Revisiting a Piece of Home
So as a brat, moving every few years my tenure in most states includes a couple years of middle school here - a year of junior high there - and maybe if I'm lucky I got a longer stay for high school.
I spent two years of my high school in the state of Virginia, twenty miles south of D.C. - then my dad's next duty station took us overseas for my junior & senior years. At this point, it hit hard as I'd finally felt like I'd come into my own as a teenaged girl and suddenly I was forced to pack up and move away from all close my friends and my comfort zone. As a military brat, you get used to this sort of thing but it's not like you love it all the time.
Long story short ... my older sister and I are going back this weekend for her class reunion. She also attended this same school and had to leave right before her senior year. Although it's her 30th high school reunion - it's also an 'all-class reunion' as our high school is celebrating its 50th anniversary. Since Virginia is one of the few places we lived in more than once, I was lucky enough to spend some middle school and high school years in this same place. Even though I'm accompanying her back to revisit her roots, we're both going to see some close friends that we've still stayed in touch with all these years.
On top of that I've got classmates from my DOD high school in Japan, where I actually graduated, who are living in this same area now. So I'll get two reunions all in one. I'm so blessed to have my military brat friends to spend my day with on Saturday.
Along with catching up with our friends, my sis and I will probably spend time driving around our old neighborhood and take a short trip to revisit our favorite places like Occoquan and IKEA. All the while, I'll be taking mental notes as my next book is taking place in Virginia. It's been a while since I've been there so I'll have to refresh my memories for my new character, Paige, and step through the state as if in her shoes. I'll have my own weekend, all the while thinking what would Paige like or prefer? How would Paige take this in? What would she want to eat? Would Paige love the Potomac as much as I do? If so, what would she be doing alongside it? How will she and her friends get along and where will they hang out?
I know right? It's a weird world inside my head sometimes. I'm just ready to catch up and take a walk in Paige's shoes and revisit my roots in mine. I'm a firm believer you can never go back. I don't believe is glorifying the old days. However, I think it's good to keep in touch with a few solid friends and taking time for them and yourself. This trip will be good for my sister and me to do together as we both had to suddenly leave a place we loved, for the unknown. Although the next step in our journey was equally as great, Virginia is one place we left a piece of ourselves in.
It will be good to go home.
Long story short ... my older sister and I are going back this weekend for her class reunion. She also attended this same school and had to leave right before her senior year. Although it's her 30th high school reunion - it's also an 'all-class reunion' as our high school is celebrating its 50th anniversary. Since Virginia is one of the few places we lived in more than once, I was lucky enough to spend some middle school and high school years in this same place. Even though I'm accompanying her back to revisit her roots, we're both going to see some close friends that we've still stayed in touch with all these years.
On top of that I've got classmates from my DOD high school in Japan, where I actually graduated, who are living in this same area now. So I'll get two reunions all in one. I'm so blessed to have my military brat friends to spend my day with on Saturday.
Along with catching up with our friends, my sis and I will probably spend time driving around our old neighborhood and take a short trip to revisit our favorite places like Occoquan and IKEA. All the while, I'll be taking mental notes as my next book is taking place in Virginia. It's been a while since I've been there so I'll have to refresh my memories for my new character, Paige, and step through the state as if in her shoes. I'll have my own weekend, all the while thinking what would Paige like or prefer? How would Paige take this in? What would she want to eat? Would Paige love the Potomac as much as I do? If so, what would she be doing alongside it? How will she and her friends get along and where will they hang out?
I know right? It's a weird world inside my head sometimes. I'm just ready to catch up and take a walk in Paige's shoes and revisit my roots in mine. I'm a firm believer you can never go back. I don't believe is glorifying the old days. However, I think it's good to keep in touch with a few solid friends and taking time for them and yourself. This trip will be good for my sister and me to do together as we both had to suddenly leave a place we loved, for the unknown. Although the next step in our journey was equally as great, Virginia is one place we left a piece of ourselves in.
It will be good to go home.
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