thoughts

I bought this little gem by Zviad Gogolauri at Drybridge Market last fall

Here's something: thoughts about our time in Georgia. When asked how I feel about things I invariably respond that it is fairly easy to live here, although compared to what I'm not sure. It's hard to know, hard to remember how I used to feel because everything about my life here is so completely different from my previous life, and now that life feels like a dream. And since Georgia is not my permanent destination, my present also has a dreamlike quality. I'm always returning to this notion, Life is but a dream.

I wonder if the ups and downs we experience here would be the same no matter where we live, or if they are amplified by our locale? I'm inclined to believe the latter. Sometimes I find myself wondering how I could have ever willfully left behind a life that took so much effort to build and that I loved. (I have an answer, of course, and it has to do with security, but it's not always comforting enough.)

I'm searching for the balance between acknowledging disappointments and keeping my chin up. I fear sounding ungrateful, but I have to admit that sometimes this life we chose is just, hard. The time difference alone is a great divider; the cultural differences and language barriers are not things to be taken lightly; and missing out on living life with our loved ones is an ever present ache.

But since I must end this post on a high note, I'll say that I'm grateful to have lived long enough to understand that life comes in seasons. Whether easy or hard, simple or complicated, happy or aching, all seasons of life pass on and new ones begin. And that's something to keep your chin up.