3 Months Later & 1 Year Later

Well it has been 3 months since we have moved to India. Also, as of this weekend, it will be one year that we have lived outside of the U.S.

So, my reflections on these milestones...

Is it really possible for time to fly and to stand still at the same time? It seems like only yesterday we were packing up in Illinois and shipping the pets off to my parents' house to live. It really doesn't seem like we have been in India for 3 months now. However, on the other hand, a lot has happened in the last year (read my post from July 11 about everything in the last year). Therefore, I can't believe it has only been a year and not like 5 years.

Is it really possible to feel that it is easy and at the same time feel that it is hard to live outside of the U.S.? S and I have found that we are really easy people to move around. We adapt well and quickly to new environments. It was a blast living in China and now in India. (Please note, life outside of the U.S. is not always so cheerful, but for S and I, our overall experiences have been good. However, this life is not for a lot of people...actually this life is very hard for most people...a big key to our success...be flexible! Also, not having children does make it somewhat easier for us.) On the other hand, it really is hard to live outside of the U.S. The biggest reasons for this are missing out on family gatherings, missing our pets, missing the structured and "normal" life of the U.S., missing Walmart, Target, and Kohl's, missing the Bears make it to the Super Bowl, missing watching the Cubs actually have a chance this year, missing having privacy, etc. We really have gave up a lot of things that are taken for granted to live the life we do.

So, if I could go back, would I do it again? ABSOLUTELY! I wouldn't change anything over the past year. No regrets at all! When we moved to China a year ago, my thought was that I wanted to live outside of the U.S. for years. I wanted to do consecutive assignments, meaning we would be gone for probably 4 to 7 years. Of course, things can change in a year. I got my wish on consecutive assignments (just didn't know they would be so close together). So, my feelings now...still the same. At this point, I would still like to do another assignment after this one, and I would still like to be gone from the U.S. for a few more years. However, S and I are not the norm for people living here in India...most of the other ex-pats with our company are counting the time until they can get out of here. As of right now, we are not doing this (OK, a small lie, I am counting the hours until we get to go on holiday to Dubai, but that's a different scenario...after a few days there, I'll be ready to come back to Chennai).

So even though at times I dislike India, this will only last for 15 minutes or maybe at the most an hour. I like living here. So, here's to another year...may I feel the same way this time next year...and if not, may it be only because I feel even better about life than I do now.