the struggle bus

The impish smile that frequently lights up Junebug’s face when we point a camera in her direction can be misleading. The last couple of months have been a real struggle. Whether the blame lies with the lack of peer play occasioned by our prolonged isolation, comparative lack of attention as we focus on Munchkin’s studies, her age and changing sleeping patterns, or a combination of these factors, we may never know. What is certain is that Junebug’s sweet disposition has given way to a mercurial temperament that has made life significantly more unpleasant for all of us.

local wildlife

Trawling through our files for pictures to use for our 1,000th post provided a pleasant trip down memory lane. All of the photographs we wound up featuring were taken in Africa — the continent where we began our Foreign Service odyssey and one that remains near and dear to our hearts. When it comes to visually arresting landscapes, Africa is hard to top, and the wildlife encounters it harbors are unparalleled.

the big 1,000

When we embarked on our first Foreign Service assignment nine summers ago, recently married and thrilled at the opportunities this career might open up, S suggested that we start a blog to help our friends and family keep abreast of our adventures. Nine years and 999 posts later, this blog has undergone nearly as many transformations as we have. What started out as just a way to help us keep in touch with our loved ones — there was little to differentiate our initial posts from the periodic email updates we used to send out during our backpacking days — has become quite a lot more.

minor misadventure

It is commonly said that it is better to be lucky than to be good. Based on a recent misadventure that befell D, we would propose a corollary to this dictum: it is better to be dumb and careless than unlucky.

the best of times

The pandemic has simultaneously magnified the joys and horrors of parenthood. Spending every waking moment of every day with our kids is sure to strengthen our familial bonds…assuming they don’t drive us to lunacy or homicide first. Just as Munchkin has become more pliant following our relocation to Arizona, Junebug — who for many months had embodied the ideal of giggly, cuddly toddler sweetness — developed a disagreeable streak. Not for the first time in our six-and-a-half years of parenthood have we juxtaposed Junebug’s antics with our vague recollections of Munchkin’s behavior at this age, debating which phase of childhood we liked the best.

holding pattern

The fifth month of our sojourn in Sedona dawned torrid but otherwise quite pleasant, the eventual end to our temporary reprieve from locked down Manila as up in the air as it was at the outset of our evacuation. Administratively, we are nearing a critical juncture, as evacuations are statutorily limited to a period of no more than six months. What happens next remains a mystery, however, as conditions in the Philippines are not auspicious for a return in the near term. Quite the contrary, in fact, as Metro Manila was placed under a stricter level of quarantine last week following a significant spike in confirmed coronavirus cases.

the perfect shot

Many of our favorite pursuits involve a fair amount of pain and frustration. In a way, it’s what makes them worthwhile. A gorgeous mountain panorama glimpsed at daybreak from atop a snow-capped peak, seen only by those willing to persevere through an ice climb in the dead of night, is all the more magnificent after the drudgery of the ascent. A nail-biter victory in a closely contested match is all the sweeter against the backdrop of countless team practices and the bitter taste of defeat. If these successes came too easily, they wouldn’t give such a rush.

fair play

For those who have never studied psychology, parenting offers fascinating insights into the human mind. For example, children experience perceived injustice viscerally from an early age and show signs of genuine empathy in their toddler years, not only feeling the pain of others but also attempting to soothe it. We lived this vividly when Junebug was about two-and-a-half and, for a time, would burst out in sympathy tears whenever Munchkin got upset. She would even cry and try to comfort him when the cause of his sour mood was us scolding him for being mean to her.

puppy love

A month has passed since we sent our beloved dog to greener pastures in Maine in preparation for our eventual return to Manila. We had nurtured the hope that the passage of time would dilute Junebug’s sadness at having to part with Emmie, but to date her attachment remains as strong as ever. Then again, Junebug never ceases to surprise us with the strength of her memories and depth of her feelings. Munchkin, for example, seems to wipe his mental slate mostly clean with each of our moves. He talks about Manila much less frequently than Junebug does, and his memories of our earlier assignments are fuzzy, at best. Junebug, by contrast, surprises with incredibly detailed recollections of her daily routine in Manila and regularly requests to call her best friend for a video play date.