Return and return to increase the happiness

I've been back in my house in Charlottesville now for three hours. I've put my clothes away, and put the presents I've gotten for my American children into piles. I'm sitting at my front room table, glad to be home in a space that's also familiar.

I sat here two weeks ago, probably, in anticipation of the trip that was rapidly approaching. I booked this one in late June or early July on a spur of the moment decision to just do it. This time around I got my parents to come over with me. I'm way too tired to document all of that now. 

For the most part, I've been sad in the few hours I got home from my trip. That has changed the last two times, though, as I quickly state that I want to return as soon as possible. And I follow up, silencing that part of me that for most of my life has associated travel to England with massive expenses. 

The turmoil over Brexit has had the effect of making the dollar much stronger against the pound. That means I spend more money when I am there, and that I tend to go over more often. 

But I mainly go over to see my family, who I am becoming closer to with each visit. The highlight of this trip was spending an entire at the first birthday part of one of my cousins. I spent an entire day around English people, living English lives, and I was right there as part of it. 

On each of these trips, I've watched a performance in which my son has been in. There's another one in February.

I've already begun pricing tickets and preparing for the next trip. I suspect my life is going to change a little bit in the next while, but it's still good to dream about what I love. I have dreamed of trips to England for my whole life. Now I'm living part of my life there. I'm blessed and privileged to be able to have this experience. It fuels me and makes me whole. In turn, it makes me realize that my trips to England fuel me in a way that makes me want to give to this community in the way I know how: providing information. 

And now I sit here, about six months away from my next trip. Maybe the next one will be different and I'll have figured out a way to stay there for a while. I'd like to move there for a while and have the experience of meeting more people. In the meantime, I also need to do the same thing here, and I have a plan to do just that.

Many happy returns, indeed.