A normal person’s summer usually involves a certain amount of goodbye-ing, even if it only reflects a departure for a week’s vacation (or a return from said vacation). Sometimes the summer begins with goodbyes, when people graduate or leave jobs; sometimes the summer ends with goodbyes (some folks just leave later). Our summer has triggered an overwhelming series of goodbyes, with more to come.
We have already said goodbye to Durham (Margaret will stop back from time to time, but Pippa more rarely, and it’s not clear when I’ll return); Princeton; New Haven; Nantucket (and my mother). I bid Baltimore goodbye a few weeks ago. Then I had to come back to Durham to finalize the visa reapplication, and that involved pro tem goodbyes to Pip and Margaret.
Tomorrow I’ll say goodbye to Margaret and Pippa. If my visa comes through this time, I won’t see them again for months; if I’m stuck back in the USA again, I might go up to Baltimore (again) to stay with her while we sort things out. Our hearts are torn up anyway, since we can’t count on seeing each other before the SBL meeting in November — and I won’t see Pippa till Christmastime.
The last few nights have been touch tough for sleeping. I’m going to miss PIppa and Margaret so much. The only thing worse than being apart so long will be if we have to scramble through some further as-yet unanticipated hoops to get me to Scotland in time for classes (or somewhat thereafter), whipsawing my sense of “home” for another few additional weeks.
where the heart is, my friend. where the heart is.
“. . .touch for sleeping? a sweet freudian slip.