Returning Contemplations

Driving to work this morning, I realized how real this return is.  I am back.  And the whole week last week feels surreal already.

Both M and I really enjoyed our time, both at Cape Town and in Sabi Sabi.  Terrific trip!

I wish I could have granted myself an hour with the nature while in Safari. I suppose I could've taken advantage of the terrace at our lodge.  It was just difficult to go there, sit down and relax with all the possibilities of lizards and hyenas and all.  Otherwise, sitting at my desk at work, I miss the sound of the wild.  It was as if the noises were coming from different depth of the nature, very many different varieties almost all new to my ears.

I miss breathing the cleanest most perfectly moist air I had ever breathe.

I was also thinking how proud of A I was.  He managed this whole experience of time away from both of his parents so graciously.  We talked to him briefly just before his bedtime during our lay over at Frankfurt. He was in our bed, apparently he had done the same last night too.  M hypothesized that this was his way to quench his feeling of missing us, I totally agree with him.  He knows how to sooth himself and he has been real good with all his care givers.  I am proud of him.

In the airport while waiting for our flight and a 50 minute delay gave me an amazing opportunity to have a lengthy chat with M.P., our president, and his wife, who were sharing this leg of the flight with us.  We started with talking about the first leg of our flights, and then recapping the trip and the experience, and then immediate work on Monday, and continued with many inspirational directives and advice he had to share; I was thrilled with the opportunity and the good words he had to say about me.  He gave me hints about many different ways of learning, and the many different ways to achieve a career goal, and not to achieve high ranks too quickly which may lead to lack of respect.  I thought it was also very wise when he said that sometimes there was a lag between people's growth and vision and the corporation growth and vision, so one must be patient until the corporation caught up.  I am looking forward to a lengthy chat with my direct manager about it all.

In the airplane to San Francisco I read a few pages of the Times magazine about the 100 most influential people in the world.  There was a column on Jeremy Lin, the Knicks player, by Arne Duncan.  In the article, Duncan praises Lin for his determination in success, and how he is both a successful athlete and a great student. "He worked hard and stayed humble. He lives the right way; he plays the right way." Neat!

Then I watched a couple movies.  The Iron Lady and The Artist.  Both OK. I just wanted to have watched them and now I have.

I could't wait to see A and hug him and kiss him and hear him talk at length possibly about the funny scenes in the Disney DVDs he had to watch and count down the nights away from us.  He received us happily and came back several times to give us a hug or a kiss here and there.  He was thrilled about the stuffed Elephant we got him from the Johannesburg airport.  He named him Eli right away.

Now, back to the corporate life with all the new plans, visions, and motivations going forward.

Thank God for everything!