For those of you who will be around the area of western Washington July 31st, you may see me flying over head in one of the countless planes arriving at Seattle international airport that day. It seems so far away, but as more of the volunteers prepare to leave in the next few weeks, my return home becomes increasingly definite. I started thinking today more about this because my friend Abdelshakour and his wife and adorable baby are being resettled to new york state next week, and another good friend and co-worker John from Indiana is flying home this weekend, and it can't help but remind me that my bitter sweet departure is close at hand. John and I were discussing this last night over a carbon filled taxi ride to the background of the Koran and both of us are warned about the reverse culture shock under which we will go upon our return to the states. I think, and John agrees that moving, to some degree, can be talked about with the analogy of shoes. So we expounded on this during the taxi driver, and so I choose to recall to you the skeleton of our conversation filled in with details on reserve from my years working in a shoe department.
I think that moving back home to Washington, and America in general, will be like putting on an old pair of shoes, maybe takes awhile to break them in again, the excitement of having them may wear off more quickly because I have owned them previously, and perhaps after wearing these shoes for a certain amount of time, you discover why you stopped wearing them, boxed them up and hid them in the back of your closest under that feather boa in the first place, OR you keep them until the souls fall off, wearing them for years because while not very exciting, they are functional, easy, comfortable and a predictable purchase. Meanwhile, moving to a new place, and the culture shock undergone in Egypt is little more daring and difficult. Like buying a brand new pair of really trendy heels that are super uncomfortable, difficult to break in and only look good at certain time in the right mood and with the right outfit. Perhaps these painful and painfully ugly heels only last for one fashion season, but you are glad you have them and maybe for some people they will come back in style and come out of the closet in a few years, and some may throw away their trendy shoes, never to travel abroad again. Certain shoe styles and experiences are not for everyone, but if you can make it work, it makes your outfit, and your life, a little more complete.
and that English majors is a major literary conceit. (this is not to imply that people who wear trendy shoes are more inclined to adjust to culture shock, in fact, the reverse may be true, it is yet to be tested... don't be so literal people. :o)
