Mitten-bound

Didn't I just arrive in St. Kitts? No? Oh...weird. My memories—of climbing out of the Delta airplane onto the SKB airport tarmac with the sun shining high and the heat hitting me like a wall of bricks—are still quite fresh. So, when Matthew lectured, "Baaaaaaaaaabe. You really need to book our flights back to Michigan...I know you've been procrastinating," I experienced a mix of emotions.

First and foremost, I was annoyed. I did not feel like dropping almost $1000 USD on flights to the US for us, (and that's fairly inexpensive). Not to mention the upcoming costs of also flying Milo and Trooper back. Generally, I don't mind financing legit expenses. I just like to whine about spending money on things that don't include me getting new clothes, super cool gadgets, or fun accessories for my pets. Ha. Oh, one more thing. We can always get to SKB in one day, but we can't get to Michigan within 24 hours. It's very inconvenient. We settled on this itinerary:

Depart SKB at 3:30 p.m.
Arrive MIA at 5:30 p.m.
~Overnight in MIA~
Depart MIA at 7:40 a.m.
Arrive ORD (Chicago) at 10:00 a.m.
Depart ORD at 11:55 a.m.
ARRIVE IN GRR at 1:45 p.m.

Kind of overkill, don't you think? Especially since you can leave Grand Rapids, MI, arrive in Miami, and fly directly to SKB afterwards. *sigh*

So anyway, moving on. I often feel anxious when I think about our future move. Booking our flights today means change, big change. It means that we will be packing up our lives in about five months to head to the States, leaving behind our sunshine-filled island that we have called home for about 2-3 years. And it means that we will have to find a new home, in a new and unfamiliar place. Annnnnnnnd it means that we have a lot of work ahead of us. Oy vey.

Next, I felt sad. I love SKB! I have truly loved my life here. It's been so simple and uncomplicated. I've learned to live with less and to sometimes live without. I've met some of the most interesting people, and I've made such beautiful, lovely friendships. Leaving St. Kitts means that I will be leaving my simple way of life and my treasured friends behind. Not cool.

I know that I'm beginning to sound quite negative about heading back to the mainland US, but I won't lie. There are definitely some things that I am looking forward to when moving back. Seeing our family and friends again, buying fresh produce at the grocery stores, seeing affordable prices almost everywhere, having endless options of places to shop, using clean public restrooms, etc. are all things that I am excited about.

And while I am bummed out, depressed, and sad to be leaving my island home, I do find myself looking forward to the future. To finding a new place to call home, to seeing where we go next, and for new life adventures. I never in a million years thought I'd ever live in the Caribbean. It was never part of 'the plan.' And yet, we ended up here, we have loved it, and we are sad to be leaving. But our time here is almost over, and while it may take me some time to snap out of my slightly whiny state, I will embrace what life brings us next.

To conclude, I'd say my overall feelings about leaving SKB, and heading back to America, are bittersweet. Yep, that's definitely a fair assessment.