Life Investment

Its amazing to me how time can fly. I am sure that I’ve said that before, but really, have you ever thought about it? How with the passing of time so much, or so little, can change. A week ago I was sitting in Murphys Law, an Irish pub in Hengelo, in eastern Netherlands, watching Ajax(Amsterdam) play Twente in the 2nd game of the home and home series. I sat, bathed in dutch and laughter from the soccer fans around me. I was, literally and figuratively, a thousand miles away. Now I am sitting in Rundle Park(ok, so when I post this I am sitting somewhere else, but thats irrelevant) at a picnic table next to a pond, bathed in sunlight and the sounds of birds chirping. I had to walk the long way around because there was a couple of Canadian Geese on the path with their gosling and they were hissing at me as I tried to pass(now they swam across the pond and sit like 30 meters from me, I’m scared to get up...). It is phenomenal to me the differences that life can bring with the simple passing of time. Time is amazing.

Anyways, yes. I am home. Made it safely, flights were uneventful, in fact they were really good, the cold that has been bothering me the last three weeks took it easy on me so I didn’t even drive the whole plane nuts with constant coughing- go team! The international flight is actually one of the easiest flights I have ever done. Each seat has its own mini screen(10inches maybe?) and various options on ways to pass the time. So I watched 4 movies as I crossed the ocean, and when we landed 9 hours or so after departing the Amsterdam airport, I looked around, shocked by how quickly we had arrived in Minneapolis. A simple four hour layover and then on to Edmonton. Never have I gone through customs to quickly in my life, and my luggage was among the first off the plane. Smooth as can be.

It is strange to be home. Obviously returning from any amount of time can be strange and the longer you are away the more things seem to have changed, or at least seem to have changed. It happened after Chile. It happened after Haiti. And now it appears to be happening again after Europe. It was expected though. I am unemployed and actually not going back to the Flying J this time. I promise. Its time. Time for something new. New experience, new field of work, new people, new company, new hours, new everything. What job you ask? I have no idea. Absolutely not even a remote clue. Truth be told I am dreading the process of having to write a resume and hit the pavement looking for work, because having absolutely no idea sure doesn’t make the process any more appealing. But it’ll work out. Somehow. Eventually. I hope...

Otherwise, I have to finish a couple of things to complete the application process for the Massage Therapist program at McEwen in the fall. Thats the plan at least. If massage therapy doesn’t work out, perhaps a different course, or there are always the many travel options that always present themselves. But who knows. I have no idea what I am doing tomorrow morning, so planning for the fall is definitely not my strong point.

Long story short? Europe was amazing. The visiting, the travelling, the experiences, the people, the history, the culture, the food, everything. I loved it. Definitely plan on going back again someday, hit up a few more of the countries and meet some more people. I will miss it. All of the things I loved I will miss. Especially the friends that are there. But it is good to be home. Weird but good. I am about to become an aunt again, then in a month or so a third time. I had the chance to help a couple friends move, to catch up with people I haven’t seen in a couple months. I have plans to see other people who I haven’t seen in longer then just while I was gone. I am ready to start a new chapter of my life(post flying J I mean) and even though I don’t even know how the chapter begins, I look forward to seeing how it unfolds. Here’s to life. To experiences. To travel and friends.

Ps. To explain the title, one of my family members in Holland told me that travelling is more then what people think it is. It is not just for the here and now because the things you do, the sights you see, the people you meet, it is all having an impact on who you are. It is impacting your life- present and future. Perhaps you don’t notice the changes, but it is nearly impossible to go home after any excursion the same person you were when you left, the change is there. Therefore, my new definition for travelling is “Investing in my Life”. Has a good ring to it don’t you think? Makes travelling seem like a responsible and crucial part of life, I like that. Can’t wait for the next Investment!