Missing Home

I've been in New Haven for just over a month, and as the crispness of fall has quite suddenly overtaken summer warmth, homesickness has also descended upon my heart.

Generally, I love to hate LA, but I am also proud to claim it as my roots.  I'm not a fan of the culture, the smog, or the traffic, but I have history with and strong ties to both places and people there.

Here is a list of things I miss from home:

• My family.  My parents are the cutest, and I miss seeing them interact with each other and interacting with them.
• My former roommate, and the apartment we shared.  I miss the brown floors of the apartment and the brown that is her hair!
• My violin.  I think I'm going to go crazy if I don't play one soon.  Thankfully, it will be arriving sometime next month, along with my parents, who are visiting me during my fall break.
• Palm trees!  The tall mountains of SoCal.
• Being at home when my mom teaches piano students.  She had a student piano recital this past weekend, and I was quite sad to miss it.
• My ultimate frisbee crew.  Love my Asian American dudes (and dudettes)--and the fact that my brother and I got to play sports together for a season!
• My Scripture Memory Group, whom I affectionally dub "Sierra Madre Gals".  
• My church, and the prayer team there.
• My job.  My coworkers and my clients!

I have been so blessed to have a roommate, friends, a church, and a small group here in New Haven.  In a way, though, being able to slide into my new role and "belongingness" here has made all the more poignant how much away from home I am now….

...I am getting along well with my new roommate, which makes me think back to my former roommate

...I hear quality music on an almost daily basis at Marquand Chapel, which makes me long to play my violin

…I have taken a day trip across 2 states with friends, which drives home the fact that New Haven is now my point of departure

…I am a member of the Divinity School soccer team, which makes me miss my ultimate frisbee friends

…I have joined a home group at church, which makes me miss the prayer team at my old church

…I am learning so much in my classes, which makes me nostalgic for my BSF days

…I am reading Hebrews during personal quiet times, which makes me so grateful for the Scripture Memory accountability I had in LA while memorizing Hebrews 11

…I am enjoying the more flexible schedule I have as a student, which reminds me of the job I left to come here…

As I settle in this New Haven of mine, may I never forget the warm home I had in LA and the sunny faces that still wish me well from across the country.  They were some of the best people in the world, and they treated me like gold.  I can't wait to fly westward on December 18th for Christmas Break!