We shall not cease from exploration
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time.
— “Little Gidding”, by T.S. Eliot
The holiday season is drawing to a close, and for many of us, that means
going back to familiar routines of school and work and life in general.
I have always enjoyed the break the Christmas season brings, and the
chance to catch up to friends and family, some of which I haven’t seen
since the year previous. This year also brought the occasion to travel,
and so I went to California for a week. I had an absolutely amazing
time; I spent New Year’s Eve wandering through the redwoods and walking
along the beach with a wonderful girl — it was the stuff memories are
made of. But I discovered something more. As I visited the places, and
conversed with the locals, I came to understand something of the
differences between the two places — California and home. Things that I
had rarely questioned were questioned, and I wondered the logic of some
of the things they took for granted.