Sat. Evening Post, 12/24

Just one photo from this past week, with my friend Robyn, who I haven't seen in probably 3 years! It was so great to see her, spend time with her and talk about our shared interest in things to do with Russia. She's now Dr. Angley, working at Harvard at the Russian Studies Center(I'm sure I said that wrong), and I have the suspicion that her language skills are WAY better than mine. But I won't hold that against her, as she probably worked much harder to gain her skills than I did. =-D

I'm adjusting bit by bit to being back in the States. Last Sunday was a rough day for me at church and I can't even say exactly why. I started my presentation in front of the church by crying, pulled myself together, sat down and then cried the rest of the service. Could I have explained to anyone why I was crying? Nope. I was just crying. I think the thing is that this isn't just readjustment to being back in the States.This is grieving the place where I was for two and a half years, the people I was with, things that happened for both the good and the bad while there, the language, my family, and the person that I became during that time. And though I was and still am positive that it was time to move on, I still have to come to terms with what I left behind. I find myself on a roller coaster of emotions and am hoping that with time the highs won't be so high nor the lows so low. In the meantime, I cry at random times when triggered by random things. It's a daily adventure of readjusting back to this culture and this people- trying to reaquaint myself with thought patterns and way of life here. Mercifully, of course, God is so good to surround me with people who are probably wondering why I'm so emotional, but care for me nonetheless. =-)