Leaving Home

Here we are at the dawn of a new season and the twilight of our adolescence. 
One week ago, Tyler and I celebrated our marriage with our dear friends and family on a balmy summer's Sunday. We were surrounded by rustic splendor and graced with a vibrant rose-orange sunset.

Now we begin the chapters of our lives filled with travel. Over the next few years, we will journey through Asia and beyond. Next stop: Bali. 
However, today we are saying goodbye. We are finishing up with the daunting chore of packing and purging and setting out on the road with just the clothes on our backs. Well, not really. Though I must say, it is liberating to rid oneself of excess clothing, kitchen appliances, and unused electronics that were previously considered necessary. 
Yesterday, I drove past all of the familiar places in Bothell, the town where I grew up, to bid them a fond farewell. You know all of those little places, people, and animals that are staples in your life? ...The street you grew up on, the woodland where you kept your secret fort, the old man with the blue sweats who frequents your neighborhood, the horses in the overgrown pasture...  Those are the trivial details that create your world and your life experience. It's a strange and sorrowful feeling to know that you're seeing them for the last time in a long time. 

Goodbye, street. 

Goodbye, old shoebox childhood house. 

Goodbye Little Buddy! 

Tyler and I also had to say goodbye to our close family and friends living in the Seattle area. That, of course, was the hardest part of all. The fact that there is Skype these days eases my pain, but knowing that we won't see many of these people for a year to three years (or more) is difficult to face! Please, family and friends, come visit us in South Korea.

Saying goodbye: 

Goodbye to the people we love and the place we grew up. We will miss you and will be thinking of you often as we embark on our future expeditions.