If I’ve learned
anything during our time here in Brazil, it’s the virtue of patience. From the beginning, while waiting for our
Visas to be approved, our Brazilian experience has been a true test of
patience. Guns-N-Roses’ hit song,
“Patience”, is running through my head as I type this – no, all the lyrics do
not apply, but the key words from the chorus do – “all we need is just a little
patience”. This applies to everything
here, it seems – from the slow check-out lines at the grocery store, to waiting
for elevators, to the ever-worsening traffic conditions. I have written before that my yoga classes
have really helped me remain sane while living in Sao Paulo – the breathing and
relaxation exercises I have learned are employed regularly – they have proven
effective in Wal-Mart, as well as during the short commute to my kids’
school. Matt has required a lot of
patience to deal with the challenges he faces at work, and even more with the
ever-present concern of what his next job (with Alcoa, or not) will be. Patience, however, does have its rewards.
So much has
happened in the many months since I last wrote (6 months ago!) – I will now try
to bring this journal up to date. I
should start by saying, “Happy New Year”!
We are three days into 2013, which is very hard to believe – where does
time go?! I believe I’ve asked this
question several times throughout my writing.
I find it remarkable that we have now almost come full-circle, and are
beginning to plan our return to the U.S. – once again, though, waiting for our
Visas (which are about to expire) to be renewed for our final months here. I think I’ll hit the imaginary rewind button
and start back in June and work forward until now…this may take a few days and
several pages (which I will break down into sections).
Summer (Winter)
Break
After all of our
farewells at the beginning of June, we were looking forward to several weeks
with family and friends in the U.S. The
kids and I traveled three weeks ahead of Matt; he had to stay behind to work,
and joined us later. It wasn’t entirely by
coincidence that we were on the same flight with my friend Nancy and her family. During our walks and talks, I mentioned to
Nancy that we would be flying through Detroit on a Delta flight, and that it
would be great if they ended up on our flight.
Since the dates worked out for them, they were able to book the same
flight and we traveled together. It was
definitely a bonus to get to put off saying goodbye until the last moment, and
it was bittersweet for me to be the first to welcome them “home” once we
arrived in Detroit. I had held it
together pretty well until the time Nancy and her sweet husband and kids came
around the corner with three carts loaded down with 15 suitcases – knowing the
time had come to say goodbye got the tears flowing. After many hugs, a few more tears, and
promises to see one another sometime in the future, the Villeneuves walked
through the doors and resumed life in the U.S.
The boys and I
continued on our trip and arrived in Pittsburgh for a six day stay; we were met
at the airport by a smiling Cilissa – it was so good to see her! Our days in Pittsburgh passed in a blur – I
attended a conference for continuing education during the first three days
there, and the rest of our time was spent visiting friends and going to various
appointments with the dentist, pediatrician, and orthodontist. The kids were thrilled to be with their
friends again – Ian spent a day at Kennywood with his best bud, Alex Cassese,
while our Alex spent the afternoon tubing on Conneaut Lake with Tim and
Jacob. One unexpected occurrence was
that Alex had an expander placed at the last minute, literally an hour before
we left to go to WV – I had only taken him in for a consult, but the
orthodontist decided his crowded mouth needed intervention ASAP – from one day
to the next he had a mouthful of plastic.
Cilissa had kindly offered to drive us to Huntington, as she was
dropping her kids off with their grandparents – we left the orthodontist office
and the seven of us packed into her car and were on our way.
Our moms were
anxiously awaiting our arrival and were so happy to have their boys with them
again – you couldn’t wipe the smiles off of their faces – it felt so good to be
“home”! It is funny how many different
places take on the meaning of “home” and give us that sense of comfort. The summer temperatures were soaring, but
that didn’t keep us from enjoying time with our families, sharing meals
together, and doing a lot of talking. We
visited Chad and Stephanie’s new house, which was almost finished, and the boys
had fun playing with Riley and Sydney.
After a week, the kids and I drove with my mom to Richmond to visit
Jennifer and her family; Eric, Jenn, and Amelia were also there – what a sweet
reunion that was. My mom was so happy to
have all of her kids and grandchildren under one roof. Our days together passed quickly – I
thoroughly enjoyed seeing my nieces, Amelia and Annika, and my nephew, Luca –
they grow and change so much at their young ages. Ian and Alex had a great time with their
cousins, and especially enjoyed a day at Busch Gardens amusement park in
Williamsburg. I happily stayed (feel
firmly planted on solid ground) with my mom and the little ones, while the
bigger kids (including the adult kids!) took advantage of the thrill rides –
the 97 degree heat did not deter them at all.
