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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.