Before the middle or the end, there was the beginning.

As we all know, humans are exquisitely complex beings.  Our thoughts can be rife with inner contradiction and our actions oxymoronic, exemplified in our lives when we enter onto paths that inspire and incite us, fill us with great expectations and the promise of adventure, while at the same time creating a certain sense of pain, invoking intense sorrow, and quite frankly, scaring the beegeezus out of us.

Thus describes my inner turmoil as our plane circled over Heathrow airport, waiting for clearance to land at the busiest airport in the world.  I was staring out of the window at a city which seemed to sprawl to the horizon in all directions and laughed out loud thinking that the next time I flew into Heathrow, I would be “flying home.” 

I have to say that moment in the plane was unlike anything I have ever felt; certainly different from the pure excitement felt on previous trips across the pond for vacation, where anxiety was subdued in the knowledge that a flight in seven or 10 days time would be returning me home to the comfort and familiarity of my home town.

The recent memory of selling two cars, all of our furniture, Kristin quitting her job and pretty much throwing our lives upside down for this opportunity adds to the anxiety of the moment!

I quickly reminded myself that growth does not come without risk and returned to a more positive frame of mind, visualizing all of the amazing cultural experiences Kris and I would be privy to over the next two years. 

Then the wheels touched down.  Here we are London, nice to make your acquaintance.