Home again, Home again, jiggity jig

Well, I'm home. Or, in my home on this side of the world. My flight got into D.C. last night at around 8 o'clock, and after negotiating my way through English-speaking mobs, I was greeted with wonderful hugs and kisses and a few camera flashes from my parents. We put my bags in our van's trunk, where they shared the space with my parent's booty from an afternoon trip to Costco. I ate an over-sized Fuji apple from a prepackaged pack of 24. From the airport we took the overwhelmingly paved Beltway to my sister's apartment to visit her and her fiancé. We talked a lot, drank water straight from the tap, and played on their new Wii.

It's weird being home.

Even though I'm back now, I'll continue to post over the next several weeks. I still have some narratives from Ecuador that I'd like to share, and undoubtedly I'll have reflections regarding being back in this country. So, keep reporting back!

I'll leave you with a bit of the old poetry, an ode to Ecuador, something i just wrote-

Where are the beautiful stalls with ladies selling fresh cut flowers,
the children wearing wooden boxes holding gum and cigarettes for sale,
the mountains surrounding and framing my existence, reminding me of my smallness,
the melody of spanish floating across the air?
and my dog's wet besitos and wag-wag-wagging tail?

Humbly but boldly they are situated
where the sun shines strong even while it rains
where volcanos peek out on the horizon
where the ecuator gives a name to a small, love-rich country
where my heart remains.