Through the Wardrobe

"Things here must be so different from when you left"

"No. They're exactly the same"

The day after we got back to The Dalles I was in the car going to Fred Meyer with my mom when I was struck by how things haven't changed in the past two and a half years. The same houses needed the same repairs, the corner of 10th and Trevitt was filled with the typical summer yard sale signs and we were doing what we did the day before Ryan and I left. I felt like I had gone through a time warp. I left this place for over two years and in that time I experienced so many things, changed in so many ways but my sleepy little hometown stayed the same. Ok, there's a gas station at the Safeway and a roundabout on the way out of town, but other than that things are pretty much exactly where we left them. It's like we were on fast forward while everything else was on pause.

The Pevensie children must have felt the same way when they returned from Narnia. In the new land they grew up, had adventures and made friends. Then unexpectedly they tumbled through the wardrobe and found themselves in England, just how they had left it. But how could they, or we, expect things to be different? As Ryan pointed out, Gyula didn't change much while we were there. We changed. The people there changed. And so did the people here. Our friends and family had their own adventures. They learned lessons and they grew. So while the The Dalles looks the same, it really isn't. 

When traveling in a new country it's easy to see the similarities. McDonald's and Coca Cola are everywhere. People go shopping and eat out, teenagers are loud, old people drive slow and mothers chase after their young children. But to truly understand the beauty of a different culture you have to go beyond the surface to find the differences. It can take a while but once they emerge, understanding begins. That's where Ryan and I are at. Examining our native culture as outsiders and searching for the nuances we never noticed before. Hopefully we can then piece together the best of American and Hungarian culture, and throw in a bit of Canadian as well, and create a new culture for ourselves. 

January 2009. Us and our carry-on. Our four big bags were already checked.

June 2011. Four carry-ons, five checked bags, a stroller, a dog crate, a dog and a baby.
We shipped about three suitcases worth home.