They rode roller coasters and other rides that I wouldn’t ride even if
someone paid me – they definitely get their brave and daredevil ways from
someone else!
Two nights before
we were due to leave Richmond and return to WV, a ferocious and unexpected
storm moved through the area. The power
at Jen’s went out at about 10:30 that Friday night and came on the next day at
about noon. We later found out that what
had occurred was called a “super derecho” – a severe widespread and
long-lived wind storm that accompanies rapidly moving showers or thunderstorms. The hurricane-force winds left millions
without power, closed down gas stations, and killed many; the states of VA, WV,
and OH declared states of emergency. Mom
and I left the following day, fortunately filling our gas tank before leaving
Richmond. West Virginia was one of the
harder-hit areas and driving through was a very eerie experience. It really looked like a ghost town – every
exit we took greeted us with traffic lights that weren’t working, empty
streets, closed gas stations, and businesses with the lights off and doors
closed. The few stations that were
operating had lines of cars up to 4 hours long and were limiting customers to
seven gallons each. There wasn’t a
police car in sight, and the highway was dotted with abandoned cars on the
shoulders, having run out of gas.
It turns out that Jen was very lucky to only have lost power
for 12 hours, as many people went without for several days, and in some cases
two or more weeks – my parents didn’t have power at their house for 5 days. By some stroke of luck, John and Deanna were
spared the power outage and had air conditioning to help with the stifling heat
(the temperatures were over 100 degrees).
Needless to say, the boys and I went where there was light,
refrigeration, and A/C. While still in
Brazil, Matt worked and traveled (for work), but made good use of his free time
playing tennis and visiting Monte Verde with his friend, John (whose wife and
kids were also away). In this mountain
town, a three hour drive from Sao Paulo, they took advantage of the outdoor
adventure sports offered in the area and went on an 800 meter zip-line, did
some mountain climbing, as well as four-wheeling through the mountains. Matt arrived in WV on July 6th –
it was nice to be together again, as it was the first time we’d been apart for
more than two weeks – despite the fact that we had been busy and enjoying
ourselves, the kids and I had missed him.
After spending the weekend in Huntington, we packed our
suitcases (again!) and left for our camp on the Greenbrier River. There aren’t too many places where we feel as
peaceful and relaxed as we do at camp – the scenery is beautiful, with the
river surrounded by lush green hills; the air is fresh and clean, and the
sounds of nature surround and envelop you.
The kids are completely carefree there, splashing in the river,
searching for bait, and spending hours with fishing poles in hand patiently
waiting for their next catch. This year,
Alex really found the angler within – during one canoe trip with Matt, he managed
to hook a citation-worthy musky. They
rowed back to the shore and yelled for everyone to go see his catch – I don’t
know that I’ve ever seen such a big and bright smile on his face! The musky, measuring almost 42 inches and
weighing in at 18 pounds, was too big for him to hold up on his own. After taking several pictures (Matt, Papa
John, and Ian also were photographed with this river monster), they loaded the
fish into John’s truck and drove into town to the local bait shops for the
official measurements and documentation.
Not to be outdone by his little brother, Ian was determined to catch a
musky of his own. The next day, Matt
took him out in the canoe, and after spotting another (even bigger) musky, Ian
was able to hook it; after reeling it in for about two minutes, the fish broke
Ian’s line and took off with bait and hook still in its mouth. He was disappointed, but isn’t giving up – he
can’t wait to go back next summer and try again. Alex later received a certificate from the WV
Division of Natural Resources, and had his picture posted in the bait shop and
on their Facebook page, as well as a picture of him with his musky in a local
fishing publication. It certainly was
the highlight of his summer!
After a memorable and relaxing week at camp, it was time to
pack for what felt like the hundredth time and return to Huntington for a few
more days with family before our return to Brazil. Several loads of laundry later, the suitcases
were packed for our final destination – back to Sao Paulo. It is always hard to leave the U.S. and our
families, but it does feel good to get back to our real home – our own beds,
our own space, among our own things.
Upon our return, we caught up with the friends we had missed over the
break, and met several of the new families who had arrived and joined our expat
community. The kids enjoyed a few free
days before returning to school and a routine.
Soon enough, we were back to daily drop-off and pick-up, homework, kung
fu, and volunteering – before we knew it, life was “back to normal” and August
and September were gone.
To be continued...
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