Dear Sister,
So there we are, sitting in immigration for unending hours, our number just about to be miraculously called, when Matt has to leave. E is done with school in 40 minutes, and we are in the city centre, a 20 minute bus-ride away. He asks me, "Are you OK here?" and I'm all like, "What? Me? Me and the stress migraine? Yeah, sure, I'll be fine. What can possibly go wrong?"
This is all a part of moving to another country. Visas (or immigration bureau cards) have to be applied for, procured, renewed every year. It's routine, really. Except you gotta be specific, have to assure them we won't work here, that we live off of funds from the United States and won't be a drain on their own fragile State. There are words you should use, words you definitely cannot use, and then there's the fingerprinting.
Read moreShe reached me under cover of darkness - literally - hiding in my room behind closed door and drawn blinds, curled up beneath sheets. I called her that morning, told her I couldn't go on, that something had happened, that I needed her Right Now. The dorm phone rang and I knew it was her reaching for me, buying me a train ticket, meeting me to take me home.
I don't know what happened that year, to my brain and the serotonin levels and the fear that clocked minutes away like eternity. She didn't know, either. But she knew enough to know I needed her, and a good therapist, and probably some meds. She knew enough to know that when I reach out, it's usually a last ditch effort.
Read moreI hear bumps and shouts from upstairs, but it's all good. We actually have an upstairs now! I'm letting the children run ragged up there, playing and running, legos scattered everywhere, tickling fights being had. The eldest gets annoyed with the youngest, but they hash it out without tears and I sit down here listening to my Easter playlist and Reaganing.
It's a 30 Rock thing, and my husband resonated with it immediately. When Jack Donaghey is on a roll, gettin' stuff done, he calls it Reaganing. I don't particularly remember Reagan, or his Reaganing, but there really is a fantastic feeling that comes with accomplishing a laundry list of things.
Read moreA couple of years ago I put together an Easter playlist (one of my most searched-for posts - thank you, Uncle Google!). Since today is Ash Wednesday, I'm reposting and updating my list of songs that follow me through the Lenten season...
Karen's Must-Have Easter Playlist
(in alphabetical order by song, non-exhaustive as this is limited to my own itunes catalog)
Read moreSo, we call you Jack, now.
I mean, we've always called you Jack. Your grandparents, aunts, uncles and sister call you Jack, and it has bounced between our tongues in our home from the moment we carried you into that first apartment. But to others, to the outsiders, to those whom we love but are still somewhat separate from our tight crew, you have always been Jackson. Until now.
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