It is a good thing I can control my abandonment issues, because they would certainly kick in at the end of each semester. One of the roughest things about being an ex-pat for me is the continual cycle of relationships. People appear in our lives, for 3-9 months and then disappear. Well, they at least return to the US, so they may as well disappear. Unless they return here, I will never see them again.
Just over a week ago, Todd Berliner, the Distinguished Chair Fulbright scholar and his wife Dana Sachs Berliner, left for their Carolina home to the humidity and mosquitoes. Dana sent a note stating this fact. Dana, a celebrated author is her own right was a member of the writing group I belong to. Ron and I bonded with these two immediately. There was nothing not to like about them, but tons to things to want them to hang out here for a decade at least. I for one was very sad when they left.
Now it is Jeff Frawley's turn to leave. Jeff was a Fulbright student here last year. His grant was to write a novel. He was here for 9 months off the regular track of other Fulbright grantees. We also formed an immediate bond with he and his girlfriend Allison Layfield. When they left, it there was a vacuum in our lives that had not been refilled. Eventually, I talked Jeff into taking one of the teaching positions at ELTE where I teach, but in the English department. He did and returned solo in January. From February on, he rented our other apartment. We were close and spent a good amount of time together. At the end of the semester, Allison returned for the summer and again our foursome socialized to a healthy extent.
Tonight the four of us went to the movies together. We had drinks first and then saw Moonrise Kingdom. Jeff and Allison had seen it already and wanted to see it again. It is beyond me why they would suffer through it twice, but Ron liked it so I was odd man out. Perhaps, I couldn't stop thinking of their leaving, so there was that distraction.
Tomorrow, we will take them out for dinner and have our final good-byes.
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