the evolution of eliza

Warning: this post could appear somewhat braggy about Eliza.  That's primarily because it is.  I will acknowledge my boastfulness, but I won't apologize for it.  We've asked a lot of her over the past three years, and she's shown up.  We think she's the bee's knees.

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Ever since we received our orders to move back to Norfolk (in late-April 2018), I've had a looming sense of heartache accompany my overwhelming feelings of joy and relief.  For a while, I couldn't put my finger on exactly what it was.  This is something we've wanted so badly for so long -- where was this feeling coming from and what exactly did it mean?  I was nothing but happy to be going home to the family, house, and community that I love and have missed so much.

Then one day, after enrolling Eliza in her old school in Chesapeake, I took a trip down Memory Lane and re-read the post I wrote about her time there nearly two years ago.  Then it hit me.

In the last paragraph, I wrote:

While yes, I will miss her school so much, what I am really feeling is the closing of the sweetest chapter in our lives so far.

Ah, yes!  That's it -- the familiar feeling of mourning that accompanies the closing of a chapter.  The grief and anxiety that come along with the realization that one chapter -- a sweet and precious phase, a stage of personal and familial growth and development, a unique time in our life -- is fading and another one is on the horizon.

Being expats and a military family, our life changes are highlighted with each new set of orders, every move, and of course, each deployment.  The chapters of our lives are so much more recognizable and definable.  I see this as a blessing and a curse.  A blessing because we are forced to notice them, grab hold of them, and to not take our precious time for granted, for it surely is fleeting.

A curse because with it comes the realization of yet another phase gone.  

This time, it's the fabulous space of time between the ages of five and seven that we will be mourning the loss of.

When we left Virginia, Eliza was a shy five-year-old who was whip smart and loved her family more than anything.  

Eliza will be a shy seven-year-old when we return to Virginia.  She is still whip smart and loves her family more than anything.  But she has lived a lot of life in two years.

She has been to fourteen countries (has lived in three), experienced countless cultures and languages, has friends from across the globe, and has an undying interest in learning more about the world around her.  She has become a global citizen.

She has been forced to be the new girl at school twice in her time in Budapest, and will be the new girl once again when we return home.  This doesn't scare her.  Her confidence has grown so much and she is turning out to be quite a leader (though some may occasionally call it bossy).  She has a strong sense of justice and is quick to stand up for herself and her peers.  We are so proud of the girl she is growing in to.

She has discovered a deep interest in all things space.  She made it abundantly clear that her passions lie with space and Star Wars -- no more Disney princesses for this girl! (Hallelujah!)  When she grows up, she wants to be the leader of the Rebel Alliance (I had to google that) or an astrophysicist.  Perhaps she will do both.

Eliza hosted a space-themed party for two of her friends, complete with space-themed food, a 'space book reading center', a space documentary viewing, and a 'museum' with all of her space things.

She was a budding reader when we left the States, but is now reading at a third grade level.  She always has her nose in a book, oftentimes reading three or four at one time.  We are so happy that she finds such joy (and good friends) within the pages of her books.

She is a fabulous writer and loves penning stories, notes, lists, and insightful thoughts.  Her creativity and imaginative ways of describing things never fail to impress me, and oftentimes crack me up.

"Virginia Country".  I never said she was at the third grade level for spelling.

"Eliza's Enchanted Stories: Which is a Chapter Book.  Writing is soooo much fun.  Space is interesting.  Both of my Grandpas have died.  I have traveled all over Europe and live in Hungary but my home is Virginia.  Soon, I am going to find out where I am moving in America.  I hope Virginia.  My 'thingers' are crossed."

My list-loving girl.  The apple doesn't fall far from the tree...

She is curious about everything and loves to learn.  She loves a documentary, the news, and especially loves learning about the past.   I hope she never looses her enthusiasm for school and her passion for learning.

And it goes without saying that she is still loads of fun and still the coolest (and oftentimes the most delightfully strange) person I know.

While we have certainly had our share of doubt as to whether or not picking up our lives and moving to Eastern Europe was the right thing to do for our family -- a good choice in our 'choose-you-own-adventure', if you will -- we can look into our daughter's eyes and see a world of wonder, knowledge, openness, and confidence shining back at us through those big, beautiful blue eyes, telling us that yes, yes it was.

Eliza is still the girl she was when she left Virginia.   And our new life at home will look very similar to the one we left behind.  If you didn't know better, you could almost skip over this entire chapter.  At one point in the beginning of this big adventure, we wanted to.

But this experience has shaped her (and us) in a way that we couldn't even imagine had we not left our comfortable life behind and dove headfirst into this strange new complicated world.

In this chapter, she has evolved as a girl.  She has grown more into the person she will one day become.  She has learned more about the world and more about herself.

Our simpler life at home will breathe into her soul what she was missing while abroad and she will meet it with the strength, grace, and open mind that she developed by living life outside of the box -- and country -- for a little while.  With that, I cannot wait to see what she chooses to do in this next chapter (and the next chapter, and the next...) of her life.

Lucky for me, I get a front row seat.