The Hillhouse

This was a long day, but a very successful one. In the past 24 hours I can recount the blooming apple tree outside my door in Greenfield, eating grilled lamb from a food truck with the Empire State Building in view, picking a flower off of a hedge in Paris, taking in a stunning view of London and emerging from a plane on the tarmac at the tiny Inverness Airport here in Scotland, greeted by the scent of salt air and springtime blooms.

I hadn’t quite budgeted for the great expense this trip will be, and I have a slight sense of panic in my heart when I imagine the two and a half weeks ahead. It’s not cheap to travel, much less to the United Kingdom. The exchange rate is awful and life these days is simply not cheap. But this is a long-awaited adventure for Elihu and me, and we will make it happen however that may be. If it’s ramen noodles every night (it is on this first night!), then that’s the reality. We’ll have our haggis and scotch, but maybe just not as often as I might’ve hoped.

But truly, things went so smoothly in our first day of travels that I can hardly believe it, and it gives me hope that things will turn out well on this trip. People everywhere were kind and helpful. There is nothing that can foster love in one’s heart for other fellow humans in the way that travel can. Right out of the small airport we ran into a German couple with whom we shared a taxi. They spoke limited English, so Elihu got into the backseat with them and had a nice conversation in German while I sat up front with the Pakistani driver comparing the local drivers to the ones back home. We shared some laughs as we each recounted an anecdote from the famous Murree mountain road.

The driver gave me some pointers for driving on the right side – and for a moment or two it seemed fairly straightforward. But then a few times I was too scared to look ahead and so cast my eyes into my lap. As I write this It is after midnight and I am dreading the morning that follows, as we must find a bus back to the airport and then I will get behind the wheel of a car which I’ll be driving for hundreds of kilometers. It’s a challenge, and I don’t know how I’ll meet it, but I will.

We are staying at a sweet but very no-frills Airbnb, and Elihu is downstairs in the common area on a zoom call tutoring a student in Mandarin. This woman has also employed him to help her with her Cantonese – a language that until a few weeks ago Elihu did not know. But he’s been working diligently the past week working on vocab and accent, staying a lesson ahead of his student. Talk about a challenge! That kid is bold. And I know he will be successful. I’ll take my inspiration from him.

There’s simply too much to impart here, as I sit with my legs folded under me and my neck cramping to see the small monitor. My head is swimming with images and memories of the people I’ve seen, the kindnesses given to us by so very many people who assisted us in our time of need. I am so humbled by the care we received from complete strangers. I am amazed at the variety of people in this world. Even here at the local Tesco we met a man from Nigeria and a woman from Poland with whom we shared some nice moments.

I love my hometown, and I am comfortable there to be sure. But sometimes in life we need to get out and see how different we are to remember how much we have in common, no matter where it is that we live.