This week I have dealt with a measure of homesickness. I had kind of been feeling it at random moments for the last week, but this week it hit pretty hard. My mom’s birthday was this week (Happy Birthday, Mom!), mine was, too, and my sister’s is next week. It just reminded me of home and the birthday week we always have.
Then I looked around and saw a different family, my Lift family. My team is that family, although not exactly the same. I have two older brothers and two older sisters, and one younger sister. If you could our hosts, there’s another older brother, older sister, and younger sister. I even call one of the guys Older Brother, because he is Korean and that is his culture.
My squad was caring and considerate (I called all the guys “brother” within the first few days), but my team is always with me now. They are the ones that uplift me and care for me and tease me and love me.
These five people have made this base camp in Cambodia home for us. We have family meals. We watch movies and do laundry together. We laugh and cry and spend hours together each day. It’s the most community I have had in a long time, and I love it! It might be forced community, but it is welcomed. They have become my Home Away From Home, my Family Away From Family.
