Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Blogging, Change, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Expat Transitions & Change, Identity, Life Balance, Repatriation, Writing, tagged #MyGlobalLife LinkUp, blogging, building a life, career, change, choice, community, connection, expat, gift, identity, loss, needs, opportunity, priorities, re-entry transition, re-imagining, redefining, reinvention, repat, Repatriation, SmallPlanetStudio, values, vulnerability, wants, writing on March 28, 2014 | 4 Comments »
Lately I’ve been doing a fair bit of writing on re-entry transition because, well, I’m several months into repatriation after four years in the Netherlands. I do so not simply because it’s what is foremost in my thoughts and daily actions, but also to understand. Writing about repatriation helps me grasp significance, identify patterns, comprehend […]
Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Change, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Expat Life, Expat Transitions & Change, Global Issues, Identity, Repatriation, Third Culture Kids (TCKs), Expat Teens, Travel, tagged 'unexpected angels', Beijing, comings and goings, connections, crisis, emergencies, expatriate life, expats, Families in Global Transition, FIGT conference, grief, helping each other, identity, intercultural transitions, Kuala Lumpur, leaving, loss, Malaysia Airlines flight #370, mobility, sanctuary, saying goodbye, turmoil on March 26, 2014 | Leave a Comment »
In the early days of missing Malaysian Airlines Flight #370, I had no intention of writing about it. The tale of how 239 people boarded an airplane in Kuala Lumpur but never made it to Beijing is a sad, troubling one. The last thing I want to do is add to the grief, frustration and […]
Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Change, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Expat Life, Expat Transitions & Change, Expats A to Z, Identity, Repatriation, tagged adult Third Culture Kid, ATCK, change, cross-cultural, culture shock, expat, expatriate life, identity, identity congruence, leaving, loss, patience, repatriate, TCK, Third Culture Kid, thrive, transitions, who we are on January 20, 2014 | 6 Comments »
Time for another entry under Expats A to Z, a series of posts about the little things that can make a difference in how we approach some of the challenges and experiences of expatriate – and repatriate – life. I’m talking about those qualities and traits we can nurture within us not only to simply survive, but thrive amid […]
Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Blogging, Change, Creativity, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Expat Transitions & Change, Family & Friends, Holidays, Identity, Life Balance, Light Bulb Moments, Repatriation, Writing, tagged 2013, 2014, being in the moment, bigger picture, blogging, building a life, change, creativity, cross-cultural, culture, daily resolutions, expat, global nomad, identity, larger view, mindfulness, New Year's Resolutions, reflection, reflective interlude, repat, Repatriation, resolution, TCK, transitions, writing on January 12, 2014 | 2 Comments »
In my latest blog post, Intermezzo, I wrote of taking stock of 2013, a year which for several reasons I’m glad to see in my rear view mirror. That’s not to say that many wonderful things didn’t happen last year, they did. But there were some unexpected challenges on top of some tough moments, and […]
Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Change, Creativity, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Expat Transitions & Change, Family & Friends, Identity, Re-entry Reality, Repatriation, United States, tagged arts, Chapel Hill, concerts, creativity, cross-culturals, culture, Durham, expat, expatriate life, expats, forests, global wayfarers, haven, high-tech corridor, home, identity, international business, NC, Netherlands, oasis, Raleigh, re-entry stage, Repatriation, repats, research, the Triangle, theater, transition, United States, university, writing on October 11, 2013 | 4 Comments »
As mentioned recently in Under Construction, I hope you’ll join me as I navigate the re-entry stage in our repatriation journey. Every three months I’ll share a series of ‘snapshot’ blog posts about the particulars of building a new life from scratch, filed under the post category Re-entry Reality. I’ll look at everything from making a home, engaging […]
Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Blogging, Change, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Emotional Resilience, Expat Authors & Others, Expat Life, Expat Transitions & Change, Identity, Repatriation, Riveting Expat Reads, Writing, tagged adrift, An Inconvenient Posting: An Expat Wife's Memoir of Lost Identity, anxiety, blogging, book, Brit in Texas, cross-cultural, culture shock, depression, depressive episode, downward spiral, emotional resilience, emotionally healthy, expat life, expat transitions, grieving loss, Houston, identity, journaling, Laura J. Stephens, loneliness, mental health, pain, positive mental health, recovery, recuperation, Repatriation, self-care, Summertime Publishing, therapist, therapy, writing on January 10, 2013 | 8 Comments »
