Last post abroad

But I will be sure to get back on here and write more in the US. Below is the text of an email I sent out to those who requested it:

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This email had to come.

Air Canada flight 002 departs Tokyo Narita Airport tomorrow evening at 5:20. Barring any surprises, I'm on it. I arrive in LaGuardia at 9:48, making it the longest 4.5 hours of my life. Maybe it's symbolic, given that I can savor my last 4.5 for 18 hours. How fortunate is that?

Shortly after I land I'll be heading to DC for 44's inauguration. On January 22 I fly back to LA, then on February 6 I take that final flight from the west unto the east, to my new home in NYC.

I write this to you all after having fallen off the radar for some period, though I'd call it a withdrawal. However you see it, I will be sure to write a few more posts and load many more pictures. Granted, updates after the fact are a bit anticlimactic, but I'll share them anyway. And what I do not share online I hope to share with you in person.

I return with all my limbs plus a few cuts and scars, but on the whole intact. I've made many friends, created and collected countless experiences, read voraciously, written profusely, and taken over 20 gigs of photos. All of that, both process and result, will stay with me for the rest of my life. These five months will be a part of my own personal history. Still, in my return I will find that the adventure is not yet over, only different.

New York City will be quite a test. In all of its intensity, it will challenge me to remember to breathe. In all of its distractions, it will challenge me not to forget the lessons and experiences of these five months. And in all of its demands, it will force me to persevere, to avoid the invitation to back down.

It will also be a lot of fun.

I am excited for what is to come. I am so happy that I will be able to see my family and friends so soon. I am also so thankful that I've been able to take these months to explore what is important to me in such an incredible part of the world. But what is most important is not the experiences I've had, but the awareness and appreciation for the people who have allowed me to have them.

So I say this to my family, my old friends and new friends: thank you for making this the most unreal dose of reality I've ever had.

I look forward to seeing you.

Sterling
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