What Feels Like HOME.

Living in a foreign country feels…..well…. foreign.  As much as I enjoy experiencing all the things on Okinawa,  I do love the things that feel like HOME.

FACETIME.  This has been a lifesaver for me.  I absolutely love to see my family (at least once a week) on screen.  It is something I look forward to on a daily basis and allllmost makes me feel like i'm right there with them.  It's a comforting feeling knowing that I won't really miss them growing up the next 3 years because I'll SEE them grow up.  Speaking of which, this is already happening with my oldest nephew, Max.  I can't believe the things he is saying, what he is reading, etc.  Thank goodness for technology.

STARBUCKS.  It's not conveniently located to us, but I do see it quite often when I have to run certain errands.  Just the sign from afar makes me feel good and puts a smile on my face.  And then to actually go inside?  Other than the baristas not speaking very much english and paying for my latte with yen, I can't tell if I'm in Okinawa or Minneapolis.  That's a fun feeling to have for a short while.  My friend Natalie and I used to meet there once a week and catch up.  That hasn't happened for awhile for multiple reasons, but I think I'm due for it to be back on the ol' calendar.

HALLOWEEN. Ok, I admit - I am NOT a fan of this holiday.  The only only only reason I like it is because of the excitement that comes from the nieces and nephews.  Call me a fun-hater, but dressing up and eating candy has never really been my thing.  Happy for those who love it, but I think i'll pass…until I have kids of course.  At that time, I'm sure my feelings will change.  Anyways, we celebrated Halloween at school on Thursday.  The kids and teachers took the afternoon off and had our own "trick-or-treat" in the school.  The teachers pretended their room was their home and the kids were able to walk around knocking and getting some candy.  Even with the chaos and a splitting headache at the time, it did remind me of home - and that felt good for an afternoon.  Don't be fooled, when I left for the afternoon … I was right back at disliking Halloween.

THE COMMISSARY.  The commissary is the on-base grocery store.  I actually border line hate (THIS POST IS GETTING A BIT NEGATIVE!!! :) the place, but what feels like home are some of the foods in the commissary.  I complain quite a bit about the lack of organic foods at the store, but I guess they have a decent selection.  Call me crazy, but the "usda organic" label makes me feel at home.  weird, I know.  So why do I hate this place?  Imagine a town of (I don't know for sure) 40,000 people all going to one grocery store.  And it literally is an "outing" for some families.  I don't know why the mom, dad, and 4-5 kids all have to go to the commissary.  It's quite a headache when you go..  I've heard quite a bit of moms complain about the hours it is open.  I don't blame them - it's open from 9am-7pm.  They can't really go to the store after the kids are in bed or their husbands are home from work.  So when that mom with her 4 kids is in the store, I can't really blame them - other than they should plan better and go on the weekends.  Ok, there's my vent of the commissary.

MY THINGS.  I really enjoy our house and the best part about it is that I have my things finally.  I went about a year without all the candles, dishes, pillows, comforters, furniture, etc.  That was tough for me!  Each night I come home from work, driving on the left side of the road, passing signs I can't read for the life of me, making my way through the narrow streets of Yomitan, I do get to come HOME to my (our) things.

I'm sure there are other things I am missing, but these things stick out the most.  They are daily occurrences so I will continue to appreciate them and find a bit of HOME every day that I am here…and in the meantime, soak up this Japanese culture.