Burj Khalifa, Dubai
In August I'll be moving to Dubai to take a new job at an International School there. Both sad to be leaving Abu Dhabi, and excited by this new opportunity. Even though it is only about an hour and a half up the road, I know my life is going to change a lot.
Why do I say, "Inshallah?" Because I have learned never to count on anything definitively over here, and that if it is "God's Will" it will happen, and if it doesn't happen, it wasn't God's Will.
Most likely, it is going to happen, although sometimes I still get the urge to run from the UAE. Sometimes I just want to go home! For good. But then the opportunities open up over here, and I can't resist seeing where it will lead. If I had known how difficult it would be at times, living here, would I have come over in the first place?
I'll never know the answer to that question, as I got the initial teaching job in May 2011, and haven't looked back. Abu Dhabi has been so good to me, in so many ways, and I finally know my way around pretty well. Mostly I am going to miss seeing my friends on a weekly basis and our Saturday night meditation. I won't be that far away so hopefully I can come back and forth some weekends. And I hope I have a bit of space in my new apartment for visitors!
Abu Dhabi Party People
A special note to any of my friends/family in the USA who may read this post... please know that your support is more appreciated and needed than ever. It is my connection to you that makes me strong enough to make this change and to continue this journey. If I don't always know how to express this, I am saying it now! I love you all!
So anyway, change, bring it on!
Dubai should be a blast compared to what Al Ain was for me 20 years ago. (Has it really been that long?)
ReplyDeleteEveryone keeps telling me I am going to like Dubai. I think things have changed quite a bit in 20 years, although perhaps Al Ain is slower to change. Abu Dhabi has changed a lot in 5 years and they just keep building! 20 years goes by fast, doesn't it?
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