Back from the DR

Posted by james on June 22, 2002

I got back last weekend from my second Dominican Republic trip. I stayed twice as long as I originally intended, for 4 weeks total.

Being there is amazing, and after even such a short time I know I've seen so many things, and so many experiences are stuck inside of me. I can't yet express them all or even remember and comprehend everything that happened. But I do feel that some things have changed. I don't know what... my outlook on life, my motivation for doing things, feeling a sense of purpose. But it has, and it's a strange feeling.

Coming back home has been hard. "Re-entry" is always talked about, but feeling it first hand is different and confusing. There is a sense of loneliness and awkwardness at first, and it is slowly fading. But more than anything, it's hard to determine the reasons why these feelings exist, and it's hard to express them. All in time, but for now I'm left with part of me wishing I was there in the Dominican Republic, and the other part trying to fit into my old life here. And in the middle is confusion and a little isolation.