We’re already into double digits (gasp!) in January, and fortunately my New Year’s resolutions for 2013 are going swimmingly. I say this because I want you to know that I have not neglected you, my Adventurer community. (See how neatly I just tied you back to one of my resolutions? Impressive, I know.) It’s just that I’m recently […]
Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Change, Creativity, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Emotional Resilience, Expat Authors & Others, Expat Life, Expat Transitions & Change, Family & Friends, Forced to Fly (2nd ed.) Book, Identity, Repatriation, Riveting Expat Reads, Travel, Writing, tagged Adventures in Expat Land, Apple Gidley, Bitten by Spain, creativity, culture clash, culture shock, Deborah Fletcher, emotional resilience, empathy, Expat Apple, expat life, expat transitions, Forced to Fly, Forced to Fly: An Anthology of Writing That Will Make You See the Funny Side of Living Abroad, funny stories, going abroad, humor, I Was an Expat Wife, identity, innovation, Jack Scott, Jo Parfitt, laughter, Linda A Janssen, living abroad, living overseas, Maria Foley, Niamh Ni Bhroin, Perking the Pansies, Repatriation, Riveting Expat Reads, Robin Pascoe, Summertime Publishing, The Singing Warrior, travel, wordgeyser on October 5, 2012 | 10 Comments »
It is an exciting day here in Expat Land: we’re madly flapping our wings for take-off, determined to catch the wind currents, achieve flight and soar. ‘What’s with the flight metaphors?’ you ask. ‘They’re flying left and right.’ Heh heh. Today marks the book launch of the second edition of Forced to Fly: An Anthology of Writings That Will Make […]
Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Blogging, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Emotional Resilience, Expat Authors & Others, Identity, Riveting Expat Reads, Writing, tagged alienation, author, blogging, Catherine Transler, connectedness, cross-cultural, emotional wellbeing, ExpatScience.com, identity, isolation, Kiva.org, loneliness, meditation, mindfulness, neuroscience, psychology, resilience, social networks, Turning International, Turning International: How to Find Happiness and Feel at Home in a New Culture, visualization, writing on September 15, 2012 | 8 Comments »
Last month I mentioned that I was catching up on reading in the broad genre of expat life stories. At the time I was hopping between four distinctly different books: a memoir sharing insights and experience for those considering a mid-life move abroad, another about the journey back from the dark side of depression, still another filled with sweeping […]
Posted in Authors (Other), Change, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Expat Life, Expat Transitions & Change, Identity, Riveting Expat Reads, Writing, tagged Anne P. Copeland, change, cultural adjustments, cultural dimensions, cultural sensitivity, cultural transitions, culture shock, expat transitions, identity, In Their Own Voice: Intercultural Meaning in Everyday Stories, Marissa Lombardi, The Interchange Institute, writing on April 18, 2012 | 6 Comments »
Earlier this year I read what I can only describe as an incredibly uplifting book, but I am only now getting around to sharing it with you. Shame on me, because it is the kind of informative, thought-provoking book that stays on your mind long after you read it. Its name? In Their Own Voice: […]
Posted in Blogging, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Expat Life, Identity, tagged awkward, Borat, cultures, embarrassment, identity, International Day, Kazakhstan, misconceptions, national pride, preconceived notions, Sacha Baron Cohen on March 13, 2012 | 12 Comments »
The other evening Daughter and I were sitting in the family room, just relaxing together. I was reading a historical mystery written by a friend (more on that in another post) while Daughter was catching up on Facebook. ‘Wow, sometimes Kaia can really go off on a rant,’ she said, turning to me. ‘But you […]
Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Change, Creativity, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Expat Authors & Others, Expat Life, Identity, Light Bulb Moments, Riveting Expat Reads, Turning Points Book, Writing, tagged aspirations, book launch, change, fear, identity, Jo Parfitt, Kate Cobb, light bulb moments, longings, regrets, transformation, Turning Points book, writing on November 1, 2011 | 22 Comments »
It’s finally here. Today is Tuesday, November 1st. As I mentioned a couple days ago in And What Might YOUR Turning Point Be?, today also happens to be the global book launch of Turning Points: 25 Inspiring Stories From Women Entrepreneurs Who Have Turned Their Careers and Their Lives Around. The book concept is the […]
Posted in Adventures Big & Small, Culture, Crosscultural, Intercultural & Multicultural, Emotional Resilience, Expat Authors & Others, Expat Life, Expat Transitions & Change, Identity, Life Balance, Riveting Expat Reads, Third Culture Kids (TCKs), Expat Teens, tagged Barbara Schaetti, David Pollock, emotional resilience, expats, identity, Robin Pascoe, Ruth Van Reken, Tina Quick on May 31, 2011 | 6 Comments »
Well here we go. As mentioned briefly in an earlier post, I’ve been busy working on a five-part series entitled ‘Emotional Resilience in Expat Life.’ The first article, ‘Identity and the Expat’ debuted today on I Am Expat. I’m sharing it with you here on my blog because I believe that emotional resilience is important to […]
my read shelf:
