Furlough 2012

I have been in Haiti for two and half years now and this furlough was my third and by far my best time going home. The first time I went for a two week furlough the trip started out disastrously and pretty much stayed that way. I got terrible sick and floated through my time in a daze trying frantically to get some shopping done… there were some good parts but it was mostly a hectic whirlwind.

The next time I went home for 6 days to attend my nephew’s wedding and that trip was way better than the first although still a bit hazy and hectic.

Now I went again, this time for 3 weeks. And the only awful, terrible thing of this whole trip was being separated from Veronika. Otherwise I could not have hoped for a better time!! It felt blessed from God from the very beginning!

I got to fly first class for the first time in my life! It was pretty great not  having to stand in long lines of grannies and overwhelmed parents struggling with too much luggage and fussy kids. Not that it ever bothered me before but when this time I could just pass everyone up and zoom through the priority access lane, be seated and enjoy a cold drink before everyone else came struggling onto the plane it was really fun! Then through out the whole flight I got served drinks and food and was politely addressed by name and get this, twice I was the first person off 0f the plane! The seats were wide and comfortable enough that you could actually have a bit of personal space which was perhaps the highlight of the whole first class thing as I have had some very squishy experiences not to mention waking up to find my head resting on  a complete stranger’s shoulder! So the bottom line is, I arrived at my destination feeling rested, warm and ready for adventure rather than the usual – shivering cold, starving hungry and exhausted!

Rachel had a bedroom all clean and waiting for me with a new sheet set that felt as soft as silk and fat, fluffy pillows! There were hot showers or steamy bubble baths as many as I wanted, the power never once even blinked, there was wifi through out the whole house, there was full phone service everywhere- no need to rush to a window or outside to answer the phone. There was an endless supply of fresh brown eggs, and cold milk, there were endless friends to spend time with from this age:

to this age!!

And about every age in between!!

And then there was the parents, 2 nieces and my baby sister who drove 1o hours, up from VA to see me! Wow!!

The fun thing about Dad is his belief that a full stomach makes a happy heart. He is just horrified when someone mentions something about being hungry. It is urgent to him to get that person something to eat and FAST. And it can’t be just anything cheap because cheap stuff isn’t fit to eat. Good’s potato chips, Lapp Valley ice cream, brown eggs, real butter, hormone free meat- chicken or seafood seem to be his favorites, homemade noodles..

He loves veggies too but for the most part its Mom who taught us to adore things that come from the earth. In fact, I was an adult by the time I found out it wasn’t a sin to eat fruit loops and drink kool-aid!!

Its because of my Mother that we eat things like grilled eggplant and polenta with kale,

And then there was the sisters and 5 of my 42 nieces and nephews!

I could go on and on but I’ll spare you the details!! It was a delightful trip filled with love and good times. And I came home with my memory bank full of good memories to carry me through many a weary day!!

I was very ready to come home to Haiti where my heart is for now!!