Tomorrow
I’m flying to England.
The
bittersweet nature of this trip hit me last night as I was going through my jewelry
box, trying to decide what to pack. I came across bits and pieces of earrings bought
11 years ago at Accessorize on Exeter’s High Street. Even though none of the pairs match anymore I’ve
never been able to throw them away. They
are my only tangible attachment to dinners at the Mill on the Exe, darts at the
Jolly Porter, and Friday nights at the Souk.
Leaving
Exeter after graduation was the hardest thing I’ve ever done.
I was saying goodbye to friends I loved, a city I loved, and a country
full of a thousand possibilities I was passing up on just to come home.
In
the time I’ve been away I’ve moved to new places and made new friends. I’ve seen the world, married, adopted a dog, divorced.
This
time when I go to Exeter it will be as an American tourist, not a resident of
Sidwell Street. If I walk on the
university campus it will be as visitor, not a student. If I drink in the restaurant/champagne bar
where I once worked it will be as a customer, not a hostess at the end of my
shift. Everyone who used to work there
with me is gone. Moved on.
I’ve
changed, and I know the place I once left behind has changed as well. Am I
ready for it? Will it be as hard for me to leave this time, or will the life I’ve
made for myself be enough to bring me home without regret?
I guess I'll know soon, because tomorrow I'm flying back to England.
