Giants Steps

This is one of those times where it feels like there is so much to say and too many events to describe and in the process of thinking about what to blog things keep happening which consequently only makes my decision of what to write more challenging and in the end nothing ever gets written down. And being that I don't want to overwhelm one post with too much information about every thought I have had this last week and the things I have done maybe I'll just go with this:

Last night Derek and Ana hosted an MCC dinner at their home. It was a chance for all the service workers here in the city to just get together; a kind of team building event one might say if one was viewing it from the pragmatic view of a program administrator. This was the 2nd one since I've been here. The first one was right at the beginning, while Calah and I were still living at Derek's house, before we were even over our jet lag. In fact, I remember being proud of our ability to stay awake through dinner--even if it was just barely. Now it is almost three months later. Sitting around the table last night the conversation was much livelier than before. The company was much more familiar: Derek, Ana, Hannah, Calah, Max, Hiro, and Sawako. The food was much more appreciated: chicken (not boiled and with flavor added!), green beans (yes Lauren, I eat green beans now and I greatly enjoy them!), pasta with basil and tomatoes, and 3 types of bread (I had no point of comparison for the bread from the good bakery before, how could I have known that the bread you saw everywhere only looks good and in actuality is quite tasteless?). Overall, I was much more comfortable and felt able to relax and be myself.

We sat around the table for a while after the meal, enjoying tea, fruit and delicious home made peanut butter cookies. We laughed and joked. Calah and I have decided our new goal is to provide Derek with a plethora of stories after we're gone. I think our best ideas so far include China, this man we've met from Africa, an oversized lamp and a desperate call to Derek from a foreign country for money. Tell me that doesn't sound like the makings of an epic story?! We'll see how it goes...

I think this meal felt significant because it provided a really good tangible example of how much can change without one realizing it. Well, that's not exactly true. I realized it to some extent. But that first week seems like a distant blur. All along I've felt like I was taking baby steps towards adjusting, but as it turns out, I've been taking giant steps! Now Viet Nam is not a destination, but a normal fact of my everyday life. So much has happened since then! It was encouraging to be reminded of that.