Charlotte & Brooklyn

I have two beautiful twin granddaughters, Brooklyn and Charlotte.  They are the most amazing children ever (spoken like a true grandmother).  They are intelligent, inquisitive and involved with the world and people around them. As I have been getting ready to go to Africa, it had been weighing very heavily on my mind that I would not see them again until the holidays.  They are growing so fast and I am missing so much of their lives.

So I made a decision. Even though I wanted to hike Kilimanjaro and had paid for the excursion, I want to use the time to go for a visit to two of the most important people in my life.  So I am choosing to give up my trip to visit with my family.  My daughter and her new boyfriend are going to join me so my whole family will be together.

It is the right decision, I would have been hiking Kili and not been able to get to Ethiopia until the day before school starts.  This way, I will get there a couple of weeks early and be able to settle in, write lesson plans and get ready for school to start.  And I get to spend a few days with those beautiful girls before I leave.

I have been overwhelmed with details of getting my stuff together, deciding what to take and what to leave behind, knowing that I really have no place to leave anything since I don’t have a house anymore.  I am really having to think carefully about everything that comes with me.  I want to have enough room in my luggage to bring school supplies and things that I might need for my classroom.

I have to admit, I have been struggling with it both emotionally and physically. The stress is getting to me.  It has made it hard to write this blog and be positive. I make it harder because I expect a lot out of myself and I expect to be handling everything perfectly.  Not only have I not been doing it perfectly, I have pretty much sucked at how I have handled stuff so far.  From procrastinating on details that need to be taken care of to avoidance of the emotion of leaving, I have been making a lot of mistakes.

When something is right though, the universe will make it happen despite my attempts to derail it.  Everything is falling into place.  Visas have been arranged, travel is straight, vaccinations are finished, even the packing will get done.  Because I had already culled my possessions when I moved out of my house, there isn’t a lot to go through now, so it really won’t be as hard as I am making it out to be in my mind. And I know that soon, I will be on a plane going to the birthplace of humanity and the soul of the world.  I am excited, anxious, happy, and terrified all at the same time.