I came home........

I came home. I missed my family, the familiar sense of being in a place that would always welcome me and the change needed at that exact moment. I came home. I have been embraced by arms so familiar that it feels as if I never left. The love that overflowed engulfed my heart and warmed it where winter had already set in. I came home.

An escape was needed for a moment and my mind and body needed to be recharged. I looked for a change and a release from everything my mind, body and soul had been through. I stepped off the plane and was bombarded with the freezing air that the desert never provided. In the car I could see the beauty of winter that I had missed for so many years. The ground was blanketed with white snow that went on and on in a sea that touched the sky. The smoke rolled off of the chimneys and buildings why they were working overtime to keep their inhabitants warm and toasty. Christmas still had not arrived so the sea of white was dotted with the colors of the rainbow and finally a release.........it felt normal.

What an adventure I would have! From reuniting with my brothers and sisters and seeing so much extended family to the uncaring mother-nature who did not seem to mind inflicting the coldest temperatures in the twenty first century on our poor little bodies. I saw my snow I so desperately wished for. I experienced the complete silence one can only experience when the world is still and the flakes fall so silently to the ground. It was a peace and tranquility I had not felt in years. 

As the weather seemed to only grow colder and the run from the car to the house stretched even longer I found the longing for my home in the desert. I miss the warmth of the sun after a chilly start to the morning. I miss the smell of sweet basil in my glorious garden. Most importantly I miss the desert dwellers I have come to know as my extended family. My extended family is about to grow a little more during this first month of 2014 and I have begged my dear friend to not let that baby make his first appearance until I am there and just a short drive away. The friendly faces from across the street and the ones that stop over for just a short visit will be welcomed back into my heart with open arms. I long for their hugs and laughter just as I longed for the familiar and unconditional love of my family the night I stepped off the plane. 

My extended stay in this snowy, cold tundra is coming to an end and the heartache of saying goodbye is creeping in. The arms I longed for and hugs and faces I cherished will have to be stored in that sacred place in my heart until the next time. This adventure has been an amazing moment in my life and seeing my loved ones and reliving moments from my childhood has recharged my emotional batteries. I will take this new breath and head into the great unknown. However, when the battery is low and my heart aches for the familiarity of family I know without a doubt that there will always be a place for me here and one thing is certain, I can always come home.