Lisa Leaves. =^(

The dreaded day of Lisa's departure from Japan arrived more quickly than any of us expected. She is one of those people who struggles with expressions of emotion and hates mushy farewells, so she wouldn't allow us to plan a big farewell bash for her. However, our north area crew insisted on taking her out to dinner at one of her favorite restaurants for one final family meal. For the most part it felt like a normal night out - nothing too sad or emotional - until someone mentioned that this may be the last time Lisa would get to have some authentic fried cheese rolls. It's amazing the seemingly inconsequential things that can serve as the proverbial "straw that broke the camel's back" and bring on the waterworks...

On Halloween our first year in Misawa, Derick (Lisa's husband) dressed up like James for Halloween. So we've been planning for months how we'd get them back by dressing up as Derick and Lisa for their farewell party. It's kind of funny because, at first, Lisa was totally oblivious. I think she was so hungry she couldn't focus on anything other than food... But after she'd had some egg drop soup and cashew chicken, she started to notice and laughed really hard at my over-the-top tribute to her bohemian style.

She often layers dresses and swimsuit cover-ups over jeans or tights with hiking boots, and adds colorful scarves, eclectic jewelry and feathers to her hair. I think it was a pretty good costume. Dressing like Derick doesn't take much effort. Tee shirt, gelled hair, and carrying around either a jug of Arizona tea or a can of monster usually does the trick. ;^)

After dinner we went back to our friend Sara's house for dessert and to just hang out. It was extremely casual - just one more night with our north area family. Unfortunately, it was a work night so we couldn't stay too long. Before we left, though, I insisted on getting a picture of our core group of friends. We're all close friends, but I think Lisa has a special place in each of our hearts and we all felt like our best friend was getting on that plane the next day...

Thanks to a freak blizzard which delayed the Patriot Express by one day, we got to put off saying good bye for one more night. That Tuesday was our friend Starlyn's birthday so we all went out for dinner at a favorite local restaurant and tried to focus on celebrating something other than Lisa. I think she was relieved to have the focus taken off of her. I couldn't resist getting one last picture though...

Sara and Kendall said their peace to Lisa that night after dinner because they thought it would be too painful to go see her off at the terminal the next day. But I was resolutely in denial and refused to say good bye till I absolutely had to. I met her at the terminal when she arrived and helped her get checked in and take care of her pets while she waited to board the plane. Several friends stopped by for one last hug, which provided ample distraction.

But finally, they made the announcement that all people with pets needed to proceed through the security check point. That's about when I lost it. We hugged, said good bye, and I walked out the door before things got too out of hand. It was a rough couple of days and there are still things that make me cry from time to time (like writing this blog for instance. Goodness!)

For me, Lisa was a big part of what made Misawa feel like home. So it's just not right seeing her house lay quiet and empty and not hearing her raucous laughter at parties or following her lead when we explore Japan. But for the most part we're adjusting ok to her absence and it sounds like she's already up to all kinds of adventures back in the States.

I can't wait till our first reunion. I know it will be EPIC! ;^)