מנוחה היא לא עצלנות – וחשוב לומר את זה

@ramalauw

Living abroad an exciting, vibrant experience, and I feel incredibly lucky to have it every day. But at the same time, it can also be isolating and lonely. There’s the feeling that you never quite belong where you’re building a new life, but also feel like a visitor when you return home. Experiencing different ways of life shapes you, but you find you don’t fully fit in any of them. It also means meeting people in every place you’ve lived, and loving them. But it also means leaving them. Goodbyes become a constant. Your life never stays in one place because pieces of it are scattered across all the places you’ve called home. I know this is a first-world problem, and I’m extremely privileged to have lived in so many places. But sometimes, my heart aches because I’ll always wish I could share these life moments with ALL the people I love. This isn’t meant to be a sad post, just a reflection of how life feels sometimes, and I think many who’ve had this experience can relate. To overshare a bit more, I often worry about how many days I realistically have left with my parents. In the past 9 years, I’ve seen them for only 2-3 weeks a year. Then I start counting: how many more trips will we take? How many more lunches? How many more conversations? This fills me with guilt and sadness. But my brother once told me that even though I don’t see them often, the distance makes our time together that much more special. He said, “Sometimes, people who live nearby take time together for granted. But when you’re home, it’s all quality time. Whereas, living in the same city, we often get too busy to make time for each other. Those quality days are what we all cherish. So, if you’re counting those, you’re not that far behind. Don’t worry so much! 😉” I know he was probably just trying to make me feel better, but it helped me realize that, though it’s hard to constantly miss people, it’s comforting to know that the time we do have together, however little, won’t be taken for granted. It will be deeply cherished. I’m not sure why I feel compelled to share this today, but I hope that if you feel guilty about living far from the people you love, you can also find comfort in knowing that distance may suck, but it can also bring something beautiful. ✨

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