robinchartier

We still don’t have an official offer, but we have a better understanding of what has been going on behind the scenes. Josh has been in contact with the company and they are working on getting authorization to hire him with a visa to work in the UAE. And since it’s Ramadan . . . they didn’t say that part, but I know it’s always a factor. Productivity goes way down during this month. We should have something in hand this weekend. As always, inshallah.

Meanwhile, I’m plowing through our possessions, freeing us from any extra weight. I’m not concerned with the literal weight of our shipment (as is sometimes a factor), but all things create weight in my mind — figuring out where to put them in the new house, cleaning them, maintaining them, organizing them. Less stuff generally equals less stress. I’ve been energized in my efforts by the songs from The Greatest Showman soundtrack. I am not a movie person (it’s the only one I’ve watched this year), but I found it to be enchanting. It’s sweet, family friendly, and has a great message about what’s really important in life.

Camille and I watched it together this past weekend and then watched it again and have been playing the music while we work and it’s impossible to keep from moving when they’re singing: This is the greatest show! We light it up and we won’t come down, [I don’t need two silverware organizers and three colanders] and the sun can’t stop us now . . . [give away these shirts] watching it come true, [bye, bye stuffed animals] it’s taking over you. Oh, this is the greatest show!

But the song that I relate to most at the moment is Tightrope:

Some people long for a life that is simple and planned
Tied with a ribbon [definitely not us]
Some people won’t sail the sea ’cause they’re safer on land [or won’t fly #beenthere]
To follow what’s written
But I’d follow you to the great unknown [anywhere, really]
Off to a world we call our own . . .

Mountains and valleys, and all that will come in between
Desert and ocean [yes, we’ve covered it all!]
You pulled me in and together we’re lost in a dream
Always in motion [for sure!]
So I risk it all just to be with you
And I risk it all for this life we choose [all 21 years and beyond. Love you babe.]

I was under the illusion that staying in Abu Dhabi would relieve the stress of having to move. Um, no. I’m still freaking moving. I’ve just spent the past 2 days as I would with any other move — up to my elbows in junk, tossing things right and left, sneezing from all the dust, and feeling surprisingly nostalgic about the things that we’ve phased out of. Classic books that I hoped the boys would read that won’t appeal to Camille (or they are at the library): gone. All the early picture books and easy readers: gone (but not my precious Five in a Row books). Caleb’s outgrown clothes — with no boy coming up behind him, gone.

So much more to do . . . I’ve finished our bedroom (my half at least), the bookshelves, one bathroom and I’m off to take care of more. This is the part where I always want to skip ahead to the end or abandon it all and start over fresh on the other side. But for the first time in 21 years we’re actually taking a vacation in the middle of a move. Every other transition we’ve jumped from one place to the next (because I can’t enjoy a vacation while I have 20 million things on my to do list, including finding a place to live), but this time the clock stops when we leave Abu Dhabi and I can’t do anything to speed up the transition process so I should be able to rest, relax, and enjoy our time in CA.

Reminding myself that every bit I do now is going to make life easier when we’re moving in — whenever and wherever that may be!

Josh got an email this morning with word that his job offer is being finalized. I’m guessing it has taken a lot of discussion because it is not cheap to live here and there’s probably some sticker shock regarding the cost of housing and school. Now my butterflies are picking up. The fear isn’t that it we won’t agree on the offer, but that we didn’t estimate our need properly and will find things to be pinched next year. Also with the high price tag comes pressure to be “worth it.” I know Josh is worth it, but I don’t know how much pressure he will feel starting out and needing to prove his worth. I’m continuing to pray that it all comes together naturally and seamlessly.

The packers come in 10 days and I haven’t started to think about how best to pack up or streamline all of this stuff. It’s always better to purge before the move, but I don’t know how much mental energy I have to do that this time. But if I don’t, the movers will be handing me boxes full of regret in October, so I better gear up and get to clearing out. This afternoon after church it’s going to be me, The Golden Girls, and a pile of boxes and trash bags: keep, give away, throw away.

