Spring break 2018 brought with it the "return" to what has been, for a couple years now, the place the girls want to be. In many ways it was the warm and wonderful place we remember and, for the girls, the place that moulded them. We all miss ISKL and Malaysia very much, but with the passage of time the circumstances change too. Our visit to Melawati gave us a reconnection with the place before ISKL moves to a much larger, new location next academic year. In that way it was a bit of a closure for us. The next time we come back things will be much different, with the new location severing the ties we have to the place that has been part of so many memories.
Mommy and Daddy spent hours reconnecting with friends and collegues, with daddy spending close to an hour just in the Ampang guardhouse talking to the guards and supervisors there. Once inside it was an additional three hours at each of the two campuses, Ampang and Melawati.
For the girls the visit was a bit shorter, as the time they were able to spend with friends needed to revolve around the daily schedule. In time the girls found what they were looking for: For Irini it was a chance to share one more experience with her friends (the last time she was with them was in second grade) during lunch and recess. For Amalia it was visiting (and giving the requisite hugs) her old teachers as well as spending a good amount of time in the library.
As we left Malaysia we could help but feel that "tug" that it had always offered us. A sense of home. But, at the same time, we left knowing that our place was elsewhere now, and we are happy living in the now. The visit offered us the time for "closure" at least for now and a chance to celebrate both our past and our present.
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