I remember that day like it was yesterday.
How I cried the entire flight from Singapore to LAX and scared off the guy in the seat beside me.
The eight hours at LAX, homesick and annoyed by the "Do not leave your luggage unattended" PSA.
Having this wishful thought that when I landed in Indianapolis, it would be the people I just left behind in Changi Airport who would greet me.
Walking all around campus trying to find Maplewood Cemetery and reorient myself so I could figure out where Mac and Jean Johnson lived.
My first meal at Steak and Shake.
I always thought I would return to Singapore.
In fact, I told the pastor who mentored me and my church that I would return after four years.
Funny how life turns out.
There was Springfield, Illinois with the Women's Chorus.
Breckenridge, Michigan with the Rhynards for Thanksgiving.
Fort Lauderdale, Florida with Amy D for Spring Break.
Numerous trips to Ohio and Michigan with AU Center for Ministry Education (AUCME).
Atlanta, Georgia with Church on the Street.
Saltillo, Mexico with the Tri-S work camp at La Buena Tierra.
Portland, Oregon with Steph (Hatch) McMorris.
Allen, South Dakota with the Tri-S work camp at Pine Ridge Reservation.
Southwestern states with the family for graduation.
Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands with the Tri-S VBS programme.
鹤山, China with the family to trace our ancestral roots.
New York City, New York with the Tri-S urban ministry team.
Berlin, Germany with the SOT for my urban ministry internship.
Phnom Penh, Cambodia with the family.
East Coast states with the family for graduation.
And then to Auckland, New Zealand...
By then, there was no turning back.
Airports became my friends.
Flight times became my oasis.
On the one hand, I feel like I'm not old enough to have lived abroad by myself (or done anything, really) for ten years.
On the other hand, I'm grateful that this has been a much richer life than I could have ever dreamed.
I learnt to treasure relationships rather than accumulate stuff.
I learnt to breathe in the depth of long hugs.
I learnt to cook with basic ingredients that translate across culture.
I learnt to wash dishes three different ways.
I learnt to live as part of both majority and minority cultures.
I learnt to value mental and emotional health.
The last ten years have probably been filled with more seasons of tears, losses and goodbyes than anything. But even the shortest seasons of celebration and all the incredible new friendships have made it all a sweet deal.
Here's to more years of craziness and incredible friendships, wherever life may lead.
