What a difference a year makes.
This time last year I was home, finalizing loose ends and paying off my US taxes. The reality of what I had done, what I had agreed to for the next three years, was sinking in. I wasn’t completely sold at the time, and you can argue I still am not completely sold, but I am more comfortable with the decision I made.
So this trip is different.
I can visit family, see the new members and just enjoy the time instead of fretting over whether moving is the right thing to do. Not to mention the hassles of moving countries. Big difference in mentality this year.
A new thing is dealing with family illness from afar. The last few months have been a bit trying in that regard. I’m so used to being present and supportive, being only supportive, from afar, is hard. There aren’t those visual cues, or actions to perform all the way out here. I have to glean from tone and vocabulary, and rely on other information. That is a challenge for me. This trip will let me get those missing visual cues, and then I’ll go back to supporting from afar.
Also like last year, this trip coincides with #ABATECHSHOW, the conference that made my Twitter reputation. Given my change in Twitter use, this year will be interesting. I may forgo, or drastically limit, my tweets in favor of Google+. I haven’t decided, actually. Old habits die hard, as they say.
Different trip this time. Rather curious to see how it goes with this new frame of mind.