Changes

I'm excited about coming home, but I am trying to be realistic and remember that things have changed there. One of my favorite local restaurants is closed, new babies have been born, people have moved away.

But I'm also trying to remember that it's not just home that's changed - I've changed too.

For example, when was the last time you opened a carton of eggs and were surprised by their color? The last time I bought eggs... they were white! I was shocked - It's the first time for two years that I've seen white eggs, and apparently that change sunk in a little deeper than I thought.

Another silly example is when I was deciding when to arrive at my new apartment for my course this fall. I was going to get there on a weekend, but I decided against it - I would need to get there in time to go to the grocery store before it closes, Friday afternoon at 4.

Why in the world would a person think that? Well, the only grocery store I've gone to for the past two years is only open Monday through Friday, 8:30 to 4. My normal thought process about grocery shopping has changed from it being an any-time activity to one that you can only do on weekdays during limited hours.

The number of choices we have in America can be overwhelming to people coming home from overseas. Here, there is usually one or two choices for each kind of product...

If you want skim milk, there is just one size (a box) and usually one or sometimes two brands. If you want toothpaste, there might be a few different kinds to choose from, but nothing like the towering toothpaste aisles of America. If you want a pastry, you have one choice... a cream bun.

They're ok, not great, but at least the choice is easy :-)

The eggs, store hours and cream bun are just some funny examples of changes in my lifestyle and thoughts, and ones that are apparent to me already. I'm sure as I transition back to life in the US, I'll realize many more ways - some superficial, some deeper - that I've been changed by spending my last two years in PNG.