Life Highlights: Oregon Sweet Oregon

View from the plane flying back to Los Angeles

Had a fantastic time going back home for a whirlwind of three days.  I got to experience a once in a lifetime celestial event with my mom and best friends, and I was able to visit with my grandparents before I left.

It was a great time of relaxation and mental health restoration.  I was able to catch up with Todd and Annaliese, which was amazing.  I remember four years ago worrying that we wouldn't stay friends and that as high school ended we would forget to keep in touch.  We certainly don't talk to each other every day, and we still live in separate states, but it seems like all my fears have been unfounded.  I've ended up seeing both of them at least once a year, and through all the ups and downs of college (and post-college) life, seeing them is like no time has passed.  Nothing is really awkward, and when we "catch up" it's as if we saw each other the day before.  There are few friends like that in life, and I'm very happy to say that they are two of mine.

I also got to see my grandparents for dinner and talk with them about what's going on in my life (including this blog!).  I had a really great time seeing them, especially since I don't know the next time I'll see them after moving across the country (and I don't think I'll be able to go to Oregon for Christmas this year).  It definitely made me nostalgic for the time when I lived in the same town with them (the only one of the grandchildren to do so).

And of course being back at my childhood home (even just for one night) was extremely restorative for my peace of mind.  Before when I've slept in my childhood bed, I've felt really weird about it at first.  I'm not eighteen anymore, and the type of person I am has changed from what is held in the time-capsule-turned-storage-room-bedroom.  And I felt a bit like a foreigner attempting to get comfortable in an environment that used to be familiar.  But this time instead of feeling a bit foreign coming back I felt completely at home again.  Most likely this is all thanks to my awesome mom, who's really kept the homestead alive and well with love (and lots and lots of animals).  And obviously, it was great to see her too, but I'm also seeing her in just three short days (since she's being kind enough to help Manar and me move), so I didn't feel like I "had to miss her" just yet.

So even though I'm leaving California (and my college life here) in just a few days, and I've been lamenting a lot about that, there's no doubt that Oregon is also associated with a sense of true home that I'll surely miss just as much in New York.