Apple#581
So it is nearly over ... our time in New York is coming to an end and in under 2 months we will be back in Kimpton, back 'at home', back among family and old friends; back among old routines and responsibilities. Back, in Luca's case, to his commuter lifestyle and his old workplace. Back, in my case, to ... well, in my case probably not back to so many of the same day-in-day-out occupations, because life has so moved on: both my own life - what I am interested in doing with my time - and the life in the village and round abouts, where my old choirs have new leaders, and old activities just don't need me any more. Meant in the best possible way, of course. Amazing, huh, to discover that the world keeps turnin' (and everything in it) without our help?!
We have never stopped LOVING our life in Manhattan and all that we see and do; all who we meet and get to know. I am very sad to have to relinquish so much here! And to say goodbye to so many good friends: so while old friends are always old friends and worth every joyfully and deeply furrowed path we have trodden together, and new friends are not 'old' until they have been round a little bit longer than the mere 18 months we have been New Yorkers, I feel like I am leaving many rich and lovely and deep friendships, and so much potential in so many relationships, that I am experiencing an unanticipated amount of sorrow about the move.
Isn't that great?! Doesn't that prove that this US adventure that we set out on 581 days ago has been a phenomenal success??!! I feel so privileged, and so thankful for what I have been given here; I will be harvesting the fruits of this brief time away for the rest of my life. S0 sorrow, yes, as I leave, but only in the context of the joy that I have encountered here. And looking forward to all kinds of new possibilities ...
In the meantime, day by day I am working harder than ever because I have to hand over all my responsibilities into safe hands (or into extinction), going out with a bang (no whimpers allowed) ... and want to have enough time for coffee or lunch out with friends and colleagues too. Hard life! More to come on what that all means.
In our planning last weekend, then, we made the momentous decision to travel home slowly slowly slowly: slower even than the speed of snailmail (or slug, geddit?): namely on the ship Queen Mary 2, which takes a whole week from New York to Southampton. This will give us a chance to rest, enjoy a bit of ladidah lifestyle (no idea how it is going to be or feel!), and a good ol' buffer of time between what we are leaving behind and what we are arriving to.
So we will let the vast unimagineable ocean carry us eastwards towards the dawn of our old/new life.
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