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Well,

This is it. I have packed my bags for America and said good bye to the Bale Oromia people that have been such gracious hosts to me for the past two years. Jill is starting her new job in Southern Oregon about now. Soon we will be parents.

This is big time in my life. I have reached a milestone. Time to catch my breath and let go of my Ethiopian lifestyle, to prepare for re-entry into the rush hour expressway that is the modern American society. Time to trust that the new Peace Corps volunteers and my Ethiopian coworkers will continue my exciting work with beekeeping.

It has been a long two years. I can confidently say it has been the longest two years of my adult life. I am so grateful to have experienced this adventure. To have been immersed in a drastically different culture with my wonderful wife and come out of it a better person.

The hardest part of all this may be saying the “goodbyes”. I have never been one for sentimental farewells, but this is a very sentimental farewell culture. I know that there is almost no chance I will ever see my Ethiopians again, but how can I look someone in the eye and tell them that? When they ask when I am coming back I struggle for answers. Some people I avoid telling at all because my body cannot handle another coffee ceremony that will keep me awake all night. In this sense I am just like the other foreigner tourists who are just passing through to collect Ethiopian stories and artifacts.

But I knew this would happen. This adventure was always destined to end. I will always have photos to look at and remember.