Sometimes you just have to go home

I'm back home... in Chi town. I seems that when I travel, I travel from home to home. In a way it is nice to always be heading home. Then again, it is always difficult to leave home once again (even if it is for another home somewhere else).

I've decided for myself that my ideal heaven will be anyplace where I am no longer missing people. Maybe I'll be so utterly satisfied being in the presence of God, that I won't be missing people all the time and the relief will be palpable. It will be, shall we say, heavenly?

But this is earth. And until the kingdom comes, I will deal with always missing someone. I did get to see a lot of someones on my trip to TN though. If I'm cool, I'll post pictures. My battery is charging up now so I haven't even seen the pictures yet! I'm afraid I'll get too sentimental and mopey if I look at them now, though. So I'm waiting.... for the battery to charge. :)

Sorry I've been gone!!! I didn't take my laptop with me intentionally and was rarely online. It does mean that I got to spend a lot of good quality time with the people that love and support me from afar.

... speaking of love, did I mention that my W's threw me a surprise party for my 24th birthday? It was FABULOUS!! I walked in the door expecting a small family dinner and got a roomful of friends (and of course a table filled with delicious food). THEN I got another surprise - a bowling party!! This was complete with an embarrassingly pink, sparkly, and star studded "Birthday Girl" tiara, a feather boa and star sun glasses. Blu put it best when she asked if I felt properly grown up and properly like a kid. I did, I did!

The best part? Being surrounded by all those people that feel like home reminded me of how incredibly loved I am. There was no pretense to be someone other than who I am, right now, at this moment. They love me for who I am, not the qualities I posses or don't! They didn't mind that I wasn't the same Alison I was when I left or that I am still so much the same Alison.

What was odd, though? They were friends from various parts of my life... all coming together to celebrate me. I started thinking at one point that I would act differently in front of my family, my college friends, my coffee shops friends, and my W family. They've all known me at different times and in different ways/places/etc. - I just manifest different parts of myself to different people. So to know that being genuinely myself was the goal, the point, the purpose of the celebration...

...was incredibly freeing. I let go and just had a blast.

This feeling stuck around for most of the trip as I got to gather with various groups of friends and family

Thanks to all of my fabulous friends and family who surprised me Friday night, who loved on me this weekend, and who continue to let me call you home. You mean the world to me and are endlessly on my heart. Thanks for sharing me, too.