I am not funny, China is funny.: My own personal amusement park

Miracle Strip Amusement Park was the place to go in the summer when I was younger. My nights there would be filled with laughs as we rode rides like the Log Flume and Dante’s Inferno. Some of my best belly laughs came while riding the Musical Express! All was fun and games until my cousin, Amy, wanted to ride the roller coaster. “Come on, Chryssa, you’ll like it.” Truth be told, I hated every moment in the forever long line and the anticipation as the coaster climbed each steep hill. As I departed the ride, even though my hands ached from holding on so tight, I still managed a smile.

Since March, my time in the states has been a little like those moments at Miracle Strip. I have watched beautiful sunsets and had great belly laughs as I have caught up with friends and family as we reminisced over old memories and made some new. I was there to welcome my new nephew just a few days ago. What a special gift! My “hold on tight” moment came when Tony’s mom was diagnosed with a brain tumor in May. As frightening as that moment was for all of us, she has pulled through and doing better than we could ever imagine! Our roller coaster ride continued as our place of residency came into question. In June, it became pretty clear that Texas was not going to be our home…at least not at the moment. We became hopeful for a project in Raleigh, NC. Unfortunately that fell through. It now looks like our family will be relocating to the Philippines. The kids and I will head to Clemson for the start of school while Tony awaits final word on our move. And so the roller coaster ride continues. Hey, maybe I will like it…and manage a smile.