The conscious decision to open or close a life-changing gateway is an emotional process. Before an international relocation (or a domestic one, for that matter) every component of the decision is weighed countless times over. Potential consequences from each path and direction are analyzed from all angles. The immediate, intermediate, and long-term effects are mapped […]
Imagine you are a piece of a jigsaw puzzle. You are made of cardboard and have crisp edges that fit alongside your fellow puzzle pieces. Together, you make a beautiful picture and the picture isn’t whole without you. Now, imagine that you are mixed in with other puzzle pieces. In the testing of all of the […]
How many kids do you have?” the dental technician asked me while her latex-gloved hands were working inside my mouth. I could feel her knuckles against the inside of my lips, expertly moving the mirror and probe from tooth to tooth. Now really isn’t the right time to be having a conversation, I thought, but […]
Every parent is afraid they are making a mistake when raising their children—abroad or domestically—and Jo Parfitt and Terry Anne Wilson are no different. In their book, Monday Morning Emails, they often question if their decision to move their families frequently throughout their children’s childhood results in their children’s inability to cope with difficulty. Monday Morning Emails […]
When my husband and I moved from Manhattan to Paris in 2012, we didn’t anticipate much in the way of culture shock. We were moving from one big, international city to another. No big deal, right? Wrong. Culture shock hit us hard. My husband struggled to navigate the intricacies of his workplace in a second […]
“Midwives? What is this, the 1400s? Do I have a feudal master to whom I pay monthly tithes in grain?” To say the least, my husband was unenlightened when it came to childbirth practices. He has since come a long way in a short time, but we were young(er) and stupid(er) back then, and […]
In an ideal world, there would be only perfect relocations. A world in which everything goes according to plan, nobody is running around at the last minute all sweaty with stress, and the children are well behaved on every flight and breeze through connecting airports. In this ideal world, here’s what a perfect relocation might […]
“Money in the bank. Braces are money in the bank,” my Nana told me at her kitchen table in upstate New York. I was 15 years old; my mouth was sore and full of twisted metal. I didn’t feel like having a mouth full of braces was such a wise investment. Her words were […]
A few weeks ago, I packed my suitcase and headed out of town for a week in Amsterdam to facilitate a data analysis and management workshop—switching my crisp and clean editor/publisher hat for my worn-in public health hat. It was refreshing to step back into comfortable shoes and play a role that was familiar and […]
My mom used to tell me, “Always leave the world a little better than how you found it.” That meant everything from picking up litter on the street to being a kind and generous person in daily life. Positive contributions were the measure of a good life. I gaze at the two tiny blonde heads […]