Home
As I wait
in the airport lounge for my flight back home to Seattle, I can’t help thinking
about where life has brought me so far.
This has been a bittersweet trip to my other home; I celebrated Chinese
New Year with the family that I still have here, had makan catch ups with
various groups of friends from medical school and our Beijing days, and mahjong
sessions with my mahjong kakis. We also
had a mini-reunion with friends from primary/secondary school which was tinged
with sadness as we lost one of our classmates a week before, unexpectedly and
shockingly.
This
devastating news shook me, because she had been so present in our prior reunions
& meet-ups. We never thought or
think about how each time we see each other may be for the very last time…..
the last “Bye!”, the last “See you again
soon!”, the last “Take care!”
The life of
an expat/third culture person is not easy despite some of the outward trappings
that come with it. The chance to
experience life in other countries and cultures, traveling to exotic locales,
making friends from all over the world – this has been priceless. What comes with all this is the
missing out on
birthdays, weddings, anniversaries, and reunions…. and an added appreciation of
the moments when we CAN come together in the same physical space instead of
through the nether of whatsapp/telegram/sms messages.
When we DO
get together, it feels like Home. The
old familiar friendships and relationships feel like a comfortable pair of old pajamas;
we slip into conversations, remembering old times, old teachers and old
friends. It doesn’t matter if we have
told the same stories over and over again, we still love the retelling all the
same.
I have been asked countless times over the years: “Where is Home?” And each time, I have to think and think again before answering. For now, I say: Home is where your Heart is. It doesn’t have to be tied to a physical place, but to the people you love, wherever they may be.
