HOME ~ IT IS WHERE THE HEART IS

Every time I think about our trip back to the East Coast I think of the word Gratitude.

Sometimes it feels like Jeff and I are living kind of a fairy tale life together, and we know it’s because we’ve got so many incredible people behind us. Fortunately, our families and friends happen to be very “together” people with warm hearts and generous souls. THEY are all we truly miss here, and when we go to our other “home”, it’s inevitably one celebration after another as we reunite. We sincerely feel loved, and treasure our time with each and every one very deeply.

I mention “generous souls”, and I’m not exaggerating. When we’re back, we need no less than airport pickups, places to stay, and a vehicle to get around and go back and forth between RI and CT to visit everyone. Which means we impose on those we love, and it blows our minds at how gracious they are. The generosity (and tolerance!) of our family and friends is never forgotten. So I think It’s high time I get to thank everyone for being there for us and making our trips back free and easy - and always a blast!

We typically arrive in Boston, and not always at an easy hour. This time the already late-night plane was delayed, and we ended up getting in at 1:00am. Did my sister Lois and brother-in-law Dan complain? Nope. They just smiled and hugged and welcomed us as if it weren’t any problem at all - and they still had another hour’s drive back to their home in RI! Naturally, we had a lovely guest bedroom awaiting to crash in, too. Ahhh, we thought. We’re home!

Unfortunately, we were destined not to get much sleep that night. Jeff was psyched, though. He’d been invited by his captain friend to go offshore tuna fishing on his favorite boat. No matter how tired, there was no way he was going to miss that. Jim even pushed the sail time up to 8:30am to accommodate him. So here we were, waking up four hours later to get him ready. We hopped into my sister’s car to drive him to our next blessing - the use of his best buddy Andy’s car - no ordinary car at that. We drove up to an unbelievable Classic Dodge Challenger - pumpkin orange with a black stripe running down the hood. Not subtle, mind you, but definitely awesome.  We couldn’t believe he’d lent us his coveted 50th birthday present. 
Now that’s friendship!

While Jeff was into his favorite getaway world, I was in mine with my two “big” sisters. As “the kid”, Lois and Lorraine had always been there for me, and adulthood transformed our sisterhood naturally into friendship. Our afternoon together was especially poignant and celebratory. Lorraine had recently defeated brain cancer! We’ve always cherished each other, but never more than now. We know the gift we’ve been given.

Once Jeff was back, we were on to Connecticut for Andy’s 50th birthday celebration. There we were treated to staying at our brother Jerry and sister-in-law’s home once again in what amounts to our very own apartment upstairs. There’s more than enough room to spread out suitcases and all, and we come and go with ease. And when it was time to give Andy’s car back, Jerry and Jan came to our rescue (again!) and let us borrow their BMW convertible. Man, what luck! Nothing like a breezy ride with the top down on a gorgeous summer day. Better yet, that gave us the chance to see all the other people who are so important to us.

In between jaunts, both dear friends Andy and Kim and Pat and Patty had let us set up in their summer homes in Rhode Island. You know - the kind of lifetime friends who make you feel comfortable doing so. The kind of friends who not only make your life easy, but make it full.

And from those bases we got to see so many others who fill us, too. Gratitude.

Speaking of feeling full, my brother Don had his annual July get together. The last one we attended turned out to be our wedding on the lake, pig roast and all. This year it was held on that exact date - now five years later. Our parents would have been so proud to have seen us altogether. Their six kids with their families, and now great grandchildren and all. My brother Paul came from Milwaukee, and Gerry and his family from upstate New York. It was as crazy and as joyful as ever when we get together. My parents had taught us to value each other as individuals, and as Family with a capital “F”. We do. And again, now more than ever.

Back to Jeff’s family in Connecticut, I feel equally as comfortable and love them just as much. Brother-in-law Bill is the family “pivotal person” - often the one who brings us together. His wife Susan recently painted a fantastic mural in a local restaurant, so there we met with  brothers and sister law Jay and Cindy and Jerry and Janice. Family. Family with a capital “F”.

Oh, but how can I forget Mom, who at an energetic 85 years old picks us up at the airport in Florida and lets us take over her place for as long as we'd like? She's still the quintessential mom - loving, understanding and oh, so patient. She's a joy to be around, too, which makes our visits really great.

So there you have it. I wonder if every “ex-pat” can go back and step right into life again with family and friends as if they’ve never left. I wonder if they have the same support system. For me, it makes living abroad so much easier. It’s people who fill your life and make it what it is.  Whether they’re next door or not, they’re with you on your journey. Gratitude.