It Is What It Is

             I had a moment the other day.

Some friends and I had taken the bus to Allansford to see the Cheese Museum (and yes, we had a fine time).  As we were leaving, I stepped outside, and for more than a second I felt like I was back in Bradshaw, Nebraska.  There was the little gas station on the right, the agricultural buildings across the highway (they were for dairy processing, but they looked enough like grain elevators), trucks, pickups, and green fields all around.  Just as quickly I remembered I was in Australia, but even then I kept popping back and forth, visualizing one and then the other.  I felt like I was zooming in and out, but way too fast, and it was unsettling.  I simultaneously felt both closer to and further from home than I’ve felt in a long time.  I told Savanna (another exchange student from the US) about it, and she said she’s had similar experiences here.

I don’t know the moral of the story this time.  Maybe it goes to show that some things are universal.  Maybe no place is truly exotic.  Maybe every place is exotic.  Maybe this is a sign that I’m coming to grips with the reality that I’ll be home in less than a week.  Maybe home follows you.  Maybe I’ve missed home more than I’ve realized.  I won’t draw any conclusions right now.  In the end, it doesn’t really matter anyways.  I am here, for a little while yet, and then I will fly home, and all that matters is that I am content with that, and that I make the most of it.