some of you will be so changed

some of you will be so changed by weathers and wanderings
that even your closest friends will have to learn your features
as though for the first time.

some of you will be so changed by weathers and wanderings

more true than i could ever put into words. just ask my mom or stef about when they came to visit. really though, ask them...give yourself at least a bit of a heads up on what to expect from me. there are ways that i have changed that i am only beginning to understand or haven't even realized yet.

there are ways i have changed, for better and for worse. i won't go into all of them here, but my understanding of love and hospitality has become a lot more generous. after living with a host mom whose question is "when is lisa coming to visit?" without concern that it is another mouth to feed. her issue with a house full of 11 people is not how to feed everyone, but how to make sure that everyone has a place to lay their head at night.

i also know that i think and understand things differently. there are questions that i no longer know how to answer. i can tell you who i came to know and love here, but i have no idea how to tell you "how it was." i don't think i'll be able to be concise and to the point in answering questions for a very long time (if ever).

that even your closest friends will have to learn your features as though for the first time.

well, physical features include hair, which is considerably longer than last time you saw me (seeing as it's close to the length it was when i shaved my head). so, yes, physically my features will be new and different, but even those with whom i have kept in touch quite well have had limited contact with me. nobody knows everything and without being able to talk in person and spend time around each other. without those things, how can we really know and recognize each other?

these days facebook has become a great means for communication and keeping in touch (especially as i've now graduated from college and everybody's going off in different directions); however, it has also begun to replace face to face contact. i am immensely grateful for facebook, because it has allowed me to keep in touch with people, but as i go back to the states, i know i'll need to see faces, to give hugs, to sip warm beverages with those i love, and no longer communicate only through facebook and email. facebook, email, and even skype can only ever be temporary means of communication in relationships, but i will be glad when i can see those i love in the states and we can both learn each others features as though for the first time.

some of you will be so changed by weathers and wanderings
that even your closest friends will have to learn your features
as though for the first time.