Trip Home (Part 2)

Trip Home 2
At Home

So I guess the first thing I remember about being back home in Austin was the smell of BarBQ. The food court of Austin-Bergstrom International is quite smartly populated with local restaurant chains, including the quintessential Texas BarBQ joint, The Salt Lick. They had a big’ole slab of meet and sauce on the counter and it crossed my mind to stop, having been back in the Lone Star State for only 2 minutes. After that, I remember coming down the stairs to see my sister, then 16 months pregnant with my new niece, waiting for me in baggage claim. The last friendly face I saw when I left in June, and the first I saw nearly 8 months later. She said I was skinny and tanned, but I’ll refer you to the pictures from the previous post to refute that.

Anyway, the bags came and in a moment we were in the truck and flying along the intercontinental toll road to Pflugerville to gather Darby and her gear. The “culture shock” was there, but not in any great measure. I remember thinking that we were going 75 miles an hour and that was much faster than I’d been traveling in a car since I’d left. I remember thinking that this was the first time I’d been in a vehicle with less than 23 people in a long time. I remember thinking that Cape Verdians would prolly crap themselves at the immensity of the thoroughfare. And the asphalt.

My sister and I fell into the easy conversation that we’ve (almost) always enjoyed and the topics ranged from the trip to the weather to the health of the family, to her pregnancy…all the little boring details of our loved ones that we take knowing for granted. It was like I’d only been gone a week, and we commented on that. Being back in my sister’s house was heaven. It smelled clean and fresh, and there was Diet Coke and Gatorade in the fridge (can’t get that here), the guest bed rivaled that of the Hilton Hotel, and then of course there was Darby. I was worried she wouldn’t remember me, but after a few shy minutes, that was over with, and instead I was dumbstruck with seeing her so much grown in such a short period. And talking!

Soon it was on to my dear Ma’s house, and its true what they say…There’s No Place Like Home…except Gramma’s House. I remember thinking that a Cape Verdian would assume that my mom was the Prime Minister of Texas judging from her house, although it’s not much different from any other house you’d find in the neighborhood. There were hugs and there was a lot of unpacking and there was Ivan. Sadly I can tell you that a dog’s undying loyalty is, in your absence, unfortunately subject to the quality of your mother’s pancakes. There was Eating. There was A Lot of Eating. Pretty much the theme of the 2 week trip home was Eating, and although I eventually complained about all the food (I re-gained 8 pounds in two weeks), I’m missing it again already. I spent the better part of my two weeks there in Boerne and San Antonio with my mom and gramma and couldn’t have been any happier, except that my sister had to be back in Austin for work. We sat around, we went to the movies, we ate, we shopped (a lot), we went for walks with Ivan, we talked about Cape Verde, we talked about cancer, we told jokes. While I was down there I had lunch with an old friend from high school that I hadn’t seen in over 10 years. I drove around my home town for the first time in years and marveled at how much it had changed. I drove around my old high school, and drove the length of Boerne Stage Road and Old Scenic Loop Road where in my youth I had a number of brushes with death and infamy.

I spent a weekend in Austin and was able to see my Dad and Sandra for a bit. I was also able to surprise my friends (the Culprits responsible for the Mother of All Care Packages…and The Porn) at birthday dinner downtown, which was one of the hilites of the trip to be sure (It’s NICE to be missed!) Another hilite was getting to spend the better part of a whole day at the movies with JW (if you know me you know how much I love the movies). I spent part of a day at my former place of employment and was able to say hi to some old friends. There I also saw how some things change but mostly they just stay the same. I was also faced with the awkward task of answering the question “So how’s Africa?” in the space of a minute or less, that being the accepted time allotment for hallway conversations at busy corporate law firms. In the end, it’s impossible to explain the experience of being a volunteer succinctly, as evidenced by this blog. It’s a thing best gleaned anecdotally.

During my time in the states, I planned how I was going to get all the toys and presents and food packed into my suitcase for the trip back to Cape Verde. I drank a margarita on the rocks, and then I drank a frozen one. I got to browse a record store. I stood in line for coffee and read a newspaper. I got to go for a walk at Town Lake. I got to watch the NFL Playoffs. I got to drive my truck. I got to wear a sweater. I got to sit in a traffic jam. I got to eat mom’s fried chicken, General Tso’s chicken, homemade pancakes, a steak, rice pilaf and Amy’s Ice Cream. I had a fire in the fireplace. I got to have lunch with my sister and Darla, just like old times. I got to play with my niece. I took a nap with my dog. I slept in a big puffy bed. I spoke English and showered every single day and used toilets that flushed. I bought a CD and went to REI. I got chilly, and I got chili. I did everything I wanted to do during my time there, except eat Indian food, which is amazing considering how much I ate. So, I got to do a ton while I was home, but what sticks with me most is that I was able to enjoy the comfort and conversation of my friends and family, which is what we, as volunteers, miss the most.


Finally, The number one question I got coming back from the states was…

What did you bring back with you? That would be:
• A full size foam mattress pad, matching sheet set and two pillows (I am now sleeping like a lamb.)
• A 2 meter stunt kite and extra string (worth its weight in GOLD!!!)
• Razors
• Car Wax (a special request from one of the drivers here)
• Sporting equipment (diving mask and flippers, soccer ball etc.)
• Movies and the new seasons of The Office, Entourage and Grey’s Anatomy.
• Pens and school supplies for my students.
• 10 lbs. of Starbursts Fruit Chews and 40 packs of Trident gum.
• 300 printed photos taken in Cape Verde to give as gifts to people in my town.
• Guitar Strings
• Food
• Clean clothes and a new pair of shoes
• Presents for Benvinda and an entire new baby wardrobe to give to Gisella for Tynara.
• Books and magazines
• Advil
• A complete set of pots and pans and crushed red pepper


So that brings us up to the trip coming back to Cape Verde, which I’ll write about next time. What I can tell you now though, is that leaving a second time was easier than the first time, and that leaving is never easy.