Returning: Part 2

And after our trip to the U.S., we returned to Kisumu. And it felt like a happy return--Kenya really is home for us right now and I was struck by a few things. As different as it is from where I have lived all my life heretofore, it feels absolutely comfortable and like just where I am supposed to be. I was also struck by how far we have come since last summer. This time around we have our house up and running (albeit with plenty of surprise repairs and residents* with which to contend); we have friends and people we know; we have routines and a sense of how to function--Kisumu is now familiar.

And I was struck by the fact that we had not only survived travel with our young kids--it had gone fairly smoothly and that makes the whole world seem much more accessible. I think we are likely to do a lot more travel as the kids grow up than we might otherwise have thought to take on and I am excited about that.

And speaking of kids, we are at such a wonderful and fun stage with both of the kids. I was often reminded of the following exchange from Lost in Translation:

Bob: It gets a whole lot more complicated when you have kids.
Charlotte: It's scary.
Bob: The most terrifying day of your life is the day the first one is born.
Charlotte: Nobody ever tells you that.
Bob: Your life, as you know it... is gone. Never to return. But they learn how to walk, and they learn how to talk... and you want to be with them. And they turn out to be the most delightful people you will ever meet in your life.
Charlotte: That's nice.

Tiras is talking so much now and Micah has long been talking. I feel like the talking piece opens up a whole new realm of personality and I love it. I thought I loved the boys when they were babies, but with both boys, a whole new exponential level of adoring and enjoying them came into play when the talking started. I am so with Bill Murray's character--these are two of the most delightful people I will ever meet! Things can get tiring, hectic, chaotic, and even frustrating, but underneath it all, this motherhood gig really is sublime. Truly sublime.


There is still so, so, so much more to explore and discover here in Kenya and about my two boys! I am excited to see what the year ahead brings.

*By residents I mean critters ranging from the cute (geckos and tiny frogs) to the less appealing (such as the bats who decided they wanted penthouse privileges in our home and whose aromatic urine and guano made us all too aware of their presence)