past more sheep than we could count in our sleep

And waded through fields of purple flowers

And relished each step, saying,

This is what we came here for.

Ode to Ireland,

Where we rented a car and drove to the west coast

And yelled for joy when we came over the hill for our first view of Dingle Bay

Where we stayed with Margaret in the Last Cottage

And met housemates who would become drinking buddies

Hopping through pubs brimming with music and foamy stout on tap

Where we kayaked on the sea

Through caves and over sea swells and under intimidating cliffs

And past Fungi, Dingle's very own dolphin.

Ode to Ireland,

Where we stuffed ourselves at breakfast, snacked through the day and split a meal at night

With frequent exceptions for ice cream and beer

Where we drove on the left

R with maps on her lap, and me at the wheel

Pulling over at every lookout

Scraping up against bushes on narrow single-lane roads

Circling roundabouts until we decided which exit to take

And returned the vehicle with a mysterious crack in the brake light

But we thought we did very well, all in all.

Ode to Ireland,

Where we lingered at the Cliffs of Moher

And arrived in Galway at nightfall

With just enough time for a drink at the Quays and a few hours of sleep

Before the morning ferry to Inishmore

Where we saw an ancient fort falling into the sea,

Three thousand years old

And where we saw a baby calf, just born, blinking its first blinks in the bright sunlight

And where after dinner, I hiked to the lighthouse at the highest point on the island

To see the sun set at 10:15pm

With no one in sight

Until a car full of locals pulled up to catch the dregs of red light

And gave me a ride home.

Ode to Ireland,

Where back in Dublin we embraced our tourist desires

Hopped on and off buses

Laughed at witty tour guides

Saw Trinity College, the Jameson Whiskey Factory, the Museum of Archeology

And evensong at St Patricks Cathedral.

Ode to Ireland,

Where we said good bye

Knowing we could gush over memories soon enough

And make custom mugs with our selfies

Shamelessly delighted with it all.