Truth: I have had a challenging relationship with the repatriation process over the past five months.
I’ve been saved from going completely doo-lally in many ways by being able to find joy in my work, writing, and sport. I’ve discovered and been able to reconnect with a bunch of people who are positive, full of energy, and spirit, and who harness the same aspirations as me – to live life fully and have adventure and who keep their values at the heart of what they do with open hearts and minds.
And I might sound like some nutjob hippy who’s come back from the USA to the traditions of Blighty, but as I have always maintained, my journey in America was a spiritual one, and what I learned there about others and myself is key to how I now approach my repatriation.
That said, I’ve not been able to write much about my repatriation recently. Positively, I’ve been wrapped up in my work, which I love, but on the other hand, I’m not sure what to write about anymore because I’m not sure how I feel about it all. I’ve read much about the repatriation process in order to understand it better.
‘But the deep, dark secret of the expat experience is that coming home – repatriation – can be even harder than leaving.’ Read more….
‘….an assignee’s [expat’s] experience abroad will change his or her outlook on life; similarly, events in the lives of friends and families may have changed them as well. Even assignees returning to their previous communities and old lifestyles find that things are somehow not quite the same as before. Generally, the longer people have been away, the longer it takes to feel completely at home on their return. It is easy to see how feelings of loneliness or isolation can set in. For many, it takes a full year of holidays and festivities before they feel fully re-established back home.’ Read more….
‘Re-entry to a country of origin can actually be more stressful than the outward transition.’
‘Repatriation is quite often not supported as seriously as the outbound transfer and even neglected.’ Read more….
Right now I’m all about inspirational quotes to boost me on my way through the repatriation fog.
The issue I feel with repatriating is that I always want to experience new things and when you are repatriating sometimes it feels like you’re going backwards, doing the same things that you did before. And right now I’m not sure those past elements feature in my new journey that I have a passion to forge ahead with. It’s a conundrum I’ll just have to work out.
2016 will breath life into my adventures with the British spring and summer round the corner – both super pleasant times of the year, which I am sure will give me more positive opportunities and adventures to blog about.
#happynewyear #positivevibes #newadventures
Desperate Housewife: From America to England 