My mother's daughter

After a night of flights and approximately 45mins of snatched snoozing, I am home. Going away and exploring new countries is amazing. Coming home is also amazing.

Canada has been wonderful. I've loved staying with Kristi and being shown the local sights and seeing some incredible things. But more than that, it's been amazing to hang out with Kristi and Kristin and catch up on the last three years. I guess we are fortunate enough to have one of those easy friendships that you can just slip back into so naturally, like we haven't been busy living our lives in separate countries at all. Our friendship could have fizzled out without the shared experience of living in a foreign country together, but I'm thankful to have had this time together to be convinced that we'll be friends for a long time. 

One of the other interesting things over the last week or two has been fascinating conversations about the cultures we're from. Canada, the USA and the United Kingdom have so much shared history and shared culture but the differences are not far from the surface. I come back from this trip with an even deeper gratitude for the NHS, our generous welfare system and the fact that I get more than 10 days holiday a year. I'm also glad that we never have to deal with -20 degree temperatures.

I'm grateful for great friends and amazing experiences. And I'm grateful for home, for Shrewsbury and for the UK.