As people get ready to leave Bahrain, they will often get nostalgic and post countdowns on their Facebook pages: 10 Things I Will Miss About Bahrain (or 10 Things I’m Happy to Leave Behind if they are feeling cynical about their time overseas). It’s a bit different for them because they are headed back to the United States, to a completely different way of life — no more Dairy Queen delivery where Blizzards arrive by moped, no more affordable house help or daily car washing. No more hot desert nights, surrounded by palm trees and warm breezes (unless you happen to be stationed in 29 Palms!) Abu Dhabi will be different than here, but after 5 years in the Middle East it’s less like moving to Mars and more like moving down the street.
I don’t like drawn out farewells. I’d rather enjoy a place right up to the last minute, with no regrets, and then be gone and throw myself into the next place. So far it’s been easy because we don’t plan on moving until the end of July. See how that military preparedness creeps into every area of my life? I have learned never to announce any time frame as fact.
At first the end of July was four months away, 1/4 of a year — WAY in the future . . . but I realized the other night that we are almost at the 2 month mark. Yikes! Before I know it we’ll be counting down in weeks. But there’s still Ramadan to get through, the end of school, and even more paperwork. Plenty of time.
The point being, I’m still here. Still present. I haven’t done any planning for Abu Dhabi since our move doesn’t seem real, but I’m beginning to see the signs. The gardeners came to trim the date palms in our yard and tie up the developing bunches like they do every spring and I felt a twinge realizing that we won’t be here to eat this harvest. The kids’ school held reregistration for next year and I had to send in the the packet marked, “Not returning.” Church has plans/dreams for moving to a new location with better space and facilities, but we won’t be here to make the move with them. Supposedly. I haven’t emotionally made that leap yet.
I will be excited to go, but not because I’m tired of Bahrain. No need to rush out of here, but I am excited about Josh’s next job. I have high hopes for the next 2 years. We need a change. We have all experienced a lot of advantages from our time in Bahrain, but time as a family hasn’t been one of them. Even when Josh is here, there are demands on his time and energy that end up being a drain on all of us. Supposedly his next job will offer more time with us and less pressure. I guess we’ll see . . .
