AN UPDATE FROM JORDAN

“What can ever equal the memory of being young together?” ― Michael Stein, In the Age of Love

It’s officially been almost three weeks since I left the land of the free for my two-month intensive travel getaway. Time sure did fly by, and I cannot believe that I’ve been to two countries in just these few weeks. Now that I have been settled in what I call my home-away-from-home country of Jordan, I’ve really began the early stages of reflecting upon my life. After all, this trip was truly my version of a therapy session for myself, and it feels so damn good to be stress free after several months of carrying a heavy weight of it on my back. 

How does it feel to be in Jordan after three years of being absent? Well, it still feels amazing. My heart is whole again because it was so hollow the last three summers that I had to miss out on traveling to this place I love so much. However, I know the air is different. The streets are different. And the company is just not the same like it once was. Given the obvious that my siblings are not with me and that I still have a majority of my amazing family still living here, the group of friends that I used to laugh and cry with each and every summer have become a distant memory in my heart. As I ride in the passenger’s seat of every car, I cannot help but reminisce on all of the wild activities we used to partake in as the streets pass me by through the sheer window. We’ve all grown up and moved on, achieved impeccable careers and are going on a pathway that only goes uphill. Ten years ago I told myself that the years were going to pass us by, and that our reunion every summer will no longer become an every summer thing, and I was completely right about that. My heart lingers onto every memory that we have ever made, and I have some comfort in knowing that those people will be my friends forever. 

As Dania and I always say… “Those were the best days of our lives.” (Bryan Adams, Summer of ’69). XO