Unpacking

It's been three days since I got home, and I'm still unpacking. No, I don't mean my suitcase--it's still sitting in the corner, basically untouched. It's the experiences I'm still sorting through, holding each one up to the light, and looking at it from every side: Wow. What really happened here? Did I really do all this in 3½ days?

Looking at the pictures over and over again. Talking through the stories. Remembering. Refeeling. Wow.

I went to places I had sworn I'd never go back to, places I couldn't find, and places that have mostly existed only in our family legends. I followed maps. I followed directions we had pieced together based on looking at Google Earth--a combination of decades-old memories and photos from space. And occasionally, I even followed my instincts. I'm learning to feel the pull, let myself be led by the flow. Not bad for an old control freak like myself.

I drove a lot. And cried a lot.

So many stories to tell.