I forgot ...

During the nearly three months I was gone, I forgot a lot of things. I forgot ...

... what it would feel like to see Cheryl's house and not see her walk out of it. Seeing her house everyday makes me a bit emotional. I didn't emotionally prepare for her departure. Why do I often expect her to walk out the front door when I know she is gone?

... about hearing the call to prayer every few hours during the day. Hearing the "call" and seeing minarets at every toss and turn reminds that I live in a country that is 99.9% Muslim. I tryto remember to pray for this country I live in every time I hear or see these things.

... how small this Base is. The BX is just tiny. I see people I know everywhere I go. After being in Germany for most of the summer, I completely forgot what a small town I live in. I missed it tremendously.

... how wonderful my bed is. Oh how I missed my big king-sized bed.

... how dirty Turkey is. I don't know a nice way to say this. I don't think, truly, that there was ever a piece of misplaced trash in Germany. Everything was thrown away properly. There is so much garbage here. It is so brown here. Just dirty. The comparison between this country and Germany is so extreme in this area.

... the fact that lane markers do not exist here. We ventured off-Base yesterday. Took Patty and Yamil to the M1 Mall. I squealed numerous times as cars weaved back and forth across lanes. I forgot that lane markers here are just suggestions. I have to get my backbone back again before I drive off-Base myself again.