Goodness, I’ve spent all week catching up after our trip to Jordan. We landed in Abu Dhabi at 5am and Josh was back on a plane to the US by midnight that night. I don’t know how he keeps going and going. Still no update on his job. It’s probably about time for him to reach out to HR again and see where they are in the paperwork process. We figured nothing would happen around the Memorial Day holiday, but we’re a few days past that now and I’m getting twitchy again.

More evidence that Camille’s night time chocolates are miracle workers. Since we were flying at night and the kids needed to go to school in the morning I gave them each one before we got on the plane. They were all out cold before we even boarded. Just stretched out on the grubby airport floor, sweetly sleeping.

We woke them up, steered them to their seats, and they all were back asleep before we’d barely taken off. They never even turned on their screens. Carter complained the next day that he missed dinner, but missing an airplane meal is no great loss, is it? In case you want to get these babies for yourself, here’s the link to sweet sleep. The kid version is the same as the adult, except it comes in a bottle with a childproof cap.

6 years ago, on our first trip to Jordan, I wrote about The Mother of all Dinners, when we were invited to share an Eid dinner with the family of one of Josh’s Jordanian friends. Josh meets up with him every time he comes to Jordan so he messaged Mohammed last week saying we’d be in town and we know it’s Ramadan, but we’d love to see him if he has time. He responded with an invitation for the 7 of us (the 5 of us plus Josh’s parents) to join their family for Iftar (fast breaking) dinner one evening.

The previous time was so memorable that Caleb, who was only 7 then, and barely remembers anything about our early days in the Middle East, asked, “Is this the place where we ate until we were stuffed and they still tried to feed us more?” Yes, that was it, baby. We briefed Josh’s parents on pacing and eating slowly and making sure to leave food on your plate or risk getting served another full portion, and we set off.

We reunited with the family — the last time we visited, the 6 year old boy was an infant and the youngest sister spent the evening entertaining baby Camille and playing with the boys. Other than the kids getting older and bigger, not much has changed. They spent the entire night playing cards, playing football (soccer) together, and chasing and cuddling the 5 kittens.

So the food: I didn’t take any photos, because I’m not a food photographer, but I probably should have. We went to a very expensive hotel buffet the night before and while that food was good (and fancy), this was a feast that I would have eaten over and over. Since it was BBQ night, there were grilled lamb chops, skewers full of lamb and chicken cubes, kebab (seasoned ground beef and lamb patties that look like mini burgers), grilled onions, tomatoes, and chilis, both whole and chopped into a salsa-type side dish and then a bunch of salads like arugula with balsamic vinegar, chopped cucumbers and tomatoes, corn, bell peppers and olives (I think — I can’t remember exactly what was in it, but I ate a bunch of that one), and my favorite mutabel, along with homemade olives, pickles, flatbread and a few other things that were at the other end of the table.

Carter ate everything they threw at him and asked for more. I was happy to have him as a buffer/distraction so I could eat some of mine, eat some extra from Camille’s plate and get full without feeling like I was wasting food. As the honored guest mom (Barbara) was served enough meat for 3 people, but she gave it a valiant effort and got through most of it.

After the main dinner we had chocolates and coffee (and sodas or juice). Then the first dessert was served, Nights of Lebanon, which was an unsweetened custard/pudding covered with pistachios and sugar syrup poured over the top. Since I am now wise to their ways, I knew that there was still more to come and I didn’t over consume. About 20 minutes later came the fruit course: a platter filled with watermelon slices and rock melon cubes, both of which were perfectly ripe and exactly what I was craving after the sweets. Finally came the last dessert (and by now it’s 11:30 at night) which might have been my favorite thing of the night — these half moon shaped sweets look like a pancake that has been stuffed and folded in half, then baked/fried and soaked in sugar syrup. Inside is either a walnut, coconut, and spice mix or (my favorite) a salty cheese that gives the perfect salty, sweet, creamy balance that contrasts with the crispy edges of the pancake. And now I’m hungry again.

We had a wonderful evening of eating, talking, laughing and catching up until we finally headed home at midnight, since we still had an hour drive back to the Dead Sea. It was a perfect evening with people who treat us like family every time we see them.

Moon over the dead sea — this photo is a pale comparison to seeing it in real life.