Up until now-

Up until now I have been spending my days in a volatile exchange between periods of extreme activity and periods of extreme quiet and boredom.  Some very full days have been spent with my family in the Cities, some days with my friends at St. Olaf, some days (more than originally expected) with my sister in Omaha. These days have been at times wonderful and at times very overwhelming, myself having not really been prepared for some of the encounters that were had.

Other days have been very, very quiet. One memorable highlight was a three-hour walk to and from Target. Another a four-hour stroll from one end of Winona to the other with loops and twists in-between. It has been the abruptness with which these days transition into one another that has been tiring and frankly confusing to me.  It is difficult to know what to do with myself; I feel as though I am floating through space watching everyone from afar, very detached.

Fortunately I am returning to Tokyo on the 26th, so I will be able to return to a life with a more normal rhythm to it.  The ironic thing is that, the first three weeks I spent at home were the three most surreal weeks of my life. In this fourth week I am finally feeling a bit more settled in my home and among my friend groups from high school and college. I am very eagerly anticipating my return to Tokyo, but it is tiring to be continuously adjusting and readjusting to whatever life I am thrown into. Really I have been doing this for almost three months, ever since I landed in Okinawa.

While I am whining a bit, I must say this has been a true adventure for me in many levels, and has been a time that I will probably never really be able to properly articulate or explain. While the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear crisis have been the most devastating events to hit Japan perhaps ever, I am grateful for this time spent at home, and I know it will make the next fourteen weeks all the more special.