Back in the USA

I was giddy boarding the plane in Paris bound for NYC. Standing in line on the jet way I struck up a brief conversation with a lovely NYC couple returning from their honeymoon in Paris. I was talking to a real American citizen, speaking real English, agreeing on how thrilling it is to travel internationally but so thankful we are to be heading home - back to the USA.

My feelings surprised me as days prior I was questioning if I even wanted to be back in the USA. I am fiercly patriotic and in love with my country but our adventure opened my eyes to the world, seeing new ways of life, new ways of thinking and that made me want to continue, explore more. From that aspect I was not entirely sure I was ready to come home. However, my feelings betrayed my thoughts as they usually do. I was excited!

The boys were equally excited. As we were disembarking the plane, on US soil, they were jockeying for who would be the "first one back in the US. The first one 'home." We left the plane saying thank you and goodbye in French never looking back.

We turned the corner into US Immigrations and saw a huge Stars and Stripes hanging proudly and we all squeeeled with delight! Full of American pride we marched past the long, long, long, que for "visitors" to enter my country then past the line for legal alien residents and went straight to the, shortest line of all, the que for U.S. Citizens!

Post number 37 opened and as we appoached the counter the immigration agent, a big black man with a wicked New York accent, was complaining to his fellow agent in post 36 how much he hates the new passport machines and thinks its absurd our government wasting so much money on new equipment when the old ones worked better, processed faster and didn't breakdown as often. We stood quietly in front of him while he finished his rant. When he was done he asked for our passports and processed us through. Listening to him made me smile, chuckle actually.

You see this is one aspect that makes our country the greatest on the planet. Here is a government employee sharing his disgust on wasteful spending which he is FREE TO DO. NO WHERE did we see a scene like this. EVERYWHERE else immigration agents sat quietly in their cubicles motioning the next traveler through doing their job with no conversation to their fellow worker, or to the passing traveler. Sometimes I would try to engage the agent in conversation but was usually unsuccessful.

We've been around the world visited 22 countries on 6 continents and we all agree that the United States of America is still the best country on the face of the earth; even with all our problems.

Our immigration agent as post number 37 turned out to be a friendly man who we had a lively conversation with as he processed us through with a "welcome home".

I took the opportunity give the boys some insight as to what they just experienced and it started a wonderful, thought provoking, how governments work conversation that I love having with my boys. God bless America, Land that I love!