On travel and change. . .

It's been a  few weeks now since our return to the States and I hit the ground running hard to catch up with all the bits and pieces before diving into the fall activities.

Leaving your home for four months is something I recommend to all.  One returns to ones things and the scales, so to speak, have fallen from one's eyes.  I got rid of lots of nasty clothes and bits, but mostly clothes.

I  feel like one change always bring more changes though.  Its like when you break a glass and you know that three more will be broken before the week is out.  And change is not bad.  It is usually good, as it reminds us that this world is not permanent and we are supposed to be working on getting somewhere much better.  Travel makes us realize that among other things.  Here are a few observations that I brought back from my summer.

1.  You really can live without 99,9 percent of your stuff and get by just fine.
2.  Most people dress, as a rule, way cooler or way lamer than you.  But mostly the first.
3.  You just need ONE GOOD water bottle.
4.  There is a distinctly American way of wearing jeans.
5.    YOur children are capable of way more than you think.  They can climb mountains, learn languages,  eat weird foods, and sleep on train station benches.  In fact, they will do all these things and they will do them better than you.  
6.  The world is full of places where people wait.  For trains, buses, a market, an airplane.  a ticket, a coffee, a wedge of cheese.   These places are like a free college education.   Hang out in them and watch people.  And sometimes. . .  if they are not crazy,  smile and talk to them.

There is, however nothing like travel to bring the zest back into routine and make one's routine a little more bold.  Lots of little changes around here lately.

Back to doing table time and school work in the mornings.  Instituted one decade of the rosary together, me and the girls every morning after breakfast and before we even get dressed.  This is really helping to center us.  

Zita wanted to cut bangs, so I gave her bangs again.  She looks really cute.  Ben's hair also has been cut.  It is shorter but still long enough to be not an office haircut.  He has new glasses too that I really like.

 My current project is dreading my hair.  I always wanted to have dreadlocks and when my old friend Jamie came for the weekend and we both discovered that we had been wanting to do this  we became co-conspirators.   The trick is to make it look artsy and cool and not like you have rats living in your hair.  In the mornings I feel like it looks artsy.  At night I feel like it is a rat's nest.  For the time being scarves are becoming my new best friend.